Interviewing & doing something wrong, Too honest, exagerating too much?
August 26, 2021 2:02 PM Subscribe
I just had a poor interview and was cut off halfway through. I may be too honest about not working for some time, my resume says I'm working (for my own company), I tell that I'm studying related material, and that I've been focused on job searching. Also - imposter syndrome
I've been around the block and have a lot of experience in international business development, but went back to grad school to get into organizational consulting. Since the beginning of the year I've been getting more than one interview a week. I've gotten to final rounds a few times and ever turned things down, but I'm doing something wrong. I think ultimately I'm not promoting myself well which is interesting because I used to work in sales. Here are my thoughts:
- Too honest - I stopped looking for consulting work in January because I was getting tons of interviews. When asked about current work, I tell them that I've been focused on finding regular employment.
- Maybe dishonest and exagerated - I have my consulting firm on my resume as my current employer which is technically true, but not really because I haven't done any work in a long time and to be honest I wasn't very successful with it pre-covid.
- Too honest - My covid hobby has been upgrading my skills in learning and development as a self-directed learner. (I'm going to ask another question about this next week) but I'm a little concerned that when I tell people I have been upgrading my knowledge of said related topic that I come across as a rookie. This is just fun stuff that should be somewhat attractive in my humble opinion.
- Maybe dishonest or too exaggerated - I have listed on my resume a bunch of organization development and training work that I have done on and off going back many years. A lot of it was grad. school projects which many recommend promoting as real work experience but other people don't think it's legit. The grad. school thing hasn't come up specifically, but it's a potential problem.
- Odd - when I bring up my specialties which should be applicable in different ways I think it takes me out of the running.
----International business which brings a lot of interesting and highly generalizable skills to roles within the home country. I think this got me shot down today. In general, I've stopped promoting this because I've been told that working abroad is clearly my interest and the job didn't include that. "I would probably be happier in a role involving that kind of work" I've been told a few times including today. This was an international company, but my interviewer said it had nothing to do with her dept.
---Today the company did a lot of marketing research in which I brought up my experience and again, this had nothing to do with her dept.
I feel like promoting my specialties actually holds me back.
There is some imposter syndrome. I know that I was rambling a bit. My performance was not the best and I don't blame her for saying that we were not a great fit. I guess in this case the fact that I wasn't telling a compelling story is my fault. She said I didn't have the skills or experience that she needed and I'm not terribly bummed about this particularly poor interview, but overall nothing is happening and it has to be me. As I said, there is some imposter syndrome here that isn't helping. I feel like I'm not always coming across as confident as I should sometimes. Other times, I'm great. I'm coming across as a rookie but I graduated 3 years ago and really have not done much due to some health issues.
My first interview this morning was fantastic though.
Let me know if there are any thoughts. Thanks!
I've been around the block and have a lot of experience in international business development, but went back to grad school to get into organizational consulting. Since the beginning of the year I've been getting more than one interview a week. I've gotten to final rounds a few times and ever turned things down, but I'm doing something wrong. I think ultimately I'm not promoting myself well which is interesting because I used to work in sales. Here are my thoughts:
- Too honest - I stopped looking for consulting work in January because I was getting tons of interviews. When asked about current work, I tell them that I've been focused on finding regular employment.
- Maybe dishonest and exagerated - I have my consulting firm on my resume as my current employer which is technically true, but not really because I haven't done any work in a long time and to be honest I wasn't very successful with it pre-covid.
- Too honest - My covid hobby has been upgrading my skills in learning and development as a self-directed learner. (I'm going to ask another question about this next week) but I'm a little concerned that when I tell people I have been upgrading my knowledge of said related topic that I come across as a rookie. This is just fun stuff that should be somewhat attractive in my humble opinion.
- Maybe dishonest or too exaggerated - I have listed on my resume a bunch of organization development and training work that I have done on and off going back many years. A lot of it was grad. school projects which many recommend promoting as real work experience but other people don't think it's legit. The grad. school thing hasn't come up specifically, but it's a potential problem.
- Odd - when I bring up my specialties which should be applicable in different ways I think it takes me out of the running.
----International business which brings a lot of interesting and highly generalizable skills to roles within the home country. I think this got me shot down today. In general, I've stopped promoting this because I've been told that working abroad is clearly my interest and the job didn't include that. "I would probably be happier in a role involving that kind of work" I've been told a few times including today. This was an international company, but my interviewer said it had nothing to do with her dept.
