Having an Interview Routine Makes a Huge Difference
Imagine you walk into an interview feeling like your best self. The version of you that would wow an entire party full of impressive humans and leave feeling light as air.
Oh right.
That’s barely anyone.
Very few of the hundreds of individuals I’ve worked with enjoy interviewing.
Most find interviewing painful, nerve inducing, anxiety-ridden, and an exercise in self-doubt and beating ourselves up.
There’s a better way.
Enter… the interview routine!
Read on to learn how to set yourself up for success as you’re interviewing. There’s certainly going to be a couple of surprises here.
My ultimate goal is that people can start seeing interviews as an exercise, something to learn from - rather than a personal attack.
To be frank: this interview routine does not work if you haven’t taken the time to make sure you know your stuff.
So let’s get into it! Here’s everything we’ll cover! (#5 is probably one of my favorites!)
#1 - KNOW YOUR SHIT
All of this advice on a routine is useless if you haven’t been working on your shit
#2 - PREP YOUR SHIT
Know and preparing are surprisingly different activities!
#3 - NAIL THE PRE-INTERVIEW ROUTINE
Identify and activate your pre-interview routine
#4 - STAY THE FUCK IN IT
Your brain is going to sabotage you in there - don’t let it
#5 - GET YOUR POST-INTERVIEW ROUTINE DOWN
The biggest miss is that folks don’t take these steps to solidify and close out an interview
Let’s dive in, shall we?!
#1 - KNOW YOUR SHIT
One of the first things we need before we go into an interview is clarity around what we bring to the table, and what we’re looking for. The hidden talent of the best interviewers? Storytelling. They can tell stories in a way that draws you in, keeps you engaged, and delivers a winning lesson by the end. At McKinsey, interviewers were trained in assessing the content of a story, rather than the person’s resume - and we’d even interject if the story didn’t help them highlight the best details of their experience.
Don’t wait for someone else to redirect you. Instead, take time to revisit your past experiences and start to draw out the stories that are important. These are ones that may answer questions like: “tell me about a time when you had to influence senior stakeholders?” or “do you have an example of having to overcome a mistake or miscommunication?”
You won’t necessarily have a story for every single question that you’re asked. But as you get better at mining your experience for stories, it becomes easier in the moment when you’re thrown a curveball like, “how do you manage an underperforming employee that’s impacting the entire team’s success?”
Struggling to think of this? Try leveraging past interviews, chatGPT or a regular google search for questions that might be asked in your interview. Or, look at past job postings to see examples of expected responsibilities and think about what you’d want to share.
Knowing your shit is two-fold: you want to be incredibly clear about the value you bring to the table, and, you want to be able to communicate what you’re looking for.
Spoiler alert: I need a job, isn’t the greatest answer. Take time to research the company and think about what they uniquely bring to the table. Is it fintech? Healthcare? How do you feel about incredibly complex systems? Or maybe you’re drawn to the mission? Or the type of team dynamic and collaboration styles! Whatever it is, you want to be able to highlight why you’re a great fit and what you love about them!
ACTION STEP: Mine your past experiences to collect examples of moments where you navigated complexity, managed your team well, have strong KPIs, etc. Feel free to use chatgpt or any kind of interview guide. In addition, take time to think about what YOU want, and how this organization can help you get there.
#2 - PREP YOUR SHIT
Wow! look at all those stories and wonderful clarity around why you want this role!
Did you know that most people skip practicing?
As a former theater major (yep, I know) this is DUMB.
DUMB.
Sorry to be an asshole, but truthfully, you think someone presenting a TED Talk never practiced?
No. They’ve practiced so many times that the story is like breathing to them.
Think about a story that your family loves to tell. That story that comes up at holidays, family gatherings, out at parties. The one that you’re sick of hearing at this point.
Here’s what’s amazing about that story - you know exactly how to tell it to your audience now.
There’s a story my family loves to tell from when I was young.
I was in elementary school, and received a test score on a math exam. The teacher praised my performance, and a boy next to me scoffed and said, “nerd.” I stood up to grab my test, and as I walked by him I tossed back, “I’d rather be a nerd than an idiot.”
This story was in my mother’s speech at my wedding.
I know how to tell this story and make it last 3 sentences. And I also know how to make it last 3 minutes. I know if I want to spend time on the math exam - how hard I worked. Or if I want to lean into the sass that I tossed that kids way.
Sure, there’s some of us out there saying, but Rikki, I’ll said robotic if I practice!
Most TED Talks sound incredibly natural because it’s been practiced SO many times it’s past that weird robotic nature, and now it’s part of their canon of life events.
You want that.
Practice. Practice. Practice. Write it down. Say it out loud. Record it. Say it to a friend, a partner, a colleague. Time it. See if you can get it longer, shorter, with humor or sincerity.
