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How to stand out and fit in

It’s tough – particularly at the top!

Over the last few weeks I have been tracking the experiences of someone who is going through the challenging but exciting process of applying for what some consider the most coveted employment prize of all – the role of Chief Executive.  Clearly expectations and the stakes run high – for all parties concerned:  Head Hunters, Potential  Employers  and of course the candidates.  In fact anyone throwing their hat into the ring for any level of job at the moment is entering a hugely competitive arena. We all know that public-sector jobs losses in the UK are forecast to hit 600,000 over the next six years (figures projected by the Office for Budget Responsibility). The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) is even more pessimistic, declaring a potential rise in UK unemployment to 3 million in the next two years. So, to protect our livelihood nothing can be more important than knowing how to succeed at interviews.

Tricky interviews – manipulation and reputational risk

The challenge this presents to the Employer is to ensure that they have the right policies, procedures, and, most importantly, the skills and techniques, to select the best person for the job from this huge pool of potential.  They also have to appreciate that there is reputational risk if they abuse their position and perversely manipulate the climate.   One example of this I unearthed recently was a masquerading of a senior vacancy.  The vacancy did not exist, but the organisation gained top drawer free consultancy.  How?  By putting the hopeful and very skilled contenders for the post through their paces to solve numerous case studies that were obviously real life and current..  Oh….. and let’s not forget the nerve-wracking presentations and the grilling at the ‘after party’ – ‘Give us your 101 ideas on everything you know from strategic planning to marketing to corporate social responsibility!

Challenges for candidates at interview

For the candidate there are many challenges to succeeding at interviews– not least of which is how to avoid having to ‘play the dastardly game’ outlined above.  I am ever hopeful however that the vast majority of interviews will be run along ethical lines with a great opportunity lying in wait for the candidate who outperforms all the contestants.  But just how do you do that?  How do you stand out and diffentiate yourself from the rest of the cast?  How do you do that but still ‘fit in’?   I want to help all of you who are keen either now, or sometime in the future, to pit your wits against the competition.  You may be considering  a promotion, a new job, a change in career, or even offering your expertise for free as a non-exec, trustee or school governor.  So I am sharing below 20 of my key tips on how to succeed at interviews.

20 top tips to succeed at interviews

At interview to ensure you stand out but still fit in remember the following:

1.  Never sit in reception whilst waiting.  Remain standing – it commands more attention.  Sitting down means you lose your height advantage, inhibits your breathing and could make you look like a sales rep!  

2. Read some of the articles in reception – newsletters etc while you are waiting and look for opportunities to weave the information into your answers at the interview.

3. The meet and greet is vital. Always offer a firm handshake, smile and create a relaxed, confident first impression.

4. Ensure you have some ‘pleasantries’ up your sleeve so you can chat on the way to the interview room.

5. Put yourself in the interviewers ‘shoes.  From the moment you are met in reception, you need to be building a relationship.  Look at yourself from your interviewers’ perspectives. What do they need?  What are they looking for?  How can you match this?

6. In the interview don’t hold your portfolio, bag or briefcase.  Put this down by your chair.

7. Ensure you are very familiar with what you have put on your application for this particular job.  This is crucial if you are applying for several jobs as it is likely that you will have ‘tweaked’ your information to suit.

8. If it’s a panel interview, you must persuade all the members, not just the one who has asked the question.  So make sure you make eye contact with all interviewers

9. Address panel members by name but don’t overuse this.

10. Always have some great questions to ask.  For example ‘What is the most pressing problem you would like me solve?’  ’Please tell me more about the culture of your organisation’.

11. Many interviewers who are well trained will choose to use behavioural type questions.  These are open questions, and they will often be followed by further supplementary ‘probing’ questions’.  They will use these as they know this makes it  very hard for candidates to waffle, evade and lie.

Examples of such lines of questioning include:

“Tell me about a situation recently when you had to handle an under-performing member of your team.”

“Why did you choose that particular approach?”

“How effective was it?”

“What did you learn from this?”

“What would you do differently next time?”

“Why?”

So make sure in your preparation you identify specific examples of all the criteria that the employer is seeking.  Test yourself with questions and answers such as these.