---Today the company did a lot of marketing research in which I brought up my experience and again, this had nothing to do with her dept.
I feel like promoting my specialties actually holds me back.
There is some imposter syndrome. I know that I was rambling a bit. My performance was not the best and I don't blame her for saying that we were not a great fit. I guess in this case the fact that I wasn't telling a compelling story is my fault. She said I didn't have the skills or experience that she needed and I'm not terribly bummed about this particularly poor interview, but overall nothing is happening and it has to be me. As I said, there is some imposter syndrome here that isn't helping. I feel like I'm not always coming across as confident as I should sometimes. Other times, I'm great. I'm coming across as a rookie but I graduated 3 years ago and really have not done much due to some health issues.
My first interview this morning was fantastic though.
Let me know if there are any thoughts. Thanks!
If the interview is only going halfway through it's probably something that came up that day during interviews, instead of the resume on its own.
And while a shorter than normal interview is a let down, it's better than an all day interview for formality's sake before the rejection. You get half a day back!
One bit of advice - on the question "what have you been doing since January?" the answer "looking for work" doesn't answer it in a way that helps you. More positive would be: "taking time off to recharge" (true) as a baseline. Better: "online courses X and Y related to this job. Also OK: "working on my side project Z." if it's job related, great, but it can also be something unrelated that you are passionate about that shows how you are interested in things and good for the role.
All of those answers lead to interesting conversations, where "I looked for work" omits the more interesting things and doesn't open any conversations up, except "so, how's that search going?" which everyone knows the answer to, since you're at this interview!
posted by zippy at 2:21 PM on August 26, 2021 [9 favorites]
And while a shorter than normal interview is a let down, it's better than an all day interview for formality's sake before the rejection. You get half a day back!
One bit of advice - on the question "what have you been doing since January?" the answer "looking for work" doesn't answer it in a way that helps you. More positive would be: "taking time off to recharge" (true) as a baseline. Better: "online courses X and Y related to this job. Also OK: "working on my side project Z." if it's job related, great, but it can also be something unrelated that you are passionate about that shows how you are interested in things and good for the role.
All of those answers lead to interesting conversations, where "I looked for work" omits the more interesting things and doesn't open any conversations up, except "so, how's that search going?" which everyone knows the answer to, since you're at this interview!
posted by zippy at 2:21 PM on August 26, 2021 [9 favorites]
I don't mean to be rude, but I think someone needs to say this to you directly: You need to read back through your AskMe history about work and interviews and interpersonal interactions, and realize that there are clearly macro issues going on that are likely more relevant to the situation you find yourself in today than anything you said in this particular interview.
You would benefit from seriously reassessing your abilities and experiences (you seem to consider yourself significantly more of an expert than others do when assessing you), and you could likely benefit from coaching around communications and interpersonal skills, especially given the number of challenges you have faced with interviewers.
I wish you the best of luck in all of this, as it will likely be essential to finding a job and then keeping it once hired.
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 2:26 PM on August 26, 2021 [52 favorites]
You would benefit from seriously reassessing your abilities and experiences (you seem to consider yourself significantly more of an expert than others do when assessing you), and you could likely benefit from coaching around communications and interpersonal skills, especially given the number of challenges you have faced with interviewers.
I wish you the best of luck in all of this, as it will likely be essential to finding a job and then keeping it once hired.
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 2:26 PM on August 26, 2021 [52 favorites]
Response by poster: I know it's not preferred on askmefi to comment on your own post, but I really do think it's the "looking for steady work" comment more than anything.
posted by Che boludo! at 2:28 PM on August 26, 2021
posted by Che boludo! at 2:28 PM on August 26, 2021
NotMyselfRightNow says what I was coming here to say - I think you have a gulf between how you view your interactions and how other people are experiencing them; I'm not sure the best way to start to see this, but finding someone you can trust - ie, you are paying them to be honest - to tell how you're coming off might help.
posted by sagc at 2:28 PM on August 26, 2021 [16 favorites]
posted by sagc at 2:28 PM on August 26, 2021 [16 favorites]
I also recognize your username at this point as someone who has a history of issues around communication and self-evaluation. It makes it hard to answer here based on your perception alone. Working individually with some sort of coach would probably make a lot of sense at this point. If by some chance this is totally off-base and it really is just about your recent work history, then a job coach could probably provide some valuable framing advice there, too.
