Interviewing for Your Next Role

This post is a follow-on to “Re-invent Yourself” with the focus on interviewing, whether it is for a new position, a business loan, or as a pitch for your new business idea. Chances are it’s been a long time since you sat across a desk from someone or faced a panel of questioners and it can be daunting to think about doing that again. And Zoom has only added to the fun. That’s why you need to prepare by not only polishing your resume / documentation but by working on your skills to make sure you present yourself in the best light.

It boils down to making the best possible sales pitch, and no matter how good your documentation is, if you don’t present well you will not make the sale. For interviews that means showing the interviewers why you are the best candidate for that particular position and how you are a great fit to the team. If you are pitching a business idea or applying for a business loan, you have to be confident in yourself and your idea, and project that to your audience in order to close the sale.

I am not an expert on the current HR-preferred resume style but there are a plethora of websites, books, videos, and live coaches that can get you up to speed there. That’s the easy part. Getting yourself prepared for the experiential and company fit questions is harder than you may think. You need to have your answers down, show confidence as you deliver them, and of course have them tailored to the position and company. Practice is required to ensure you are prepared, but to get an edge you may need to build new skills or strengthen existing communication and presentation skills.

This is where teams like Productively Funny - https://www.productivelyfunny.com/ - which I recently joined, can help. Fear not, this is not a sales pitch for our offerings. It is a call to honestly assess your skills and how prepared you are to make the jump you are planning – whether it’s a new corporate role or setting out on your own. Communication, listening (especially on Zoom calls) and presentation skills are vital to your success in any business setting.

Productively Funny uses Improvisation techniques as the base for training sessions designed to improve those key skills, whether it be for individuals or for business groups. I had the pleasure of attending a session just prior to retiring and I was amazed at the results. Attendees were from several teams that worked together but didn’t really interact. Getting everyone involved in Improv exercises provided a fun and safe way to get out of our business selves while learning how to work better together. Through laughing and learning together we formed stronger relationships with our co-workers that translated to better communication and a smoother work-flow across the teams. All without PowerPoint slides!

The Productively Funny team uses a unique approach to skill building, but there are many other groups out there that offer their own methods. Sure I’d love for you to tell your company training person about Productively Funny or have you inquire about non-corporate workshops. OK, that was a bit of a commercial.

My main goal though is to get you thinking about your current skill set and honestly evaluating whether you are prepared for your next step, no matter what it is. Taking the time to objectively check yourself will enable you to identify gaps that could block your success. Whether it’s looking to move up in your current career, start your own business, get into community or charity work, or even just retire (which is really a transition to the next phase of your life) you will likely need to develop new skills in order to succeed. There are a lot of resources available to help you do that, so do some research, utilize those that work for you, and enjoy the journey to success.