12.   Keep your body language open and relaxed.  Make sure you maintain this even when you are finding a question difficult.

13.   If you are unsure of the question, or need to buy yourself thinking it over time, ask for clarification.

14.   Never ask if you have answered the question.

15.   Try and keep your sentences under 20 words each.

16.   Watch your pace – if you gabble you will look nervous.   If you gabble and use long sentences you will really be in trouble – you will run out of breath.  Your vocal quality will be impaired.  Your brainpower will be inhibited.  You may lose your train of thought and your interviewers will get bored!   They will also forget the relevant points you did make!

17.   Use pause, pace and intonation to add impact to what you say and how you say it.

18.   Don’t give dated examples – generally the pace of change is such these days that people are only really interested in what you have achieved during the last two or three years.

19.   Talk benefits of what you have achieved rather than tasks you carry out.

 20. Lastly, be on your guard at reception, the ‘meet the team’ event or the ‘tour of the office’.     You are probably still being interviewed.

I hope these tips on how to succeed at interviews help you.

Oh, and by the way, if you want to learn even more about how to succeed at interviews and you  actually carry out interviews  why not benefit from our free checklist on ‘The Cardinal sins of interviewing’?   In this I have shared my 20 years’ observations of what not to do when interviewing.  Email us for your free copy now!

Alison Miles-Jenkins Sunday Morning Blog – 1 August 2010 Blog Number 11

Do you think you can? Or do you think you can’t?

Today’s blog is deliberately challenging.  If you are not prepared to look at self-improvement and ask hard hitting questions of yourself, your teams and your organisation, please disregard this blog as it will not be for you.

Feedback from readers tells me that my most successful blog recently has been the one on ‘What are you doing to flourish when we are told to tighten our belts?’.  I hope you were able to read it because that very word ‘flourish’ seems to have captured the imagination, become a real aspiration and opened up dialogue on potential and possibilities.  And it is the theme of ‘possibilities’ that I have chosen today.   Why?  Because last week I was honoured to meet Sir Bob Geldof.

As I have said before, Achievement means a lot to me personally and Sir Bob is surely one of the greatest contemporary achievers.  Remember what he accomplished with Band Aid, and Live Aid when £100 million was raised for African famine relief?  Recall his challenging of Margaret Thatcher, leading to a major re-evaluation of British government policy towards famine relief and all his subsequent achievements.  His accolades go on and on.  Just two days ago he received an Honorary degree. 

Musical and political history was made by this man.  Listening to him I was so inspired to learn about his journey through life, the way he opened up his mind to possibilities that others would not have been able to see, and his staggering ability to challenge and to influence. 

Returning home full of the experience, I learnt a salutary lesson in current celebrity culture:  I discovered that my fifteen year old daughter was up to date with the lives of Pixie and Peaches – but knew nothing of the successes of their father!  She now knows differently!

So when we are at work, how much do we really open our minds to the infinite possibilities that are out there, just waiting to be identified and optimised?  We can’t change where we started from but we can certainly change where we end up.  How do we open our minds?  I’ve listed below some simple but provocative questions and thoughts that may help you.  They have helped me along the way:

Successful people fail more often.  Does your fear of failure get in the way of possibilities?

Reframe failure as a natural result of learning

People crave leadership. Do you let them down?

Are you a member of the I’da club  (If I’d have done that….)?

A winning attitude can achieve anything

Combine attitude and skill and you have an amazing formula

Are you creating a culture of positive thinking and belief?  If so you should see the skills level rising

Our brain is a staggering piece of kit. Do you know how to access the bits you don’t habitually use?

We CAN  change our attitude to a challenge or problem

Do you look at your business as though it is your first day?  Do so and think what you would change?

When considering new ground, consider what is the worst that could happen?  Understand and protect it – it makes calculating the risks easier

Do you ask yourself and your teams – What have you done to improve the business this week?

The good old Pareto Principle – the 80/20 rule.  Are you using it to help you cut through the cr**?

Deal with your time vampires – they are bleeding  you of your most precious resource

How much more potential do you have to unleash?

Remember – it is your subconscious that is driving the bus. Is it taking you up a one way street or on to a junction with many different routes to select?

