It’s Not Me, It’s You!

My boss and I were on a business trip and after a long day of client presentations we went out to dinner. The restaurant wasn’t busy—we were practically the only ones in the joint. My boss could talk to anyone, so he started to make small talk with our waitress. She was sweet, probably in her early 20s and unhappy in her waitress job. My boss was only casually interested, but searching for someone to converse with besides me must’ve seemed attractive to him. He started a conversation and she was more than eager to chat. It’s amazing how much personal information strangers impart to anyone with a sympathetic ear.

Our waitress told us that she graduated college over a year ago and absolutely could not find a job anywhere. She walked us through her process step by step. Each night she trolled the online job boards, submitted her resume and kept a tracking spreadsheet of all the requisitions she applied to. I asked her to give me a ball park percentage of return inquiries. She estimated about 40% of employers responded to her resume. 40% is a good number—better than what most people get. I was surprised she was having trouble finding something with such a high response rate.

She continued to tell us just how unhappy she was. She couldn’t figure out what she was doing wrong and why so many employers didn’t offer her a job after the interview. The bells were immediately going off in my head because to me the answer was simple: it was her. Our waitress looked great on paper but must crash and burn during every interview. It was either her, or the competition was stiff. In either case she had to step up her game if she wanted to get out of her waitressing gig.

I asked this girl what she thought of her results. Why was she unsuccessful? What could it possibly be? She shook her head in uncertainty. I candidly replied, “oh honey, it’s not them. It’s you.” She took a step back and I was thinking in the back of my mind that somehow my food was going to have a nice pool of spit mixed in. I was wrong. She was open to my suggestion.

I told her that she should take a look at her interviewing skills. How was she dressing? What type of impression did she make? Was she tripping over her words? Did her qualifications match her resume? I was stunned that she never considered these questions, but there are many job seekers out there wondering the same thing. Quite simply, there was something that she could improve upon to increase her chances of getting a second interview and ultimately hired.

If this sounds like your situation, there are a couple of things you can do:

1. Ask a friend to conduct a mock interview with you. Do some role-playing and try to pinpoint where you begin to lose credibility or become uncomfortable.
2. Anticipate the questions an interviewer might ask and have prepared answers. Successful interviews are built off of planning. You don’t have control over what an interviewer will ask, but put some thought into your answers.
3. Think about the strengths that you would like to express during your interview and find a way to incorporate them during your discussion. Depending on how well you craft your answers, you may be able to control the direction of the interview.
4. Be consistent. Memorize your resume. Make sure that what you wrote on your resume and job application match the strengths you intend to bring to an interview. Keep notes on your interview. Write down the questions that were asked and the responses you gave. For example, if your employer asks you to use three words to describe yourself, write down those words post interview so you can repeat them back if you’re asked again.
5. Wear your interview clothes and practice in front of the mirror. Trying on your outfit prior to show time might tell you whether or not something is too itchy, too tight or loose, or whether or not you need to hide your sweaty armpits. And for goodness sake, remove the tailor’s stitch from the back of your suit coat and skirt slit. Tacky, tacky, tacky.

Sometimes the hardest part of a career search is acknowledging that we, as the job candidate, must make changes when something isn’t working. Take the time to identify key areas that might be holding you back from getting to the next step in the interview process. Don’t get bent out of shape if someone offers you feedback. Open ears undoubtedly lead to success.