Your Skills and Experience Don’t Matter In An Interview
I know most candidates don’t believe this, but there is a lot of truth to this. There actually is something much more important in an interview than your skills and experience. The sad part is that most candidates rarely focus on this aspect of the interview.
Do you know the three most important words in any job search?
I have asked this question to probably thousands of candidates. Less than 1% can get even one right.
If you thought: qualifications, experience, skills, or industry knowledge, you are completely wrong. Those may be important, but they are not the most important.
The three words that will more often than not get you the job over someone else are, presentation, presentation, presentation. Yes, getting an offer is mostly about making a good, make that a great, presentation. A good presentation was adequate when unemployment was at 4%, but not now with unemployment at almost 10%. Now it needs to be great.
In our book on how to conduct an effective job search, “This Is NOT The Position I Accepted” we have a whole section dedicated to this topic alone. That is how important a great presentation is. Many qualified people don’t get the job. Usually the one that does get the offer is the one that made the best presentation.
Since the recruiter or the hiring manager has already reviewed your resume before asking you in for an interview, and in many cases they have also conducted a phone screening interview, they already know you are qualified. Therefore, when a candidate is invited in for an interview, the recruiter or hiring manager has already determined that the candidate has the qualifications for the position or they wouldn’t invite them in for an interview. This means that just about all of the candidates are equal when the face-to-face interview begins. It is the presentation at this point that carries them the rest of the way.
Think about it on a scale of one to ten. Let’s presume that in order to get invited back for the next round, a candidate has to get to a score of at least 8. Since all of the candidates are starting at zero while standing in the lobby waiting for that first face-to-face interview, the candidate that makes the best first impression can jump up 4 points on the scale and the interview hasn’t even started. Now during the interview they only need 4 more points to get asked back. Contrast that with those that don’t make a strong presentation and they have to do double the work of the first candidate in order to get asked back. If one makes a negative first impression and drops to -2, then the mountain they have to climb is just too great and they will never be asked back.
There are a lot of moving parts to making a great presentation. Most are obvious, but some will take time to master and others will require getting expert help. The importance can’t be overstated. Here is a test to determine whether or not you are making a great presentation, if you are getting interviews and not getting the job, my experience of 30 years tells me that your presentation is lacking. Since you are getting interviews your qualifications and resume are working. That means that something is going wrong in the interviewing process. 90% of the time it is your presentation.
Here are some suggestions to help out:
- Be open to the fact that this might be your issue. Don’t just assume that it isn’t. If things aren’t working, then change something. If you are closed minded on this then you will continue to struggle and be frustrated.
- Get some very candid help. Identify someone that you trust to be open and honest with you, maybe a recruiter, and ask them about your presentation. I met a great candidate lately with outstanding experience. He has been getting numerous interviews, but kept coming in second. I can assure you it is his presentation. In our interview he never asked for any feedback. He never asked how the interview went or if there was anything he can improve. If asked I’m glad to assist.
- Invest in an image coach. This is a small investment compared to not getting a job. Take the candidate I referred to above, an investment of probably less than $500 would have meant tens of thousands of dollars to this person by landing a job. An image coach will really polish your presentation. They work on just about every aspect of a great presentation. This sounds so silly, but it even includes how you walk, sit in a chair, shake hands, make eye contact, how to use body language, facial expressions, hand movements, and so much more. All of this sounds so trivial, but collectively it plays a major role.
- Script out your answers. Script is just a fancy word for write out your answers to the basic questions you know you are going to be asked. This is one of the most important things that I require when I’m doing job search coaching with an executive. Writing these out helps you to prepare so you aren’t winging it in the interview. It also allows you to practice, so now you demonstrate confidence. Finally, it prepares you so that you are succinct and focused when answering questions.
- Practice in front of a mirror or video yourself. If you have never done this, it is an eye opener. You will see how you sit in the chair, hand motions, how your voice projects, mannerisms you don’t even know you are making, many of which may be down right annoying. This is a powerful exercise that very few candidates ever do.
Presentation, presentation, presentation are the most important words in any job search.
Take full advantage of the many free resources we offer on our website. For example, we have an extensive audio library for you to download free files, our chapter on winning the phone interview has been downloaded by over 3,000 people, and our sample cover letter that makes you stand out has been downloaded by over 2,500 people. These are just a few of the numerous free resources we offer to help you reduce your time in search.
Also don’t forget to join our Job Search Networking group on LinkedIn. This is a very active group with lots of excellent discussions and resources. CLICK HERE to join.
Please take full advantage of all the free resources we have to offer. It is our hope to help you reduce your time searching for a new job.
I welcome your thoughts and comments.
Brad Remillard
Tags: Cover Letter Example, Cover Letter Sample, Cover Letters, Interview 1st Impressions, Interview Mistakes, Interview Questions, Interviewing, Interviewing Failure, Job Hunting, Job Search Mistakes, Networking Mistakes, Phone Interviewing, Resume Writing
Face-to-Face Inteviewing, Interviewing, Job Search Mistakes | bradremillard September 13, 2010
About the Author
Brad Remillard is a founding Partner of IMPACT Hiring Solutions, co-author of "You're NOT the Person I Hired", and "This is NOT the Position I Accepted". Brad is an award-winning international speaker, retained executive recruiter, and expert on hiring and retaining top talent, and executive job search.
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By Ben Power, October 19, 2010 @ 8:57 am
Great article. I am frequently asked for advice on resume writing and interviewing, and I’ve said similar things to people – you’re marketing a product (of sorts), and presentation is everything.
Incidentally, I got all three words right on the first try (honestly, I did).
By Manik, October 6, 2011 @ 9:28 am
Thank you sir for this article, i also thought experience is most important than presentation in a interview. But now understand i was wrong, presentation is most important in a interview.