I have interviewed thousands of people as a recruiter. The goal was always the same. I needed to determine three things.

• Could the person do the work required of the role at the level needed by the manager?

• Would the person be an asset to the team, department, and organization by having the same values (culture fit)?

• Did the person want this job so there would not be a mismatch in expectations resulting in a short tenure?
  

Frankly, it is hard to determine these three in a 30-60 minute interview. 

That is why as a job seeker, you can help your cause by answering questions in a way that will allow the interviewer to elicit this information. Because if the interviewer cannot answer each question with a definitive yes at the end of the interview, many interviewers will not give you the benefit of the doubt. They will pass on you.

So How Should You Not Answer A Question?

Let’s say you are asked the following question.

“Tell me about a time when you had to overcome resistance to one of your ideas.”

The interviewer could be asking this question for several reasons.

• Resistance to new ideas is a common occurrence, so the interviewer is interested in learning how you solve for it.

• The interviewer wants to know how persistent and resilient you are.

• Your answer can provide insight into the situations where you might have to be resourceful or ask for help.

• How you communicate ideas to others and potentially your negotiation skills.

• Your belief in yourself and your ideas.

• What type of ideas have you had resistance to in the past.

So, no matter what reason(s) the interviewer has chosen to ask this question, they need to hear a response that allows them to answer these questions about you.

That is why the following answers are inadequate.

“I have never had this situation where I was asked to put forth new ideas.”

Wrong response. Organizations die if they do not evolve. Regardless of the role, if there is a way to make more money, spend less, or create efficiencies, organizations want to know about it. Answering the questions this way will get you into the “no” category really fast.

“I have never had this situation because I have always had people agree with me.”

Every time you brought forth an idea, it was embraced with open arms? No interviewer will believe you. How do you have any experience persuading people, a vital skill?

While answers one and two are not common, answer number three is something I have heard a lot.

“When this happens, I usually do this (with a general explanation of what you do).”

Answering this question in generalities does not distinguish you from other candidates. Every other candidate can potentially answer the same way. Where is the value you bring? 

Also, when you speak in generalities, you are not building trust with your interviewer. When a job seeker answers a question vaguely or with little specificity, the interviewer wonders if they have experienced this situation and the actual result. If you put doubt in the interviewer’s mind, you are doing yourself a disservice.

So How Should You Answer This Type of Question?

When you are asked this question or any question where the interviewer is trying to understand your behavior around a specific circumstance or skill, it is best to give an example to illustrate what you did. That way, going back to the reasons why you may be asked a question, you can craft an answer with a specific experience that best shows your expertise, skills, or abilities.

There are several ways to answer a question with specific details. The following shows three examples using the CAR, STAR, and SHARE formulas to answer the question, “Tell me about a time when you had to overcome resistance to one of your ideas.”.

CAR response

C-Challenge

A-Action

R-Result

Challenge: In my position at Acme Corporation as a Recruitment Manager, I wanted to add candidate feedback to the process. The challenge was that my manager was skeptical that this would work. She did not think that most candidates would take the time to fill out a survey.

Action: I talked to my peers at other companies that had instituted candidate feedback. One company had embedded the survey as part of the applicant process and had gotten a 40% return rate, which was pretty high compared to others I surveyed. They shared their survey, and I could see that it would give me actionable information with a few tweaks. Also, our Applicant Tracking System could add this as part of our application process. I presented this information to my manager with an estimate of the cost ($0), the time to implement (4 hours), and the time to review (30 minutes each week).

Result: My manager agreed to implement this. We had it up and running within the month, and as a result of the feedback, we made some changes to the online application that reduced the amount of time it took applicants to complete it. Our applicant drop-off rate decreased by 17%.

STAR response

S-Situation

T-Task

A-Action

R-Result

Situation: As the person in charge of a positive candidate experience, I wanted to get feedback about our hiring process. Only those who started with the company were giving me feedback and likely would feel their experience was positive since they got an offer. I wanted to know how all candidates felt about the process.

Task: I had to find a way to gather applicant feedback that wasn’t too burdensome administratively and to convince my manager, who was skeptical, that the time expended on this would have a good ROI.

Action: I talked to my peers at other companies that had instituted candidate feedback. One company had embedded the survey as part of the applicant process and had gotten a 40% return rate, which was pretty high compared to others I surveyed. They shared their survey, and I could see that it would give me actionable information with a few tweaks. Also, our Applicant Tracking System could add this as part of our application process. I presented this information to my manager with an estimate of the cost ($0), the time to implement (4 hours), and the time to review (30 minutes each week).

Result: My manager agreed to implement this. We had it up and running within the month, and as a result of the feedback, we made some changes to the online application that reduced the amount of time it took applicants to complete it. Our applicant drop-off rate decreased by 17%.

SHARE response

S-Situation

H-Hindrance

A-Action

R-Result

E-Evaluation

Situation: As the person in charge of a positive candidate experience, I wanted to get feedback about our hiring process. Only those who started with the company were giving me feedback and likely would feel their experience was positive since they got an offer. I wanted to know how all candidates felt about the process.

Hindrance: There were two obstacles I had to overcome. One was how to convince my manager that the time expended with getting this feedback would prove worthwhile, given that I had a lot of other things on my plate that she was worried would be pushed aside. The second obstacle was how to get candidates to provide genuine, actionable feedback.

Action: I talked to my peers at other companies that had instituted candidate feedback. One company had embedded the survey as part of the applicant process and had gotten a 40% return rate, which was pretty high compared to others I surveyed. They shared their survey, and I could see that it would give me actionable information with a few tweaks. Also, our Applicant Tracking System could add this as part of our application process. I presented this information to my manager with an estimate of the cost ($0), the time to implement (4 hours), and the time to review (30 minutes each week).

Result: My manager agreed to implement this. We had it up and running within the month, and as a result of the feedback, we made some changes to the online application that reduced the amount of time it took applicants to complete it. Our applicant drop-off rate decreased by 17%.

Evaluation: While my manager accepted my argument for getting applicant feedback, I realized my business case would have been stronger if I had more data on cost savings. I suspected we could reduce our drop-off rate. It would have bolstered my proposition (and perhaps our back-and-forth conversation) if I had also included data on cost reduction from reducing applicant drop-off.

See how impactful these responses are using detailed examples that tell a complete story!

Conclusion

Interviewers want to learn all about you. To make their job easier, try to answer questions as best as possible with specific examples illustrating your skills, knowledge, and abilities. Using the CAR, STAR, or SHARE formula provides a process to tell a complete story that will best demonstrate how you do the given job, how you fit in with the organization, why you want the job, and ultimately, why you are the best candidate.

Want to learn more about interviewing? I have a few resources.

Read all about how to answer questions about leaving a previous job here.

Read all about how to calm interviewing jitters here.

Shelley Piedmont is a job search coach. She wants to help job seekers put their best foot forward by providing the tools for a successful job search. If you need career coaching, resume preparation, interview skills assessment, or LinkedIn profile assistance, she can help. Schedule a 15-minute no-obligation consultation.