- Prepared Reply
- Following Up Yourself to Talk
- Redirected Reply
- Piggybacking
- Turning the Invited Question
- Breaking the Silence to Talk
Prepared Reply
You should know many of the questions to be asked of you by the interviewer and should be prepared to respond to them with precision of thought and expression. Be certain, however, not to memorize your prepared replies word for word so that they sound memorized. Instead, memorize the key ideas in each reply and don't worry about specific words. If the thoughts are there, the words will come; and your expression will be fresh, original, and thoughtful.
Following Up Yourself to Talk
Once you complete a statement, whether it is a reply to an interviewer's question or some other remark, you can continue to control the flow of conversation for the next few minutes by making a rapid transition into a new thought. Assume you have just completed answering the question "What is your greatest weakness?" Before the interviewer has an opportunity to start talking again, initiate a subject which you would like to discuss.
For example, ''While technical accounting skill is certainly essential for this position, I also believe that an ability to communicate with people is a must. Could I tell you a little about my experience in this area?" As illustrated here, when moving from one statement to another, try to draw a clear relationship between the two; this will make your follow-up reasonable and acceptable to the interviewer. Another approach to following up yourself is to shift to an earlier subject upon completion of a statement. You could say, "Getting back to an earlier question for a moment, if I may…”
Redirected Reply
If a particular question does not have a high payoff or may harm your image, you may skillfully redirect your reply to another subject. The goal of the redirected reply is to provide you with more time to sell yourself positively. Skillfully carried out, redirection should not be interpreted as obvious evasion or give the impression that you are attempting to conceal some weakness.
If you were asked, "I noticed you have only two years of college education. Couldn't this pose a problem for you on the job?" you could reply, "To answer your question, I believe my two years at Georgia Union College were worth four years at any other top-notch school. I feel, however, that the real education for my work was received on the job. There's no doubt, and I think you'll agree, that the best education in the world is doing the work itself. I believe that my seven years, moving from foreman to assistant superintendent, demonstrate the kind of experience that really counts in the end." Although the thrust of this question was to explore the problems involved in having too little formal education, the interviewee handled the reply positively and tactfully, skillfully shifting emphasis of the reply from '*weak education" to "successful experience."
By clarifying the relationship between the thrust of a question and the emphasis of the redirected reply, you gain more acceptance of your statement. Note how the following two replies skillfully shift direction to more positive subjects:
“To help you to understand more clearly my decision for leaving RBN Fashions, I would like to take just a few minutes to tell you about the goals and objectives I set for myself when I began with the company.”
Will that be all right with you?
“With your permission, I would really prefer to discuss salary matters once it's clear that there is a definite interest in me for a job. Then, of course, I can better determine the financial considerations after we discuss the nature and extent of the actual job responsibilities. Could we at this time, then, discuss the credentials needed?”
In the first reply, the interviewee shifts emphasis of the reply from the specific discussion of the "decision to leave" to a positive discussion of career goals and objectives. In the second reply, the interviewee gives an acceptable reason for preferring a postponement of salary discussion and choosing a discussion of job-related matters instead.
Piggybacking
Piggybacking is a technique for injecting yourself into the flow of conversation without having to respond to a question. You do this by listening carefully for the right word or idea, waiting for the next pause or break in the word flow, and then swiftly launching your next sales piece after an initial comment about the interviewer's idea. While piggybacking is useful during conversations with frequent two-way exchanges, it is particularly helpful for recapturing control of the interviewer-dominated, one-way conversation. In the following cases, notice how the applicants smoothly and gracefully piggyback into the conversations:
“Pardon me, Bob, but didn't you say that the ARS Consulting Study cost your firm $150,000 and saved about $75,000 during the first year alone? . . . Well, that is interesting, because at RKO, just last year, I spearheaded an internal task force to examine the same problem that ARS looked at here. Would you be interested in hearing the results of our study?”
(Personal Success Story)
“Mr. Scott, a minute ago you mentioned a move to decentralize management. I seem to recall reading about it in a recent issue of Business Week. Yes, now I remember; the article indicated that because of the planned expansion of thirty new offices around the Southeast, Mr. Willington, your CEO, was considering the action.”
(Company Data Sheet Information)
“Ms. Richfield, I couldn't agree with you more about ABC's need for good trainers who have hands-on experience in other functions of the company, too. In fact, I have intentionally tried to acquire experience in many areas of the wholesale cosmetic industry for that very reason. And now, with two years of direct customer experience, one year of office work, and three years in general management, I have a keener understanding of the training needs throughout the company. May I illustrate?”
