Sex and Your Job Search 2013: A Guide to Scoring Your Dream Job (19 page)

Remember, an interviewer cannot write down everything you say. Interviewers only write down the key details and values that become apparent in the story.

Here’s how my story breaks down with the B ME outline. I’ve written the notes as an interviewer would have written them.

Question
: Tell me about a time something embarrassing happened to you.

Answer:

Beginning
: Dom went to the dirt bike track after work to blow off some steam.

Middle
: He hit some big jumps and had a great time. Afterward, he decided to buy the construction workers some snacks at the grocery store. (Excellence, Integrity, Teamwork)

End
: The situation turned out hilariously. He thought girls were smiling at him at the grocery store, but they were actually laughing at his dirt mustache. He has a sense of humor about situation.

So, switching gears (pun intended). Let’s highlight the B ME outline by looking at an interview story that emphasizes the skill Customer Focus and the values of Teamwork, Integrity, and Excellence. In fact, the story really touches on all of the Seven Universal Skills.

A colleague at another hospital was interviewing Kelly, a registered nurse with about five years experience, for a supervisor position in their oncology unit. He asked the nurse: “Tell me about a time you went above and beyond for a customer. What was the situation? What did you do? How did it turn out?”

Kelly: “I was discharging a little girl who had been receiving cancer treatment at my current employer. She was about ten years old and I was trying to give her mother instructions about when she should give her little girl four different types of medication. But her mother did not speak or write English, nor could she write in her native language. In situations like this, I usually call Translation Services to help me communicate the instructions for the different medications. I called them, but I also did something else.

“I pulled a clock off the wall and removed the cover. I then made a miniature color wheel and put it on the face of the clock. Then I labeled the medication bottles with the appropriate colors and instructed the mother to give the corresponding medications when the small hand on the clock reached those colors.

“The mother understood right away. Soon after, the mother broke down into tears as she was so thankful that she could give her daughter the medicine.

“As a result, the child received her meds. She would have been back in the hospital getting worse if she hadn’t. I followed up with the girl’s medical case manager a few weeks later and was happy to hear that she was getting better.

“My nurse manager heard about this and now we use this color-wheel clock system in all of our pediatric units. And, well, I don’t want to brag, but later that year I won an award for patient-centered care.”

Here’s how Kelly’s story breaks down with the B ME outline. I’ve written the notes as an interviewer would have written them.

Question:
Tell me about a time you went above and beyond for a customer. What was the situation? What did you do? How did it turn out?

Answer:

Beginning
: There was a young cancer patient who needed to receive her medication on time. However, her mother did not speak or read English and needed to understand the instructions for the medications.

Middle
: The nurse called Translation Services (Teamwork) and also made a miniature color wheel to put on the face of the clock (Excellence). The color wheel corresponded to the colored labels on the bottles of pills. This way the mother would understand and could give the medication at the right time (Integrity).

End
: As a result, the child received her medications and slowly got better. Values of Teamwork, Integrity, and Excellence were demonstrated.

This angel of a nurse was interviewing for a supervisor position and got the job. Why? Because she displayed the Customer Focus, as well as the rest of the Seven Universal Skills.

Think about it, the nurse touched on the most important attributes: Accuracy and Attention to Detail, Adaptability and Flexibility, Creativity, Customer Focus, Communication, Organization and Time Management, and Technical Ability.

The nurse also demonstrated Teamwork, Integrity, and Excellence, as well as compassion. The interviewer could easily picture this nurse providing the same level of Customer Focus and patient care at
their
hospital.

Interview Tip:
If you were the nurse and were preparing for an interview, you could have written the words “Color wheel clock” on your padfolio to remind you of this story in case your mind went blank.

GIVE SPECIFICS AND TELL WHAT YOU LEARNED

Feel free to give as much information as you can to the interviewer in your Seven Go-to Stories. When I say that, let me emphasize that the timeframe should be about two to five minutes per story.

Remember, when you provide a complete story and specifics, an interviewer is like “OMG, this is so easy. I really think I want you... now!” But instead of actually saying that, you will notice that their body language changes.

You see, the more detailed and complete your story, the more you will notice how the interviewer relaxes their body position, how they become more comfortable and warm up to you, and how they exhale. Then they may start being a little more casual with you in their tone and language. Jokes may even start to fly referencing past stories. You are winning them over, like on a date.

Keep in mind, it is a
great
sign if they dig for more information about your story. Just give it to them. Trust me, they are enjoying this. Sometimes they are already thinking about the job offer. Stay the course with the rest of your stories and you should be all good.

One last note about stories. Oftentimes, interviewers will ask a follow-up question after you tell a story with a Beginning, Middle, and End.

“What did you learn from this experience and how have you used that knowledge since?”

Asking this follow-up question means that they are interested in what you are saying. A good sign! Think about this in relation to your stories. It doesn’t have to be more than one or two sentences.

