Interviewing in Today’s World: A Time to Reflect on Your Communication Toolbelt
By: Vera Savany-Hughes, A Certified Employment Interview Professional
The end of the year is a great time to regroup, reflect, and conscientiously analyze your skills, knowledge, and achievements with an open mind that there are always ways to sharpen the tools in our communication tool belt. So, what have you communicated well and successfully, what have you learned, and what can you improve?
If it indeed is true that 6-8 messages pretty much determine 90% of a candidate’s value in the eyes of an employer (whether they are aware of it or not!), then we have to really do our homework prior to an interview and sit down and come up with 6-8 skills, talents, qualifications, and undeniable character traits and cultivate the various ways to combine them in a way that communicates your value and what you bring to the table – dynamically!
There’s a book titled “Atomic Habits” by James Clear, which states, “You should be far more concerned with your current trajectory than with your current results.” In other words, what new communication “habits” are you practicing and implementing to verbalize your value in a way that is impactful in your interviews, and where do you feel you lack confidence being able to project your talents convincingly? We should use our past interviewing experiences as merely learning opportunities and be grateful for them.
If we focus on getting 1% better daily, suddenly that new communicator that we idealize in our mind becomes our reality – literally one day at a time, practicing as much as possible – whether that be with an Interview Coach or a trusted and talented confidant (make sure they can guide in a structured and strategic manner that will help you identify and break through your communication barriers/roadblocks).
Recently at a brainstorming session with fellow business owners, the beautiful phenomenon of calligraphy came up, making me think of practicing and perfecting in a completely different light. What seems like effortless art is actually a product of relentless and unwavering commitment to doing the same thing over and over again to ultimately reach excellence. An outsider who’s never practiced calligraphy for hours on end might see the art itself as this ethereal, effortless, almost meditative expression…. what we don’t realize and/or even know is the painful practice it took to go from a mediocre skill to a fantastical and optical illusional art. The same goes for Communication!
When it comes to interviewing, the more you practice, the more what you convey to hiring professionals sounds like and can even feel like the calligraphy of words. Effortless, seamless – they’ll want to hear more.
First things first, to accomplish these so-called interviewing habits…start writing your powerful list.
Let’s start with Skills. If we think of skills as something you “can do” that produces a result, what would those be?
Examples: I can create ATS-friendly resumes, I can identify individuals’ strengths/talents and ideal career paths, I can manage, train, and mentor employees, etc.
Then move on to Qualifications: wisdom that you have acquired that produces a result.
Examples: I have a bachelor’s degree in Communications, I have a certification in resume writing and as an employment interview professional, I have 5+ years experience in business management, etc.
Now think of your undeniable Traits. What about your personality and character helps produce results?
Examples: I am adaptable and empathic, I am loyal and customer-centric minded, I am passionate about the mission of this organization, etc.
Once you’ve created a strong assets list, you start interjecting them into your interview/communication practices to develop those small communication “habits” that will make all the difference in solidifying your candidacy and sharpening your communication toolbelt. But, of course, you first must identify and own who you are in order to communicate your brilliance.
For great practice to start communicating your value with more conviction and confidence, you can contact Idaho Next Steps Coaching by reaching out to us at www.idahonextstepscoaching.com and booking a FREE 30-minute initial consultation. We are passionate about helping talented individuals land their next dream job with confidence, and it feels so rewarding to know our sessions help people land interviews and, ultimately, dream careers.