A few weeks ago, I was seated at one of 30 or more tables at a large event waiting for a conference session to begin. A lovely woman selected the seat beside me, we began to chat and she asked what I did. I explain I help talented professionals land the job they want fast and with less stress. She looked at me with tears in her eyes and asked “Is it possible to recover from a bad interview?” The emotion in her voice startled me, so I asked a few questions.
What a story! The job she wanted and had opened up over a weekend when the person in the job became ill. She heard about it and decided she should update her résumé. The following week she was traveling with the VP for two days, this was common so she did not think much about it. At the end of the second day she realized the trip had also been a two day interview about the job, her business unit, her results and her future goals. She was totally unprepared.
She realized she told the VP during the trip she had doubts she could do the next level job, that it was not the right time to move from the current position and the she did not have the experience to be successful. The questions she said she was asking herself every day were interesting too – why did this happen to her? – Why was her company so cagey with this interview? – why didn’t they just schedule an interview? Finally, she told me how mad she was at herself for not knowing she could be faced with this type of interview. The session started and we did not finish the conversation.
What happened here happens more than you think. This lovely talented successful woman was afraid to be successful. She allowed her ego and her mindset to keep her just where she was in the job she was doing. She made excuses and allowed doubt, worry and fear to take control and keep her in her current job. She was not aware and conscious of the opportunity until the end of the trip and she had not decided she wanted the promotion.
Your mind is very powerful. Until you decide what you want and become committed nothing will change. Even if the opportunity is before you if you are not committed your mind will go to work to protect you and keep you safe and where you are.
I talk a great deal about the need for focus in your job search, to target what you want. You must be commitment – this story is a great example. I believe if this woman had been committed to landing the new position, and she had decided she wanted the new position, her experience would have been different.
She would have expected the interview. She would have been grateful for the opportunity to travel and discuss her future and she would have taken action to have been prepared to talk about her future goals, her business unit, etc.
What decision and action do you need to take to be ready to land the job you want?
“You must do the things you think you cannot do.” ~ Eleanor Roosevelt
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