Often you run out of time during an interview while you’re rushing along the words with speed or forgetting pieces and they can barely understand you. The folks who naturally interview well are often the best storytellers.
You can become a better storyteller too - it’s just going to take time, practice, and a fair bit of discomfort.
ACTION STEP: Take one of your work stories and write it down. Speak it out loud. Time it. Try recording and listening to it - if you start to zone out or get disinterested - guess what, so does the interviewer! Try practicing your stories once or twice a week! And even more if you have an interview coming up.
#3 - NAIL THE PRE-INTERVIEW ROUTINE
Do you have a pre-interview routine? Well, we’re going to create one that’s more robust than rushing into a phonebooth or stairwell to take this call right after a meeting. Whether you’re at home, or in the office, there are a few things we can do to help get into “interview mode.”
Some ideas to help shift into “interview mode”:
Move your body - whether that’s a brisk 5 minutes walk, a couple jumping jacks, squats, or a full on body shake, do something to help release any built up nerves or anxiety that may be festering in there
Slow your brain - a 3 minute guided meditation, or simply a 6-count breath with your hand on your belly and a soft gaze or closed eyes. Possibly some tapping, light yoga and stretching. You may find settling into the calm makes you feel calm
Laugh - teams and people do better in performance when they feel loose. Watch or listen to some stand-up comedy, or play around with some improv energy. It helps you stay active, on your toes, and feel silly!
Theme song - remember 500 Days of Summer when he walks down the street bopping along? Find some jams that make you feel like a hundred bucks and turn up the volume for a pre-interview dance party or head nodding. It should be music that makes you feel strong, relaxed, and excited
Mantra - do you have a mantra or something you say to yourself to get in the zone? It might sound like, “I am worthy, I am capable, I am smart, I am lovable, I am successful,” etc. Choose something the feels good to you
Cheerleader have someone who makes you feel amazing? Give them a call and ask them to remind you how lucky this company would be to have you. Don’t call someone who makes you feel nervous or will pile on worries
Stop preparinghave you seen the adorable video of the child right before a test pretending to wave and flow the information into his brain? Don’t be him. That last minute panicked studying is guaranteed to raise your heart rate without adding value to your performance in the interview. I tell folks to try stop preparing the night before - with a little light LinkedIn stalking or question crafting before if needed
Bullet list - write down anything you know you want to highlight. One of the benefits of an online interview or phone call is you can keep them in front of you. Is the interview in person? It’s not weird to have a notebook with a couple key terms listed for your eyes only
Feel fab - do you feel like a million bucks with a blow-out or a manicure? Maybe there’s a certain shirt that makes you feel incredible. You may not have the cash to go full baylage for every interview, but, you can try a couple things to make you feel fantastic whether that’s a new interview outfit, a skincare routine or quick barber trip
Get grounded - I had a client who loved to sit with their weighted blanket and a warm cup of tea during an interview to help remind themself that they were safe, cozy and loved - and, they could take a sip if they needed an extra 10 seconds to think of something!
Go outside - A bit of fresh air can make all the difference - even if it’s freezing. Anything to switch up the brain!
DND - do not disturb mode on all your tabs, your phone, etc. We don’t need any distractions so that we can stay fully in the moment
Review the wins feeling extra nervous? Go back and review some of your wins. That could be past performance reviews, or notes you keep from people who love working with you. Don’t have a wins folder? This is your sign to start one! For you and your team
Manifest - I’m not always into manifesting, but it can work for some of us to simply assume and daydream that the interview is FUN, and you do GREAT, because why WOULDN’T YOU?!
Turn the tables remind yourself - you’re interviewing THEM, too. What questions do you have or things you want to uncover in your conversations as you progress through the interview process? Write them down! Make sure they get answered! Stay aware if you’re seeing some bad behaviors in the interview. If they’re already showing up now… just imagine what it’s like to work there!
ACTION STEP: Consider this list - or maybe something I haven’t added here. Choose 3-5 of these activities that you want to incorporate, and test them. See if they work for you! You may need to adapt and shift depending on the stage of the interview process or your energy and mood.
#4 - STAY THE FUCK IN IT
Remember your last performance review? Great. Tell me three pieces of negative feedback or criticism you received.
Easy right?
Now think about three pieces of positive feedback or praise you received.
A little bit harder.
Most performance reviews lean towards positive feedback with a smattering of negative. But our brains latch onto negative information because they’re assholes. Negative confirmation bias is real and your brain likes to sit in shit. It’s why it can be so hard to remember the good stuff from a review or an experience. Unless of course, you have an active gratitude practice to lean into reminding yourself the good stuff is all around you.
The danger of this is that during an interview, there’s going to be good and messy moments. That is normal! But! If we haven’t trained our brain to stay in the moment we can go down a rabbit hole of “oh I messed that up, they think I’m not good,” and then we end up throwing out the whole thing when we still truly had a shot and we just happened to stumble on a word or two. They probably didn’t even notice, yet you’re now off on a brain tangent panicking about this never working out.
