Reeling in the BIG Fish Requires You to Know What Fish You Are….
The majority of leaders I’ve worked with, in my personal opinion, have no idea how to interview. When I say no idea, I mean it. It’s less about not having the skills and more about their inherent dislike for it. It’s like a child who hates math: if he hates it, he probably won’t be very good at it. If you hate interviewing, it shouldn’t be something you put on your resume, because chances are...you’re not that great at it.
So what’s the answer? Google it! Just kidding...googling it will only leave you more confused. Besides, most of the information in cyberspace is for candidates, and how they can ace the interview.
So, back to the pressing question: How do you get good at interviewing?
The “answer” does not exist.
How you should interview is based on the role for which you are hiring, the profile and attributes you are looking for, the level you are interviewing, and your personality. What I’ve witnessed over and over again is that interviewers resort to an “interview style” that they think is right, regardless of their own personality. This is a HUGE MISTAKE! It can make you appear awkward, inauthentic, and rigid.
One of eQ’s most challenging trainings is on personality types and what people are motivated by – all based on FISH! Below is a brief summary of the 4 personality types. They can also easily be paired with the well-known DISC profile. Please understand that you may be just one or a combination of these, but take a minute and try to figure out which one describes you the MOST:
If we are just focusing on interviewing skills, we need to take into consideration YOUR personality type to determine how best to interview. This is a great way for you to come across with your own tailored style – and exude genuine authenticity.
Here are some Dos and Don’ts for each personality type when it comes to interviewing:
Dolphin:
DO: Make the interview fun and upbeat, just like your personality. Tell great personal stories and be captivating.
DON’T: Forgo important details for the sake of entertainment, or try to become best friends with the candidate. You also don’t want to seem too informal that the candidate doesn’t take you or the organization seriously.
Shark:
DO: Come across as decisive, powerful, strong and confident. Talk about how you’ve excelled in the company.
DON’T: Intimidate the candidate, cut the candidate off, forget to tell stories that will engage the candidate, and/or talk about yourself the entire time.
Octopus:
DO: Put those fact finding skills to use! Dig into the candidate’s experience and ask thoughtful, detailed questions.
DON’T: Fall victim to paralysis by analysis and/or bore the candidate with so much detail that he/she loses sight of the bigger picture, or just loses interest in general.
Whale:
DO: Make the candidate feel as though you would be a great teammate and understand the impact aspect of the job.
DON’T: Forget to tell the candidate what’s in it for him/her (versus the team), be scared to be hard on the candidate to see what they are really made of and/or breeze past the candidate’s primary motivators.
Once you have figured out your style and adapted to it, you will need to understand the personality of the candidate. The good news is this is most important towards the end of the interview when he/she is asking you questions. You have the ENTIRE interview to figure out what personality type best describes your candidate. From there – adapt your style to them and try to reel in the fish!
Misti Aaronson is the Executive Vice President and a partner at entreQuest. She utilizes her talents and expertise from working with countless organizations to help businesses grow through expert talent acquisition, growth methodology and development of their teams.