(Functional Selling Point]
Turning the Invited Question
At some point during the interview, possibly near the end, you may be asked, *'Now that I've described the key aspects of the job and firm, what questions do you have to ask me?" If your interviewer has monopolized the interview up to that point and you want to use the remainder of the time to present a portion of your sales presentation, do not respond directly with questions, as invited to. Instead, acknowledge the interviewer's invitation and then go directly to the point you want to make. For example, you could say, ''Actually, my personal research into the Hoover Corporation and our discussion thus far have satisfactorily answered most of my questions. However, if you think it appropriate at this point, I'll be glad to tell you exactly what I can offer Hoover and how I could affect the profit picture in the coming years. Are you interested?"
Notice how this reply impressively shifts the conversation from the inter viewer to the interviewee. In this reply, the interviewee scores a few good points: first, a tactful refusal of the invitation to question the interviewer; second, the mention of prior research into the company, indicating interest and seriousness; third, an offer to discuss possible contributions to the company and to the profit if hired; and fourth, the conversion of interviewer domination into a high-impact sales presentation.
Breaking the Silence to Talk
On occasion you may find yourself amidst silence following something you or the interviewer has said. She may make a statement, and then remain silent to see if you will jump in to take issue, argue, become irritated, or react in other ways. Unless you are directly questioned with regard to that statement, you may want to drop the issue for fear of revealing strong negative feelings or saying the wrong thing. A solution is to set a new direction for the conversation. Introduce a new thought, relating it indirectly to the subject just mentioned.
Hopefully, when you speak during an interview, your statements will be thoughtful, clearly expressed, and to the point. Let us take a look at one occasion in which silence follows one of your remarks. What you just said was clearly thought out, concisely stated, and perfectly sensible to you. Now you want a moment's rest and will let the interviewer carry the ball for a while.
Following Up Yourself to Listen
With this technique you can easily shift conversation from you to your potential employer. Simply follow up your last comment with an appropriate question to the interviewer based on either your last thought or some earlier thought. Here are three examples:
- Do you agree with this approach? In what respect?
- Based upon the five-year career plan I just outlined, do you believe that Little Green Advertising can provide these growth opportunities? In what ways?
- Now that we've discussed some of the capabilities that I can offer Hemingway Associates, tell me, where do you feel I would fit in?
In your follow-up questions, be sure not to limit your interviewer's replies to "yes*' or *'no" answers. Keep your questions rather broad, but still specific enough so that they can be answered easily and quickly.
Breaking the Silence
You, not the interviewer, must break the silence if you are to retain control over that portion of the interview. We have seen how you can keep control by proceeding to make a new statement. But if your goal is to get the interviewer to talk about something you want, then you must be the first to break the silence with a specific question.
Throwing Back the Question
On occasion you may find it beneficial to have the interviewer answer his own questions. If you are not sure of an answer, wish to avoid displaying your ignorance, or would just like to know the correct answer, then consider ''throwing back the question." Throw back the question, however, in such a way that the interviewer does not feel that you are intentionally avoiding it. Note the following three attempts at this technique:
1. Interviewer: “What salary do you require?”
Interviewee: “I, of course, would require a salary based on my worth and on the results I can produce. I’m sure the company has a fair compensation program and will probably go along with the schedule you have in mind. But yes, I would be very interested in hearing what you did have in mind.”
2. Interviewer: “What would you expect to be earning with us in, say, five years?”
Interviewee: “That is a good question which, of course, is of concern to me. I would think that my salary at that point would be in line with my contribution and worth to the organization, and therefore considerably greater than my starting salary. But there are many variables involved in projecting future compensation: inflation, new programs and priorities, and the likelihood that I will move up more rapidly than expected. At this point I'm interested in your opinion of my growth prospects with the company.”
3. Interviewer: “What do you see yourself doing with us in this position?”
Interviewee: “I pride myself on my problem-solving ability. And, based on the various problems you've described, I could be involved in a number of different projects. But perhaps you can help me answer this question better. What do you see as some of the current needs and critical requirements of the job?”
A well-handled and infrequent throwback question can help you—the applicant—regain your control of the situation. Be careful, however, to avoid excessive use of this technique, for you do not want to give the impression that you are unwilling to provide requested information.