Sticking with what you've told us, though - I wouldn't expect several months of unemployment at this particular pandemic moment to be a dealbreaker in most cases. Things are weird all around, people know that, "I've put my consulting work on the backburner to focus my efforts on job hunting" isn't all that wild. (That said, the longer you go on, the more it may start to be an issue, so if you have any opportunities for a few short/easy jobs here and there, you might take them to keep your job history fresh.)
The thing that jumps out to me is that you're promoting your specializations/interests in positions where they aren't a fit, and hearing from your interviewers that you're coming across as interested in other sorts of positions.
A couple of thoughts here: one, you really do need to be tailoring your interview presence to the position as much as possible. Sometimes it's not possible - you go in thinking the department is one thing, it turns out to be something else. But if this is happening often, it may be a sign that you're not doing sufficient advance research, not asking appropriate questions during any phone screens, and/or just not tailoring your responses. Your interviewer doesn't care about your interests except where they intersect with the job or are relevant to answer a "tell me a time when" question.
Two: you can recover from a "this doesn't seem like what you actually want to do" statement but you have to actively do that! "Actually, while doing [y thing] I've gotten really interested in [x thing that's more in line with what the position does], and I'm really excited about making a transition to that sort of role" is the general idea.
To give you an idea from my own past, I had to sell people on my transition to my current job. I was moving from hands-on research positions to more hands-off administrative work not tied to a specific lab, and they were (quite reasonably) worried that I'd find myself bored or unengaged not being directly part of the science anymore. I told them that while I'd enjoyed my years of lab work, I was finding more and more it was the administrative aspects of it that engaged me, that I found it meaningful and energizing to make science happen in that way, and that I was interested in experiencing research from a different angle. (Also, for fun, I told them truthfully that I had maybe spent enough years with toddler research participants smashing crackers in my hair, and I was pretty excited about the idea of coming home from work every day without being covered in crumbs and the occasional bite-mark.)
Your version of that story would be different, but it sounds like you need to have one.
posted by Stacey at 2:47 PM on August 26, 2021 [25 favorites]
Sticking with what you've told us, though - I wouldn't expect several months of unemployment at this particular pandemic moment to be a dealbreaker in most cases. Things are weird all around, people know that, "I've put my consulting work on the backburner to focus my efforts on job hunting" isn't all that wild. (That said, the longer you go on, the more it may start to be an issue, so if you have any opportunities for a few short/easy jobs here and there, you might take them to keep your job history fresh.)
The thing that jumps out to me is that you're promoting your specializations/interests in positions where they aren't a fit, and hearing from your interviewers that you're coming across as interested in other sorts of positions.
A couple of thoughts here: one, you really do need to be tailoring your interview presence to the position as much as possible. Sometimes it's not possible - you go in thinking the department is one thing, it turns out to be something else. But if this is happening often, it may be a sign that you're not doing sufficient advance research, not asking appropriate questions during any phone screens, and/or just not tailoring your responses. Your interviewer doesn't care about your interests except where they intersect with the job or are relevant to answer a "tell me a time when" question.
Two: you can recover from a "this doesn't seem like what you actually want to do" statement but you have to actively do that! "Actually, while doing [y thing] I've gotten really interested in [x thing that's more in line with what the position does], and I'm really excited about making a transition to that sort of role" is the general idea.
To give you an idea from my own past, I had to sell people on my transition to my current job. I was moving from hands-on research positions to more hands-off administrative work not tied to a specific lab, and they were (quite reasonably) worried that I'd find myself bored or unengaged not being directly part of the science anymore. I told them that while I'd enjoyed my years of lab work, I was finding more and more it was the administrative aspects of it that engaged me, that I found it meaningful and energizing to make science happen in that way, and that I was interested in experiencing research from a different angle. (Also, for fun, I told them truthfully that I had maybe spent enough years with toddler research participants smashing crackers in my hair, and I was pretty excited about the idea of coming home from work every day without being covered in crumbs and the occasional bite-mark.)
Your version of that story would be different, but it sounds like you need to have one.
posted by Stacey at 2:47 PM on August 26, 2021 [25 favorites]
If I had to bet, I would say this interview ended early because you talked about skills that had nothing to do with the job, or even the department. This is a great way to demonstrate you don't understand the position, which is a going to get you weeded out pretty quick.
