All Broadway Actors Rehearse

It takes practice to be prepared to handle with confidence the interview question you most want to avoid.

I have had several career coaching clients that interviewed with great confidence but stumbled when a question they really wanted to avoid was posed. It could be a gap in employment or a relatively short stint at one company. It would throw them off their game and some felt like it caused the interviewer to select another candidate. 

This led me to ask my clients, “What’s the question you most hope they don’t ask?”  Then I tell them that’s the one we will focus on as we role play in a mock interview and rehearse until they can answer it succinctly and with complete confidence.

One client went through a tough time regarding his mental health and his job performance slipped significantly. Rather than be fired, he elected to resign to take care himself and was out of the job market for almost a year before applying for a new position. Given the reason, he was feeling a bit ashamed and worried about handling the inevitable question about the long gap in employment.

My advice was to simply say that he needed that time to address health issues and then pivot with a question. So we rehearsed his response until he was comfortable with it; BTW all Broadway actors rehearse a lot before opening night: "I elected to take time away from my career to focus on my health and now I'm ready to get back to doing what I love. When do you anticipate having this position filled?" This filled him with confidence and he nailed tow different final interviews and got both offers :)

I would also hear things like, “I felt I did really well until they asked why I left Acme, Inc.” In this case, Maria left a job without having landed another because it was a toxic work environment and despite discussing her concerns with HR it wasn’t getting better, but she didn’t want to badmouth that company. Part of the strategy was having Maria deal with the elephant in the room proactively by bringing it up without being asked. When the interviewer said, “Tell me about your work at Acme” Maria calmly stated, “I liked the work itself and was doing well there but it became apparent the culture and values there didn’t align with mine. As a result, I felt it was best to move on.” Short and sweet, and most importantly true. Almost any interviewer would by empathetic and likely read between the lines. In fact, in some cases it's likely they had heard similar things about Acme and appreciated her not throwing her former employer under the bus.

Frank Manfre

Job Search Sherpa & Career Transition Coach

www.frankmanfre.com

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