Finally, there are: 

• people who makes things happen
• people who watch things happen
• people who wonder about what happens

Which are you?

Alison Miles-Jenkins Sunday Morning Blog – 25 July 2010 Blog Number 10

I love this weather but it saps your energies, doesn’t it? I’m going to tell you a true story, a précised version from a longer article, which celebrates the creativity, drive, and entrepreneurial spirt of a sixth former. I’d like you to read it. At the end ask yourself, as I have done, how much do organisations and businesses (in other words you and me) really harness the talent that is offered to them? Or do they, consciously or unconsciously sap the energy, the spirit and the enthusiasm that is there and that needs harnessing, nurturing and developing?

Picture a boy’s school, in the days when school tuck shops were legal. This particular ‘eatery’ started life as an archetypal tuck shop – do you remember yours? Carrying minimal stock and a few lines to match – fizzy drinks, Mars bars, crisps. Opening at break and lunchtime, revenue was around £100 per week. Until an enterprising prefect, mature beyond his years and well respected by his peers, took over. I understand his name was Gammage. Showing leadership potential from the start, his first day running the tuck shop involved working with his team, spring cleaning and posting up staffing rostas. Everything ran like clockwork for two weeks. A model of efficiency and friendliness it seems.

Behind the scenes though Gammage was not satisfied. Undertaking what we would now call marketing research, his customer feedback amongst the Juniors showed the need for a more extensive and exciting product range. Getting the sign-off from the slightly cautious powers that be led to new lines arriving, with attention grabbing signage raising the profile further. Takings increased, the Head was pleased and the new library appeal fund got a boost.

In fact the Head viewed Gamage as a “young man with initiative” and readily agreed for our intrepid Leader of the Tuck Shop to negotiate with the wholesalers. Lion Bars soon arrived in a one tonner van, the day before the UK launch, at a unique special offer price, negotiated by Gammage. The next day, following the huge TV campaign to launch the said Lion Bars (do you remember these?) the school clawed in the trade, selling the bars at the cheapest price in town. So trade soared. Profit soared. The Head was ecstatic.

The nuts business came a couple of weeks later. The media had been talking about the nutritional value of nuts. The enterprising Gammage began selling these, the tuck shop almost hidden by a huge advertising poster on the wall. A photograph of a nubile Beverley, emerging from the sea in a somewhat scanty swimming costume was proving a great choice of advertising medium, no doubt eclipsing nutritional value! Following a not unsurprising reprimand and the banning of the offending advertising, Gammage still managed to increase the takings even further – by auctioning off the poster!

The year rolled on, stock expanded, queues were longer. The weekly order form was now taking as long to complete as an exam subject entry and it took 20 minutes a week to bank all the money. Was it accidental sabotage from the Biology department when they displayed real teeth dissolving in cola? Gammage did not worry either way – responding to market conditions he swopped lines from fizzy to still, negotiating a discount en route.

No doubt using his relationship management skills, Gammage’s marketing of Cuppa drinks with the now allied Biology department proved a huge success. Had he gone too far though when a 10-wheeled articulated lorry arrived with a delivery of cuppa drinks at knock down prices? The off-loading of the ‘outers’ the delivery cartons, resembled a major airlift! Even his most ardent supporters feared the worst. But no, Gammage had bought in bulk at knock-down prices, with his order book full from all the region’s junior schools, all eager for a cut-price offering. It was Sports Day time, during summer weather hot enough to rival our own in 2010. He had created a win-win for all.

Gammage turned out to be so responsible for the huge increase in income generation and profit, that he eventually had to tell the Head about a serious problem. They were going to have to stop trading by the end of the week. Why? They were about to hit the VAT threshold!

So, everything came to a halt. The tuck shop sold off its remaining stock. The tale finishes on a remarkable note however. The school’s name was top of the monthly retailers for still drinks in the southern counties – and the first outlet ever to bat British Rail into second place.

Gammage decided not to go to University. He had an interview with…….let’s just say a major national supermarket. And that is where our tale ends. We do not know what happened to Gammage. Is he now a key figure in the world of FMCG?