You also worry about coming across as a rookie, but you also say you just graduated 3 years ago and haven't done much work since. Sounds like a rookie to me. Embracing this and being honest about where you are in your career journey is going to be a lot more appealing to employers than faking confidence and experience.
You should hire a professional career coach, ideally with experience in your field, and figure out what you need to do to get hired. By all accounts the professional job market is red hot right now -- it should be easy.
posted by TurnKey at 2:51 PM on August 26, 2021 [8 favorites]
You also worry about coming across as a rookie, but you also say you just graduated 3 years ago and haven't done much work since. Sounds like a rookie to me. Embracing this and being honest about where you are in your career journey is going to be a lot more appealing to employers than faking confidence and experience.
You should hire a professional career coach, ideally with experience in your field, and figure out what you need to do to get hired. By all accounts the professional job market is red hot right now -- it should be easy.
posted by TurnKey at 2:51 PM on August 26, 2021 [8 favorites]
So, I had “self employed freelance writer/fundraiser” on my resume during the pandemic, despite the fact that in all that time I only did one gig that someone handed to me. I was so incredibly nervous someone was gonna ask me about it in enough detail that it would be clear I wasn’t really doing it.
So I took it off my resume! And it was SO MUCH BETTER. I didn’t have to worry about it anymore, and no interviewers cared that I’d been unemployed for ten months, because COVID.
posted by showbiz_liz at 3:03 PM on August 26, 2021 [4 favorites]
So I took it off my resume! And it was SO MUCH BETTER. I didn’t have to worry about it anymore, and no interviewers cared that I’d been unemployed for ten months, because COVID.
posted by showbiz_liz at 3:03 PM on August 26, 2021 [4 favorites]
Response by poster: I just had a great interview:
Taking advice from Zippy, "Also OK: "working on my side project Z." It worked. I caught the interviewer's attention and led to further discussion.
My specialist interests were 100% applicable in this case so that helped. Unfortunately, there are some pretty hideous things in this company's recent history. Really awful stuff. It was practice I suppose.
Oh, about talking about overestimating my abilities and talking about imposter syndrome, it's entirely possible that I'm overcompensating.
posted by Che boludo! at 3:04 PM on August 26, 2021 [1 favorite]
Taking advice from Zippy, "Also OK: "working on my side project Z." It worked. I caught the interviewer's attention and led to further discussion.
My specialist interests were 100% applicable in this case so that helped. Unfortunately, there are some pretty hideous things in this company's recent history. Really awful stuff. It was practice I suppose.
Oh, about talking about overestimating my abilities and talking about imposter syndrome, it's entirely possible that I'm overcompensating.
posted by Che boludo! at 3:04 PM on August 26, 2021 [1 favorite]
I've been following your questions as well and would also recommend finding a coach.
It sounds like you're eager to work and have much to offer, which is awesome. Clearly the experience included in your resume is impressive enough to get you in the door for an interview, which is also awesome and great!
From your past questions, I'm wondering if you're interpreting the interview as the place for going over your resume, interests, and experience in excruciating detail. It may help to think of the interview is more of a get-to-know-you sort of meeting. Are you a good fit culturally? Are you creating a strong initial rapport with the interviewer? Is there a place for you, personally, on the team? And get to know them as well -- is this a place you'd enjoy working? Is it a solid step on your professional journey?
It may be helpful to think of this as a conversation, a constructive and relaxed back-and-forth, not unlike a friendly coffee date to see if there's something there enough that both sides want to continue.
And it's funny, but interviews are often more about listening than talking. I've been on the hiring side before and I've personally turned away promising candidates who were so focused on proving themselves that they didn't stop to breathe, much less listen. Like, while I was talking I'd watch them stop listening to formulate a response they thought I'd find impressive, but I'd just feel put off by how one-sided it felt. It made me think that this candidate would just Leeroy Jenkins themselves into every situation instead of listening to team members and work with others to find the best possible approach.
I'd wager that if you did work with a coach, they might recommend refreshing your active listening, and maybe doing some practice interviews to help gain your confidence. You'll do great. :)
posted by mochapickle at 3:08 PM on August 26, 2021 [10 favorites]
It sounds like you're eager to work and have much to offer, which is awesome. Clearly the experience included in your resume is impressive enough to get you in the door for an interview, which is also awesome and great!
