There appears to be an epidemic of inappropriateness pervading the job interview world. Job interviews are nerve-racking. Therefore, receiving unclear questions can shake us up. One person got a question that left her, literally, speechless—and one wasn’t so much disconcerted by the question as to the manner in which it was asked.
Photo by Joshua Ness on Unsplash
The following are suggestions I make for how each of them might respond during their job interviews:
Q: “You realize you’re going to need to ugly-up if you get this job.”
This question was asked of one of my, admittedly, extraordinarily pretty clients. We could only speculate about the questioner’s intention—though, I have to say, we both found the pigtail-pulling undertone distinctly…underwhelming.
Here’s the thing. I don’t ever recommend doing a troublemaker’s dirty work for him or her. Consequently, my 20/20 hindsight recommendation is to go with the factual, “I don’t understand what you’re saying” during these job interviews.
However, thinking on your feet isn’t easy. Especially when you’re asked this kind of question. But if you can keep your response short and sweet, you’re likely to disconcert your questioner as much as he or she has disconcerted you.
One of my clients went into an interview during which, in her words, “The interviewer turned her back to me throughout the interview and asked her questions while looking out the window.”
How did I recommend she handle it? Well, calling her on her behavior was going to end in a lose/lose. Consequently, I suggested saying:
“I find it hard to answer your questions without being able to see your face. May I ask you to turn around, or may I join you at the window?”
What makes this statement powerful is that the interviewee took the onus on herself—it’s not that her interviewer is being difficult, it’s that it’s tricky to talk to someone who refuses to look at you. Also, it reminds the interviewer that the interviewee’s goal is to be her best self in every situation, no matter how difficult.
And, as I’m sure you’ve discovered, if we can be our best selves—regardless of the circumstances—not only do we wow others, we wow ourselves. The ultimate challenge.
Frances Cole Jones is the President of Cole Media Management and author of “How to Wow: Proven Strategies for Selling Your (Brilliant) Self in any Situation” and “The Wow Factor: The 33 Things You Must (and Must Not) Do to Guarantee Your Edge in Today’s Business World”.Attention Job Seekers: Frances has also created an app for the iPhone and iPad called “Interview Wow”. She is always happy to answer questions and can be reached at www.francescolejones.com.
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