What interests me is whether he was able to keep alive that amazing entrepreneurial talent, the creativity, the calculated risk taking and an inspirational leadership style that made him and his tuck shop such a success? I really really hope that the employer lucky enough to secure such a promising young man did everything they could to enable him to flourish and achieve. Experience tells me that he will have faced many hurdles and challenges once sucked into corporate culture. How much may he have been restrained by regulations, conditioning, prevailing values, rules of behaviour and thought. Let me know what you think. I’d love to publish your views.

This week’s blog was inspired by someone very dear to me, a former Headteacher of a boys’ grammar school. His inspiration came from Andrew MacTavish’s article in the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) recent newsletter. ‘Gammage and the tuck shop’. Much of his article I have relayed in my blog.

Alison Miles-Jenkins Sunday Morning Blog – 11 July 2010 Blog Number 9

Firstly thanks to all of you who contacted me to share your ideas following last week’s blog – ‘What are you doing to flourish when we are told to tighten our belts?’ Maria Christie, Interim HR Officer at Tunbridge Wells Borough Council was the first to comment, so I have published her thoughts on how to flourish:

• Recognise that you get back what you put in
• Have a strong sense of optimism
• Recognise that group dynamics encompass broader views, values, vision and goals
• Want to make a positive difference  
• Increase self awareness

One of my clients asked me this week if I really write the blog on a Sunday, as it seemed such a commitment.  I do write them on a Sunday - even on this Sunday before dashing off to celebrate my son Alex’s 18th birthday. In fact, ironically, Sunday’s are the only routine bit of my working week! Anyone who knows me really well will testify to the fact that I ‘flourish’ best when in a fluid environment, with no two days the same and with an opportunity to adapt to the demands of the day and the business.  Structure yes, but routine – never! Except for Sundays. Interestingly, research now shows that for many of us in challenging roles, the working week starts on a Sunday, with internet research in particular occupying a part of the ‘rest day’ for those wanting to get ahead for the following week.  Google at least is happy!

The inspiration and ideas for the blog though occur on different days.  This week, it was on Monday, the day my 15 year old daughter, chosen to represent her school in an annual debating evening, had to pit her wits against, according to her, the ‘cleverest students’, all of course ‘more clever than her’. The use of every time management technique I know enabled me to slide into my seat at the back, one minute before kick off time, feeling every inch the errant career mother.  Glancing around the room, I felt a pang of jealously for a ‘mother and hot apple pie’ lifestyle, which would have ensured my seat in the front row. It was only a fleeting regret, but you can imagine my surprise when the first item on the agenda was announced: ‘A woman’s place is in the home’!

My interest in and therefore subject for today however was not the substance of the debates, but how the youngsters performed.  Faced with that many-headed monster, the audience, the debaters’ abilities to hold their nerve, embellish their notes, keep their voice under control, marshal their thoughts and arguments, talk to rather than at others and then listen acutely to the opposing side varied tremendously.  I read on their faces a range of emotions, from terror to fear to pride.  These emotions were juxtaposed in the faces of the audience, the parental figures willing success rather than failure, no doubt taking a share in the responsibility for the outcome.  Watching any of my kids perform, and being very competitive, I know I feel such emotions acutely.  I actually find it a more stressful experience than any of my own performances.

I admired those debaters.  Whilst performances varied considerably, they all saw it through to the end and no doubt went home with a sense of achievement. However, these kids will soon be competing for places at College, University and for jobs.  Their personal presence and their ability to present, formally or informally, may well be a deciding factor in where they end up.  And once there, how far they get.  That evening I found myself sitting there with my recruitment/selection hat on and could not help but gravitate to those who made their presence felt from the moment they entered the room.  They then stood up and inspired confidence in themselves and their views in those crucial initial seconds, and sustained this head start, finishing as strongly as they started, with as much impact and even more respect.

In our corporate lives, and depending on our interests outside of work, in our personal lives too, our success often relies on our ability to do precisely this. We may be giving formal presentations, chairing meetings, participating in meetings, making an ‘elevator pitch’, negotiating, selling, managing relationships, or networking. We will be judged.  If we get the presence and the presentation wrong, this may eclipse everything else that we have to offer.

