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Awkward Interviews đ No More
The Psychology of successful interviews. Why Employers profile you behaviorally, and how to answer those questions even without experience.
The Recruitment Letter
March 09, 2024
Picture this, you are super ready with your suit, ironed shirts, shined-up shoes, and ready to take on the interview⌠But then, it just goes, well⌠awkward đ.
Interview questions like âTell me about a time...â or âDescribe a situation...â or âGive me an example...â often leave us blank.
These questions are called - âBehavioral Interview Questionsâ
This style of interviewing was developed in the 1970s by industrial psychologists.
The primary theory is that âthe most accurate predictor of future performance is past performance in a similar situation.â
But how to answer these questions? Well, thatâs exactly what we will talk about in todayâs issue of The Recruitment Letter.
In todayâs edition, weâll cover:
Why do Employers Ask Behavioral Interview Questions?
Top 5 Behavioral Questions By Richard McMunn
Answer Behavioral Questions Without Experience
How to Act During the Interview?
Why Not to Use STAR?
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Why Employers Ask Behavioral Interview Questions?
Interviewers will use behavioral questions to get a better sense of your work and to assess whether or not you have the experience to handle difficult situations you will likely encounter in the workplace.
It is a pretty good test to know how well you can think at the moment and formulate a complete answer to a simple yet complicated question.
PS: Anyone can say they're a great team player, but telling a story about a time you helped a teammate succeed shows it better.
Top 5 Behavioral Questions By Richard McMunn
Richard McMunn is a popular author and entrepreneur with 3.9 million followers worldwide. In a recent interview, he presented a list of the most asked questions that most interviewees canât miss.
Here are the top 5:
1. âTell me about a time you took an initiativeâ
2. âTell me about a time you had to work with a difficult coworkerâ
3. âTell me about a time when you had to work under pressureâ
4. âTell me about a time you had to deal with a challenging situationâ
5. âTell me about a time you had a conflict with your bossâ
But how can you tackle these questions?
While answering these questions can feel tricky, there are effective strategies to approach them using the popular STAR might not be the best approach.
Keep going to know the best method and how to use it.
Answer Behavioral Questions Without Experience
Questions like "Tell me about a time whenâŚ" are perfect to see how youâve handled a situation in the past and how you reflect on it now.
But what if you donât have an example?
What if youâve never faced that situation ever before in life?
Should you lie?
You should NOT.
Donât fabricate stories.
If you haven't encountered the exact situation the interviewer is asking about, you can still answer the question by providing a similar experience from your past.
And if you donât have relevant past experiences at all, you can explain how you would handle it.
Briefly mention that you haven't experienced this specific situation before. Then, describe the actions you would take, hypothetically, and explain why you would take those actions.
It's important to align your hypothetical actions with the company's values and the requirements of the role you are interviewing for.
This is how you perfectly answer a behavioral question with no experience.
How to act when tackling these behavioral questions
Your body language sets the tone for the rest of the interview.
Breathe properly: Stress often makes people puzzled. You need to stay calm here and try to be in the present moment as much as possible.
Repeat the question: Repeating the question gives you enough time to think about the answer. For example:
Interviewer: Tell me a time when you made a mistake.
Candidate: (Thinking*) A time when I made a mistake, well, that reminds me ofâŚ
Donât make up hypothetical answers: If you are asked a question about a situation you have never been in, be honest and say that you have never been in that situation. Ask them beforehand if you can answer hypothetically how you would have tackled the situation.
End Up Clearly: At the end, state your results and learning clearly. That is the most important part. Most people think theyâve spoken for too long and cut too short which gives a bad impression.
Donât Use the Same Situation: This is a mistake that candidates make where they share the same story again and again. This becomes boring for the recruiter/interviewer. Before the interview, try to assign one story to every job description so that you can have a handful of situations to present.
Why you should NOT use the STAR strategy.
When you Google âSituational interviewâ, the one method you see everywhere is the STAR method.
S- Situation: Briefly describe the situation you were in.
T- Task: Explain the task you were given or the problem you needed to solve.
A- Action: Describe the specific actions you took.
R- Result: Share the outcome of your actions and the results you achieved.
This technique is not bad to use. But it sure does have two limitations:
It allocates too much time for background information
It doesn't emphasize learning.
And learning differentiates you from those who have the same or more interesting story than you.
The alternative to The STAR is the CARL method.
STAR is used when you want to focus on the concrete results you achieved. Whereas CARL is used when you want to show the interviewer that you reflected on your experiences and learned from them.
CARL stands for:
C- Context: Combine the situation and task from STAR concisely explaining what your goal was.
A- Action: Describe the specific actions you took.
R- Result: Share the outcome of your actions and the results you achieved.
L- Learnings: What you learned from the experience and how you will apply those learnings.
Hereâs an example of how both work:
The STAR: "When I was a cashier, I noticed that long lines were forming leading to customer wait times and potential frustration. I suggested a new way to organize the checkout process, which reduced wait times by 20%."
The CARL: "As a customer service representative, I realized that many customers were frustrated by the long wait times on the phone. I took the initiative to develop a new FAQ section on the company website, which reduced the number of calls by 30%. By this, I discovered that when customers help themselves that makes them happy.
And not just that, it also reduces calls, and improves overall satisfaction".
See how better it sounds.
As you saw, the CARL answer is more concise and places a greater emphasis on the learnings from the experience.
Both CARL and STAR can be effective methods for answering behavioral interview questions. But, CARL can be a helpful alternative if you want to focus on your learnings and keep your answers concise.
You should use the STAR method for your resume bullet points
However, you can use the CARL method for answering behavioral interview questions.
A note from the Founder of Recruit.net:
đââď¸Maneck Mohan, Founder, Recruit.net
Feeling a little intimidated by those behavioral questions? Don't worry, preparation is key! Take some time before your interview to brainstorm compelling answers. Think about challenges you've overcome (in school, volunteering, even personal life). The key is highlighting your adaptability, problem-solving skills, and ability to learn from situations. Need inspiration?
Job boards and recruitment aggregators like Recruit.net often have lists of practice questions to get those creative juices flowing, plus tons of resources to help you polish your resume and refine your interview skills.
Remember, acing those behavioral questions is just one step in the journey. Here are some additional points to consider:
The importance of positive body language and projecting confidence.
How to turn a negative situation into a positive learning experience in your answers.
The value of researching the company beforehand to align your answers with their culture.
By taking the time to prepare and leveraging the resources available, you can walk into your next interview feeling confident and ready to shine! After all, over 100,000 job seekers have found success with Recruit.net â let's make you the next one!
Together, let's make 2024 your year to shine!
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Hope you liked reading this issue of the newsletter
Best,
Team Recruitment Letter