How to stop being boring!
Lots of people have the problem of delivery, they have all the experience, the right answers, they know what they’re talking about, but when they speak they send people to sleep! Time to call Kenny Refresh for some interview coaching.
Recently we had a client looking for interview coaching because they just couldn’t get out of ‘interview mode’. ‘Interview mode’ is when a person is speaking so formally and unnaturally that they can sometimes sound robotic or rehearsed. Imagine giving a presentation to your school class when you’re 13 years old, it's stunted, monotone, and reliant on notes. Ultimately it doesn’t sound human, let alone yourself! Our client was an expert in their field, having spent years building their career, getting their head down and working hard. Their field of work didn’t really require public speaking or any kind of formal presentation experience, so they had no idea how to talk about their work in an engaging way. Not usually a problem at the pub, but it’s the whole point of a job interview!
The route I decided to take was to talk to this client about their lives on a personal level. I got to know them and made them feel comfortable talking to me about their pets, hobbies, children, and anything of interest to them. I recorded this (with permission of course!) and then we went through a small mock interview, asking 3 or 4 formal interview questions and recording their answers. Then we sat down and watched the two styles side by side and the difference was palpable, the client went from broad smiles and funny stories, to deadpan face and monotonous speaking. I asked them, why? What would you think if you were the interviewer, would you hire yourself? The content of what they were saying was fine, but it was so hard to concentrate on the things they said. After this we tried to figure out how to get out of ‘interview mode’ and bring their own personality to the interview.
The first step in this approach was to take ownership of the tone of the interview itself. Interviews are conversations, not interrogations, you aren’t going to jail if you say the wrong thing! So we looked at the first 5 minutes and came up with a battle plan to break their own ice, we identified that every interview usually starts with ‘tell me about yourself’, or something similar. Rather than reading off their CV and talking about work experience I asked them to talk to me about everything but work to practice, tell me about your life, where are you from etc. This made the client feel like a human being, and not just a CV with a mouth. After this the shoulders relaxed, the conversation flowed, and before you knew it the mock interview was over and they didn’t even feel the usual pressure. The next day my client walked into their interview with their head held high and smashed it!
The lesson here? Be yourself, a job interview is a conversation, you’re not on trial, you aren’t a child being told off by the headteacher, you’re a human being who is also a professional and peer of those interviewing you, so be confident!
Want to know more about interview techniques? Get in touch at hello@wearekenny.com and ask for Josh!