Let us return for a moment to our parental figures. Isn’t it staggering the influence we can have consciously or otherwise on the development of our children and the young people around us? The more I develop myself, the more acutely aware I am of the legacy I leave for my children.  Not in a financial sense, but in ‘parental scripting’, the indelible marks and mental messages they carry with them through to adulthood. Sometimes I know I get it wrong;   in the area of presentation and presence though I know I have succeeded.  All three of my children perform confidently in Public, actually enjoy being on show, and rise to the challenge. Francesca gave a great performance at the debate, despite losing her notes just beforehand! I have always taught her to have a ‘parachute’ just in case, and nowhere is that more important that when presenting to others.

I contrast this with a guy I coached this week. He came to me because he had for twenty years feared every time he had to speak in front of others, from the terror that disabled him in his wedding speech to his weekly meetings with his colleagues at work.  He wants to go places, and his fear and lack of skill is holding him back.  We traced the roots of this fear to the derision he experienced at school and college, ridiculed for being dyslexic and nervous, by teachers whose role was to support him.

But of course it’s not just about parental scripting is it?  It’s about the preparation, knowing how to prepare, researching the audience, knowing our subject, understanding our physiology and the biochemical reactions when we are under pressure, anxious or filled with fear.  It’s about being aware of our body and how to make it work for not against us when we are under the spotlight.  This will keep our breathing at an optimum level, our voice able to deliver on command, and our body language becomes congruent with our verbal message.  Recognition of our own personal style is vital too – we can’t emulate others and robotic presentations do nothing for the audience.

We can boost our natural dose of ability with a range of skills, tips and techniques.  Add to this the belief in our own value and the understanding that we truly need to connect with the person or people we are presenting to and we will find ourselves in a better place.  Mentally and physically.

Top tips on giving presentations

I’d like to share with you some of my personal top tips on giving presentations.  So I’ve listed these below.  Please pass these on to whoever may benefit from them.

Presence

Remember, the loudest noise you will make is before you have even opened your mouth

Calm, measured movements show you are confident and in control

Smile, make eye contact

Project positive energy and enthusiasm

Get there early, talk informally to individuals – you will build up ‘IOU’s

Signal you are calm, in control, comfortable in your surroundings and with your subject and equipment

Engage with the audience – don’t treat them like opponents

Overcoming Nerves

Avoid coffee and other stimulants beforehand

Never learn off by heart unless you are an actor

Be very familiar and confident with your opening remarks – have some visual aids if you can

Understand your physiology to get your voice and breathing under control

Smile – it relaxes your vocal chords

Use short sentences and watch your pace

Make sure you are grounded – think about how you stand

Relaxation techniques can help – but practice before and find the one that work for you

Always have a parachute

Talking in front of a large group

Remember it is not a many-headed monster – just a collection of individuals

Organise seating around circular tables – café style – rather than rows

Practise microphones and other technology beforehand

Walk towards and even into the group – don’t retreat

Visual Aids

Remember these are to help you and the audience

Restrict content – a picture says 1000 words

Check PowerPoint animation beforehand

Avoid complex animation

Take your own remote mouse

Avoid too much of the ‘reveal’ method

Answering Questions

Buy yourself some time if necessary – a good way is to summarise or get clarification, even if you do not really need it

Don’t motor mouth on and deliver another presentation as a response

Give an answer and one piece of support

Build in signalling clues to infer you have more to offer if requested

Never ask if you have answered the question

At meetings

Think about where to sit – there are strategic places around the table

Don’t sit opposite an ‘opponent’ – sit next to them or one along

Try and speak early on

Ensure you have a good upright posture or your breathing will be inhibited and your vocal quality may suffer

Acknowledge views before disagreeing and identify merit in others’ opinions

Never say “I hear what you are saying” or “I totally disagree”

Avoid the word “but”

Debating

Do your research – both sides of the argument

Challenge all assumptions – before and during (Thanks to Louise Hazell, Head of Human Resources and Organisational Development, West Kent Housing)

Take key notes to enable logical, accurate and punchy responses

Don’t draw attention to your notes by pretending they are not there

Finally, read some of the Patsy Rodenburg books for some in-depth advice on harnessing human energy

Alison Miles-Jenkins Sunday Morning Blog – 4 July 2010 Blog Number 8

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