Questions to ponder

In interviews, on panels and at cocktail receptions, weird and wonderful questions get posed. How would you answer some of these?

In your role, what techniques do you use to deal with change?

What advice can you give to others to break through the glass ceiling?

What do you find helps you to deal with work/life balance?

How important is a personal brand?  How do you develop yours?

Did you ever have to step down i.e. take a position of a lower level in order to step up?

What's the best interview question to ask as an interviewer and as an interviewee?

What's the biggest motivator for you today: money, recognition or challenge?

Is it important that leaders are subject matter experts in their fields? Why?

Storytelling - part 2

Tell a story. Sounds simple? We do it all the time. Suddenly, call it a story and all sorts of associations may arise and stop our voice. Will we be seen as emotional? Fanciful? Boring? Bombastic? Clueless?

Examples of stories:

• our personal introductions
• how we got a job
• what our kid has done lately (said with an eye roll)
• advice given with personal anecdotes for support

The list above isn't exhaustive. These stories roll off our tongues at a moment's notice. Suddenly calling a story out as a story should not make us stumble, though it often does.

It's best to be thoughtful about key stories, to prepare them to achieve what you hope they can. The heart of a story is often found in:

• What do I most need you to know?
• How do I hope you feel about it?
• What might you do with this information?

Facts are often only focused on the first or last question - either dumping facts or ordering results. Telling a story helps us walk through the possibilities together. The formula applies equally to emails, phone messages, anecdotes and introductions. Telling a story can make the interview or deepen a relationship.

Tell a story - embed the answers to the questions - see if the results emerge.

Informational interviews

Informational "interviews" are not just for when you're seeking a job.

Actually - often the worst time to do an informational interview is when the person seeking work is more focused on finding an immediate opportunity than looking long-term... and the person on the other end of the coffee table then either feels guilty they have nothing to offer or feels tricked into a real interview. (there's little worse for a developing relationship than tossing in some guilt and angst)

If you are looking for work, be upfront. Tell folks this is about seeking a job now and that your questions will be about current opportunities. Be open about wanting to pre-sell yourself into a formal interview. Don't pass it off as "informational" and low-risk if you're really hoping for fast results. (this also goes for calling it "networking" when you're really job hunting; networks must be in place before using them to job search...)
A few thoughts:

1 - If you're truly seeking information with which you'll do some some career planning and decisions, assure your contact that you're not hitting them up for work but genuinely interviewing them about ideas and guidance.

2 - Come prepared with questions. Don't look blankly at your contact and hope they offer a gem.

3 - Ensure your questions can't be answered by a little online research. Nothing says "lazy" like coming unprepared.

4 - Ask questions about cultural aspects "What approaches does your group take to find new ideas?" "What happens when an idea is obviously a failure?" "What's the top skill admired in your team today?"

5 - Be more interested in asking questions and seeking information than about making sure they know all about how terrific you are. You are interviewing them, not the other way around. However, if they start with questions, ask honestly "Would you like to make this a two-way interview? I'm happy to sell myself!"

6 - Have a clear outcome for the interview: Do you need enough information to decide if you might be interested in the industry /company at some date? Do you want a second connection? etc.

Think of the informational interview like the call setting up a first date. Don't ask for marriage. Don't ask for commitment /favours /don't taste stuff on their plate / don't sit in their lap. Simply see if you can have a conversation and see how far that takes you towards your goal.

Resumes - is yours telling your story or just the facts?

Your resume will be given about 30 seceonds of a hiring manager's time. Don't waste a bullet point. Every line should tell - or lead to - a story.

In the past week, I've helped with over a dozen resumes and they all did the same thing: listed a job title and then proceeded to list what duties that job required, most of which were table stakes. "Managed a team" "Delivered projects on time/on budget" "Met with clients".

Duh.

If you hadn't done those basic activities - also known as "table stakes" - then I assume your manager would have fired you. The duties were implied by the job title.

The real question to answer on your resume is:What did YOU accomplish in that framework of duties? What story are you trying to convey? Did you rock the world with a new process? Save someone oodles of money? Gain a new skill? Hire a brilliant successor?

Are you applying for a new role where you'll have to help the hiring manager understand your skills are transferable? What accomplishments in previous roles would illustrate those skills you hope to highlight?

Too often we think we'll get the chance to explain the above in an interview. The real trick is getting the interview by intriguing the hiring manager with the stories on your resume.

Make it short. Make it skimmable. Make it about you and not the job duties.

Interviews - the pre-screening

If you've ever been called to the Principal's Office... an interview feels much the same. You sit in a chair waiting for someone to see you who may, or may not, be swayed by what you have to say. You make sure your hair is brushed, your buttons are buttoned and your palms unsweaty.

Preparing for an interview happens well before the actual appointment. It starts with a well-crafted resume and is often preceded by a phone interview. Most folks are happy with hearing they have a phone interview and usually spend most of their effort convincing the interviewer to let them move to the next step. (at least, that's what I do :-)

I also use the pre-screening call to prepare for the 'big' interview and to ascertain that the company will fit me. It sounds pushy but it creates a more engaging conversation to do more than answer questions (a passive conversation). By having some questions of my own ready to roll, I can appear more interesting and more of a leader.

• First, I make sure I know my current skills for which I wish to be most known. Then, not only can I answer the question of "what skills do you think are your strengths" but I can ask "What skills are currently the hardest for your company to find?" "What is the most valued leadership trait in your organization?"
• I have an answer ready for "what do you want to be in 5 years"...just in case they ask. Then I ask "What's the company's philosophy on moving people around internally?"
• Then, depending on my connection (or not) with the phone interviewer, I may ask: "What's the one thing your company did this year that made you proud to work for them?" "What's your company's involvement around Women in Leadership?" "Are employees encouraged to blog either within the company or outside?"

You can google many ways to do a good pre-screening interview. Just add a few questions of your own and make it a two-way conversation; create a connection and stand out for your people skills.