From your past questions, I'm wondering if you're interpreting the interview as the place for going over your resume, interests, and experience in excruciating detail. It may help to think of the interview is more of a get-to-know-you sort of meeting. Are you a good fit culturally? Are you creating a strong initial rapport with the interviewer? Is there a place for you, personally, on the team? And get to know them as well -- is this a place you'd enjoy working? Is it a solid step on your professional journey?
It may be helpful to think of this as a conversation, a constructive and relaxed back-and-forth, not unlike a friendly coffee date to see if there's something there enough that both sides want to continue.
And it's funny, but interviews are often more about listening than talking. I've been on the hiring side before and I've personally turned away promising candidates who were so focused on proving themselves that they didn't stop to breathe, much less listen. Like, while I was talking I'd watch them stop listening to formulate a response they thought I'd find impressive, but I'd just feel put off by how one-sided it felt. It made me think that this candidate would just Leeroy Jenkins themselves into every situation instead of listening to team members and work with others to find the best possible approach.
I'd wager that if you did work with a coach, they might recommend refreshing your active listening, and maybe doing some practice interviews to help gain your confidence. You'll do great. :)
posted by mochapickle at 3:08 PM on August 26, 2021 [10 favorites]
I don’t have much of substance to add, but I’ll echo others in saying that there are probably underlying issues. I knew you’d written this post after only reading the title.
posted by kevinbelt at 3:14 PM on August 26, 2021 [6 favorites]
posted by kevinbelt at 3:14 PM on August 26, 2021 [6 favorites]
I suggest (and speak from experience) that reading Ask a Manager can really help to get communication expectations right. Alison does an awesome job explaining how to communicate in an interview and on the job in a way that works.
The commenters are also very helpful--one site where you should read the comments!
posted by chiefthe at 3:27 PM on August 26, 2021 [9 favorites]
The commenters are also very helpful--one site where you should read the comments!
posted by chiefthe at 3:27 PM on August 26, 2021 [9 favorites]
She said I didn't have the skills or experience that she needed
Is there a reason you're not just taking that at face value? It sounds she said twice that the skills you were talking about today were not skills that were relevant to her department. So either they did a poor job of describing the role, or you didn't do a good enough job of reading the job description, researching the department, and tailoring what you said in the interview very precisely to what they were after.
I'd also second NotMyselfRightNow - I also recognised your username as your previous asks have a lot of features in common - you obviously feel things very strongly, express them in a very detailed and pretty emphatic way that tends to sound quite black and white. You've had a good number of asks where you've sounded fairly convinced someone else in a professional setting was clearly wrong and you were right (eg. feeling you're the right person to liaise with Mexico; lack of paper note taking; testing typing speed; use of psychometric testing). None of those are a big deal on their own, but the frequency with which they pop up in your history, and the intensity with which you write about them, make me think you might also be coming across like that in interviews. It sounds like you're aware that you're dealing with imposter syndrome so yep, maybe you're overcompensating and coming across as over-confident, too intense, too convinced of your own rightness and level of experience. The goal of an interview isn't to show everyone you're the smartest person in the room - it's to discuss your skills in relation to the job description, and hopefully build some rapport with the interviewers which will convince them that you'll be a good person to have around the place.
That might also square with you literally being cut off mid-interview rather than them just going with the flow until the end. For an interview to literally be cut short in the middle, suggests to me that either you were clearly a very long way from the skill set they sought and/or they were just finding something about your self-presentation tiring or difficult to deal with, and decided you weren't going to gel with them and they'd just rather stop.
I'd nth the suggestion of an in-person coach who can do some mock interviews with you and give you feedback on how you're coming across to make sure you show yourself at your best, and who can also check in with what your technique is for matching your skill set to the job description as you prepare.
posted by penguin pie at 3:31 PM on August 26, 2021 [21 favorites]
Is there a reason you're not just taking that at face value? It sounds she said twice that the skills you were talking about today were not skills that were relevant to her department. So either they did a poor job of describing the role, or you didn't do a good enough job of reading the job description, researching the department, and tailoring what you said in the interview very precisely to what they were after.
