Not very often do I share my story of where/when I created the idea to form my business, but now is a great and relevant time.
Many years ago, I was interviewing a high level executive, whom on paper was highly qualified for the role. After completing the initial phone screen, I knew that technically speaking, this person could run circles around most people. With so much excitement built up, I immediately scheduled an in-person interview and lined up all the appropriate “C-suite” individuals, but then they showed up and it all went downhill.
While they were more technically qualified than anyone else I’ve spoken with, their presentation and interviewing skills were horrid. Their personality, views on culture and lack of understanding of team dynamics were even more abysmal. I asked the individual if they have ever done any sort of self-reflection or self discovery and the answer was, “No, I don’t believe in that!” Well, at that point I knew the interview was over, I asked him to leave and then canceled all remaining interviews with the “C-suite”, not willing to waste their time.
Later on, I spoke with the company General Counsel telling him about my interview experience and discussing the idea of explaining to them why they didn’t get the job and how they can improve for next time. His response… “Your job is to hire people not help people.”
From that moment on, I knew that I could not live in a world where we do not help each other, but instead look out for the wellbeing of the company. Right then and there, I started A Better Interview.
That brings me to the power of self discovery.
If this individual just spent a little bit of time learning more about their self and how they interact in a professional setting, chances are high they would have landed the job. For example, they could have learned about task management, problem solving, stress tolerance, openness, extraversion, assertiveness, agreeableness and/or compassion. Learning in any of these areas would have help raised their chances of landing the job.
The problem is that when interviewing and job searching, we all focus on the technical skills. For example, take just about any job description out there; what do they say? You must have 5+ years of experience in XYZ, proficiency in XYZ, must be willing to travel, oversees and monitors administrative procedures and practices, coordinates and performs all aspects of XYZ, including, but not limited to…
When we read job descriptions like this, most people feel discouraged because they may not meet every requirement and I say that’s a good thing! You shouldn’t meet every bullet point because if you do then you will have nothing to learn and grow in to, but job descriptions shouldn’t be focused on these technical qualifiers, instead, they should be focused on the projects you will be working on and the skills necessary to complete those projects; wink wink, like the ones I listed above.
However… if we all did just a little bit of self discovery, we would understand how the skills that we do possess are relevant to the overall goal of the job and not just the bullet points listed on the grocery list… I mean the job description. It is through this self discovery that we can begin to understand the real value that we can bring to any company. When you can understand that, you will realize you are more than a few bullet points.
With that being said, in the coming weeks, I’m very excited to say that I will have the opportunity to present to you all with a unique tool to start your self discovery journey….and it will be free!
Stay tuned!!