Sound familiar?
Yeah, we can easily recover from a fumble if we don’t throw the rest of the game in the trash. Sports metaphor! Did I do that right?
Looking for ways to stay in it?
Maybe you keep one of those mantras from step 3 in front of you! Or in your daydream manifesting you even think about recovering from a misstep!
Alternatively, you can try a RAIN:
Recognize you’ve lost the thread and have wandered off
Accept/Acknowledge that’s normal, totally okay
Investigate what’s coming up here in your body and mind
Note it and return to the present moment without needing to fix it
It takes about 30 seconds and no one even realizes you did it, but it can help you stay in the moment. If you’re taking a call from home, you might try adding a weighted blanket, or really comfortable shoes to stay grounded. If you’re in an office and panicking, putting your hands around a cold glass of water - or warm cup of tea can help us stay present.
ACTION STEP: Try RAIN during your next interview, with a gentle reminder that a simple 30 second fumble in a 30 minute interview is TINY. We have plenty of space to do a great job!
#5 - GET YOUR POST-INTERVIEW ROUTINE DOWN
If the extent of your post-interview routine is to disassociate and then send a thank you note, I’ve got just the thing for you.
Enter the post-interview routine! Most of us do what I listed above and then proceed to beat themselves up for weeks and weeks until they hear back - and even if they do, they still think about all the areas they were an idiot.
There’s a better way and you can activate it in just 5 easy steps!
Step 1: Emerge from the interview and shake it off. That might look like a quick dance party, going for a walk, a workout session, a nap, etc. Anything to move away from the experience and release those pent up nerves
Step 2: Now that we’ve had some mental and possibly physical space from the experience, get out a pen and paper. We’re going to ask ourselves a couple of key questions so that we can break out of the regular rumination and flagellation cycle that most of us like to enter at 3am. This should take about 5 minutes!
What are you proud of that went well in the interview? Write down at least 5 things that you think really went well. And you MUST start with this. Do not skip this question. Do not do this question second. Take time to really honor what went well and cement it so that you can do it again in the future!
What did you learn during that interview? This could encompass things you learned about the role, hiring manager, company culture, etc. It can also include areas that we need to improve. I.e. I need to tell my background faster - I ran out of time and they seemed disinterested! Or, I didn’t have enough questions to ask and felt silly! This is the part that your brain wants to hang out in, so let it!
How will you improve for next time? Get super clear about what you’re going to do to improve. Maybe you’ll ask the recruiter a follow-up question about the role from what you learned. Background story too long? You’ll spend the next two weeks editing, practicing, recording and timing to get it tighter. Or, next interview you’ll make sure you have at least 8 questions ready to go.
These three steps are wonderful because now when you wake up at 3am and your brain is beating you up you can say, “hey brain. Shut up. I did these 5 things well, and yes, I fumbled that question, but I have a plan on how to improve if that happens again! I’m already taking action!”
Step 3: Send the thank you note. Yeah, you gotta do that. Great idea is to include: a little anecdote from the session, a note that reminds them why you’re a great fit for the role, repeats your interest and excitement, asks any outstanding questions, requests timeline details around what you’ll hear next. For example, “Thank you Susan for your time this afternoon. I loved getting to hear about the role and swap stories on how cute cavapoos are! Again, I believe my background in product marketing in a highly regulated industry would make me a fantastic addition to the team while bringing new insights. I’m excited to apply my learnings from fintech into the healthcare space and believe [company] is a great place to be right now. [Recruiter] mentioned I’d hear back about next steps by Friday so I’ll keep an eye out. I’m really looking forward to continuing the conversation and meeting more of the team. Have a wonderful week.
Feel free to leverage chatgpt or google for more ideas on how to write a killer thank you note! And obviously, adapt and make it your own!
Step 4: Go celebrate! You did the damn thing! Treat yourself! Get a donut! Have a fun workout class! Phone a friend! I don’t care what you do, but it’s GOOD to celebrate progress over outcomes. Is this your first interview in 5 years? Celebrate! First time making it to the panel round? Wow! That’s awesome! Did you get to interview somewhere on your bucket list? GO CHEER. Who cares what happens next. You deserve to recognize, celebrate and honor this accomplishment.
Step 5: Apply apply apply. While you’re still on this high, go and apply and network for more roles. This will help if things don’t progress to the next round. Rather than feeling low and sad and like you have to restart: you’ll already have some irons in the fire! Or, if things progress, these other opportunities might be a great bargaining chip, or, who knows, maybe one of these roles is better!!!
ACTION STEP: Try this out for your next interview. It all in takes about 30 minutes and it’s a great way to solidify learnings
What would you ask to your interview routine? I want to know!
If this was awesome for you but you want to partner with someone to really reflect, collect themes and make moves? You know what to do.