I'd also second NotMyselfRightNow - I also recognised your username as your previous asks have a lot of features in common - you obviously feel things very strongly, express them in a very detailed and pretty emphatic way that tends to sound quite black and white. You've had a good number of asks where you've sounded fairly convinced someone else in a professional setting was clearly wrong and you were right (eg. feeling you're the right person to liaise with Mexico; lack of paper note taking; testing typing speed; use of psychometric testing). None of those are a big deal on their own, but the frequency with which they pop up in your history, and the intensity with which you write about them, make me think you might also be coming across like that in interviews. It sounds like you're aware that you're dealing with imposter syndrome so yep, maybe you're overcompensating and coming across as over-confident, too intense, too convinced of your own rightness and level of experience. The goal of an interview isn't to show everyone you're the smartest person in the room - it's to discuss your skills in relation to the job description, and hopefully build some rapport with the interviewers which will convince them that you'll be a good person to have around the place.
That might also square with you literally being cut off mid-interview rather than them just going with the flow until the end. For an interview to literally be cut short in the middle, suggests to me that either you were clearly a very long way from the skill set they sought and/or they were just finding something about your self-presentation tiring or difficult to deal with, and decided you weren't going to gel with them and they'd just rather stop.
I'd nth the suggestion of an in-person coach who can do some mock interviews with you and give you feedback on how you're coming across to make sure you show yourself at your best, and who can also check in with what your technique is for matching your skill set to the job description as you prepare.
posted by penguin pie at 3:31 PM on August 26, 2021 [21 favorites]
I think it's great you've taken courses to improve career skills. Can you showcase these skills through blog posts, Youtube/Vimeo videos, or even LinkedIn posts? The goal wouldn't be to gain a large number of views or likes, but to demonstrate you knowledge in the subject matter and to have more items to show prospective employers what you've been doing lately. A simple blog post may not sound like much, but it can demonstrate dedication to the field and an interest in helping others grow.
posted by mundo at 3:37 PM on August 26, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by mundo at 3:37 PM on August 26, 2021 [1 favorite]
I agree with the heartfelt critique above to look inward to explore other issues. You clearly have many wonderful qualities but there is something that feels off and that is worth addressing as others have mentioned. I'm sorry that this particular interview didn't go well and I'm glad your earlier one did!
posted by smorgasbord at 6:42 PM on August 26, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by smorgasbord at 6:42 PM on August 26, 2021 [2 favorites]
Probably not the major problems but two concrete things that struck me:
Odd . . . I've been told that working abroad is clearly my interest and the job didn't include that. "I would probably be happier in a role involving that kind of work" I've been told a few times including today. This was an international company, but my interviewer said it had nothing to do with her dept.
Not odd at all, and take this feedback seriously. No one wants to hire someone who either doesn't understand the role, or just wants a foot in the door so they can work somewhere else. Which it certainly seems is the impression this interviewer got.
upgrading my skills in learning and development as a self-directed learner. . . I'm a little concerned that when I tell people I have been upgrading my knowledge of said related topic that I come across as a rookie. This is just fun stuff that should be somewhat attractive in my humble opinion.
I'd agree this is pretty rookie. There is a point in a career where the ability to learn new things is taken for granted. Mentioning it can suggest you do not take it for granted, and in turn some people will take it as a signal that you haven't reached that point in your career yet.
Basically if you're at a point where you are expected to be mentor and teacher, you don't want to seem like a student trying to get credit for coursework. This is not to say that continuous learning isn't important, but it comes through in the breadth of things you can do professionally, not in the activity itself.
posted by mark k at 6:54 PM on August 26, 2021 [5 favorites]
Odd . . . I've been told that working abroad is clearly my interest and the job didn't include that. "I would probably be happier in a role involving that kind of work" I've been told a few times including today. This was an international company, but my interviewer said it had nothing to do with her dept.
Not odd at all, and take this feedback seriously. No one wants to hire someone who either doesn't understand the role, or just wants a foot in the door so they can work somewhere else. Which it certainly seems is the impression this interviewer got.
upgrading my skills in learning and development as a self-directed learner. . . I'm a little concerned that when I tell people I have been upgrading my knowledge of said related topic that I come across as a rookie. This is just fun stuff that should be somewhat attractive in my humble opinion.
I'd agree this is pretty rookie. There is a point in a career where the ability to learn new things is taken for granted. Mentioning it can suggest you do not take it for granted, and in turn some people will take it as a signal that you haven't reached that point in your career yet.
Basically if you're at a point where you are expected to be mentor and teacher, you don't want to seem like a student trying to get credit for coursework. This is not to say that continuous learning isn't important, but it comes through in the breadth of things you can do professionally, not in the activity itself.
posted by mark k at 6:54 PM on August 26, 2021 [5 favorites]
Most jobs that involve working with people require two main skill sets: the technical skills (whether that be business development, change management, marketing, or anything else), and people skills.
