The Best Interview

The best interview is the kind where they basically ask you 2 questions:

What do you want to know about the position? and
When can you start?

This happens rarely. Only if you know someone and have been recommended or recruited for the job. They want you to work there. They are just hoping that you will consider working for them.

This is the reverse of what usually happens for a job seeker. Many job seekers are just looking for "anything," for anyone who will hire them at a decent rate. The interviewer has the advantage in that case.

I guess networking can give the job seeker the advantage.

Learning Opportunity

Has anyone been to a job interview lately? I have been to a few. This is an interesting question I was asked recently: Tell me about a failure you experienced and how you handled it.

I replied that I don't use the word failure myself or with my clients. I try to reframe the experience as a mistake, feedback, or a learning opportunity. If you experience what seems a failure, it gives you time to regroup and consider whether this is a goal you still want to pursue, or perhaps you might want to change direction.

I thought it was a good answer, because it shows how positive I am, and to allow me not to talk about a personal failure to a group of people I didn't know, and direct focus to the client or customer.