In the example of Kelly the oncology nurse, she could have said the following:

“I was reminded of the special role I play in the lives of patients and that I make a difference every day. I haven’t encountered another situation like that, but if I do I will be prepared.”

EMPTY STORIES

The life of an interviewer would be incredibly easy if all they received were complete stories in the B ME outline. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Research and experience suggests that over 50% of the time, interviewers receive empty stories.

This is the lovemaking equivalent of rushing through Third Base in a minute or so and expecting to hit a home run. It probably isn’t going to happen!

An empty story is vague, includes general statements, and can be flashy but lacks specifics. They also bore interviewers to tears! Seriously, when hiring managers and HR reps hear them, they start thinking about what they are going to have for lunch and what they will do after work.

In order to understand what an empty story is, let’s stop for a minute and look at an empty story from a date’s perspective.

Imagine that a girl goes on first dates with two different guys. She’s a little nervous and wants to find out which date is Mr. Romantic and which one is Mr. Fake Lyingpants. So, during the course of both dates, she asks this question: “Tell me about one of the most romantic things you’ve done for someone.”

The first date, Mr. Fake Lyingpants’s response:

“Baby, baby, baby, I’m always romantic. I always treat my girls right. I usually just take good care of them. Just like I’ll take care of you, girl. You shouldn’t worry about a thing.”

This response might sound “charming” in person to some people, but it really doesn’t tell the girl anything. Mr. Fake Lyingpants has not established credibility. It’s just smooth talk.

Mr. Romantic’s response:

“Yes, I try to be romantic. Let me think about it. OK, one of the most romantic things I ever did was back during college. It was snowing outside and I was at the end of a first date with a girl I really liked. I was dropping her off at her dorm and we lingered in the lobby for a few minutes. Somehow the topic of flowers came up.

“I made a deal with her that if I could bring her fresh-cut flowers within the next ten minutes in the middle of a snowstorm, she would go on another date with me. The girl raised an eyebrow, smiled, and said, ‘I’ll probably do more than that.’

“Me being young and eager, I ran outside and asked myself, ‘Where the hell am I going to get some flowers in the next ten minutes?’ I then remembered that I had seen some flowers on the tables in the cafeteria earlier that day. I jumped through snow drifts and pounded on the basement window of the student center where my friend worked for the student newspaper. He came up and opened the door. I ran upstairs and snuck into the cafeteria hall.

“I found some nice flowers near the payment kiosks and quickly assembled a bouquet. In under ten minutes I was back in the girl’s dorm lobby looking at a girl whose smile lit up the whole room. We dated for quite some time after that.”

Now tell me, which answer built more trust, endeared the guy to the girl, and created visions of romance for the future? Mr. Fake Lyingpants with his vague answer? Or Mr. Romantic with a specific story of romance? The choice is easy. Give specific examples.

EMPTY WORDS

In an interview, there are certain Empty Words that raise red flags in an interviewer’s mind. These words usually show up in empty stories. It is in your best interest to trade these words for specific details, in a B ME Outline, to make up a complete story.

The Empty Words are:

• Generally

• Always

• Typically

• Usually

• Would

• Could

• Should

• If

• We (if you don’t explain your specific role)

• Never

When smart interviewers hear these words, they will ask for more specifics and rephrase their questions. And if you keep trying to give them these words, they will cut your time short and you’ll never hear from them again.

I used several of these words in the example of the girl on a date with Mr. Fake Lyingpants. Here are some examples of how the Empty Words would be used in an interview:

1. “I always go above and beyond for my customers and my boss.”

2. “I usually handle instruction very well.”

3. “If a problem comes up, I would ask for help from my team.”

4. “We should always be willing to help when we are needed.”

5. “All of my co-workers really like me.” (This is an opinion).

Why are these words so bad? Because they don’t tell interviewers anything! People who use these words tend to be disengaged employees who do not care about their jobs. These applicants have not been participating 100% in their jobs and can’t come up with specific examples. It may be tough love for a few of you to read this, but it’s true and a universal belief among HR professionals.

If you hear an interviewer say, “Great, can you tell the last time this specific thing happened?” or hear them rephrase the question, please note that you are not giving them what they want. You will hear an interviewer rephrase a question or even try to jog your memory one or two times. After that they will move on.

One last thing, two of the above Empty Words, “never” and “would,” are words that liars use most. This is according to lie-detection expert Janine Driver, author of the book
You Can’t Lie to Me
. Trained interrogation experts and HR professionals agree, stay away from these words if you want to come across as honest and sincere.

SITUATIONAL QUESTIONS

If behavioral questions ask about the past, situational questions ask about the future and how you’re going to help the company get there. These questions tend to be asked during interviews at tech companies, consulting groups, and for higher-level positions. Oftentimes it is the interviewer’s intention to
stress out
a candidate with these types of questions.