Depending on the job, the people skills can be at least 50% of the job, and sometimes more. Part of those people skills, especially for something like organizational consulting, is being a calm, reassuring presence. It's a job for someone with confidence (but not arrogance), knowledge (in the real world, not just from books), and leadership (changing people's mindsets, not just getting them to do what you say).
You say you're not a rookie, but "I graduated 3 years ago and really have not done much due to some health issues.", which means you are a rookie. Even if you have a lot of experience in Business Development, if that's essentially a Sales role then your default mindset will need to change quite significantly to do organizational development.
Ultimately people will need to look at you and see someone with a deep understanding of the human condition, someone who can instinctively see how people will react to the change that you bring, and how to encourage the positive reactions and mitigate the negative reactions.
Based on comments above I had a quick look at some of your recent questions on here, and between those and your lack of experience in the role, there is not a lot of evidence that people will look at you and see those things. So perhaps the issue is that you don't exude a sense of calm reassurance, or come across as someone who easily understands other people or their point of view?
All of this is intended as an observation, not a criticism. I'd agree with some of the other posters here who recommend some form of coaching with someone who will tell you hard truths, if those truths are needed, and help you develop your skills in whichever areas you need to.
posted by underclocked at 11:56 PM on August 26, 2021 [3 favorites]
Depending on the job, the people skills can be at least 50% of the job, and sometimes more. Part of those people skills, especially for something like organizational consulting, is being a calm, reassuring presence. It's a job for someone with confidence (but not arrogance), knowledge (in the real world, not just from books), and leadership (changing people's mindsets, not just getting them to do what you say).
You say you're not a rookie, but "I graduated 3 years ago and really have not done much due to some health issues.", which means you are a rookie. Even if you have a lot of experience in Business Development, if that's essentially a Sales role then your default mindset will need to change quite significantly to do organizational development.
Ultimately people will need to look at you and see someone with a deep understanding of the human condition, someone who can instinctively see how people will react to the change that you bring, and how to encourage the positive reactions and mitigate the negative reactions.
Based on comments above I had a quick look at some of your recent questions on here, and between those and your lack of experience in the role, there is not a lot of evidence that people will look at you and see those things. So perhaps the issue is that you don't exude a sense of calm reassurance, or come across as someone who easily understands other people or their point of view?
All of this is intended as an observation, not a criticism. I'd agree with some of the other posters here who recommend some form of coaching with someone who will tell you hard truths, if those truths are needed, and help you develop your skills in whichever areas you need to.
posted by underclocked at 11:56 PM on August 26, 2021 [3 favorites]
Today the company did a lot of marketing research in which I brought up my experience and again, this had nothing to do with her dept.
This came up a couple of times. Are you interviewing in the wrong department? Or trying to tell the department they're wrong? Neither can be expected to go well.
posted by away for regrooving at 1:19 AM on August 27, 2021 [2 favorites]
This came up a couple of times. Are you interviewing in the wrong department? Or trying to tell the department they're wrong? Neither can be expected to go well.
posted by away for regrooving at 1:19 AM on August 27, 2021 [2 favorites]
Too honest - I stopped looking for consulting work in January because I was getting tons of interviews. When asked about current work, I tell them that I've been focused on finding regular employment.
This makes it sound like nobody has wanted to hire you for nine months. That's a red flag to employers.
posted by DarlingBri at 3:57 AM on August 27, 2021 [4 favorites]
This makes it sound like nobody has wanted to hire you for nine months. That's a red flag to employers.
posted by DarlingBri at 3:57 AM on August 27, 2021 [4 favorites]
This thread is closed to new comments.
But here's the thing: no one cares about you. Not really. They care about can you do the job. So every answer you give should come back to the job description in some way.
You've been doing training work which has broadened your appreciation for [specific desired skill from job description].
Your previous experience in international business which is directly applicable to [specific responsibility from job description] in [specific ways 1, 2, 3].
What are you doing now/what have you been doing lately? You've been excited to explore new opportunities in [specific industry/role] as your [non specifically dated] recent [consulting experience] has given you more expertise in [explain specific experience].
It's not about you, it's about tailoring yourself to the exact job you're interviewing for.
posted by phunniemee at 2:10 PM on August 26, 2021 [31 favorites]