About: debblues

At the end of a job interview, inevitably, you’ll be asked if you have any questions.  The “kiss of death” to a good interview closure is when the candidate with whom I’ve spent 30-60 minutes getting to know has zero questions to ask. To the interviewer, this is equivalent to saying that the interview candidate has lost interest in the opportunity. It’s really impactful, however, when the candidate presents questions that help keep the conversation moving forward. 

Questions Tell a Lot

The questions that a person asks indicate their curiosity, their intentions, and to a degree, showcase their intelligence. In fact, it’s well understood that the person who asks questions tends to control the conversation.  While there are no “dumb” questions (other than those that aren’t asked), I would like to offer 3 excellent questions to ask at the end of an interview.

Question 1

What did the person who was previously in this position do exceptionally well that you’d like to see the new incumbent continue to do?  What would you like to see done differently?

This question demonstrates that you care to be successful and it will also likely get the interviewer thinking about what they’re REALLY looking for in the next incumbent.

Question 2

Would you say that this is the best Company you’ve ever worked for or the best job you’ve ever had?

Essentially this is a question of self-reflection. You, as the interview candidate, get to learn from the interviewer what they’ve learned (the hard way) about the company or about the job. It also shows taking an interest in the interviewer as a person, who probably has the responsibility of interviewing a lot of people for the same position. It may help you to “stand out.”

Question 3

What Company value resonates most with you directly, and what is something that the Company is doing that demonstrates this value?

I really like this question, because it’s reinforcing an interest in the job, as well as an interest in the interviewer as well. This shows a level of thought about personal alignment to the Company’s values, and creates a great conversation about the Company.

Questions are like Coffee and Dessert

Questions asked at the conclusion of an interview are similar to having coffee and dessert at the end of a great meal. They turn an interview around, and show that the candidate would like more information to consider the possibilities. Remember, as a candidate, it’s just as much YOUR interview as it is the Company’s. Both parties want to see the best outcome – the candidate is offered a job that fulfills them; and the Company finds a person that will bring value to the position needing to be filled. 

Interested in refining your Interviewing Skills?

Leaders have 5 key roles to play in any business:

Building Bridges

Casting the vision

Humanizing the business

Directing the orchestra

Coaching the Team

Feedback for Base-Hits

Oftentimes, I see Managers hold back from praising a Team Member for only achieving a base-hit; only providing a level of praise when a homerun is actually made. This is a huge mistake! Feedback gives the Team a “real-time picture” of their performance. Team Members truly need to be recognized for their accomplishments, even if it were just a base-hit. Anyone in baseball understands that it’s the base-hits that give you homeruns. The entire Team watches how performance goes, and how the Leader responds when performance successes are achieved. When you encourage one…you are single-handedly encouraging them all to perform. 

Encourage Learning through Mistakes

A “mistake” is only a problem if the individual who made the mistake didn’t learn from it. In fact, the majority of the best moments of learning occur when we make a mistake. I read about a fascinating Harvard study done years ago to explore the benefits of “encouraging learning from mistakes.”

They split a class of Harvard students into 2 groups (a control group and an experimental group). Both groups were instructed, as a Team, to work on a Team project and provide a final presentation to the class at the end of the semester. The control group was told to “do your very best” (which means it needed to be perfect in the eyes of A-type personalities). The experimental group, however, was instructed that in order to get an “A” on the project, they had to make mistakes along the way, and incorporate in their final presentation the learnings from the mistakes made on the project.

At the conclusion of the semester, both groups presented their project outcomes. The control group did an adequate job, but it was a bit lackluster. The experimental group, on the other hand, reported out their mistakes throughout the project, and shared how much fun they had working together and taking risks. Their objective WASN’T to make it perfect – but to make it inclusive, engaging and interesting. The result of the study suggests that when Teams are permitted (or encouraged) to make low-risk mistakes, they genuinely enjoy their work more, find more creative solutions, and work more interdependently than those Teams who weren’t encouraged to make mistakes.

As a bonus to this point, if, indeed, learning from the mistake had occurred, it means that your company or organization will hopefully not have to pay again for that mistake – provided that it’s encouraged as a, “shared learning opportunity.” 

Lead People through Change as a Team

It’s a bit of a fallacy to suggest we “manage change” as Leaders. We don’t actually manage change – we manage people through change when it occurs. One of the best strategies to help coach people through change is encouraging them to share their ideas, concerns, and objections. Almost demanding opposing views, so that they get the chance to offer insights about how they honestly feel about the change. 

When I want to rollout a new program or policy to my Team, I realize that in order to get buy-in about the change, I need to ask my Team to help me “poke holes” in the idea. Not to destroy it, but it bolster it; by asking them to help me answer, “How could this go wrong?  What are the parts of this change that could create the greatest heartburn? What would be alternative ideas?”

If you don’t have a “critic” within your Team, you may have to arbitrarily hand-pick one.  Assign someone who may ordinarily not be vocal about problems or concerns, to the role of being the Team’s “Devil’s Advocate” for this meeting. As such, they are not allowed to say anything positive or encouraging, but their job is to look for the weak spots, the warts and the flaws of the idea. A powerful thing occurs – we get very honest and critical feedback! Interestingly, when people are involved with the change discussion, and their ideas and input were considered, they offer faster buy-in to the change; even when their ideas were not incorporated. You genuinely honor a person’s intelligence and feelings when you consider their opinions.

In Conclusion

Leaders play five essential roles in business: Building Bridges, Casting the Vision, Humanizing the Business, Directing the Orchestra, and lastly, Coaching the Team. Leaders are individuals who make others better as a result of their presence, and ensure that the impact lasts in their absence. There is no greater legacy to leave than to leave others better because you were there helping them.

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