The best communicators do 3 simple things in job interviews, says expert
You need to have the right skills to do the job you hope to do. But your ability to communicate that you have them and can use them to help your potential employer be more successful is equally important.
“The same things that make us good at communication also make us very, very attractive in interviews,” Charles Duhigg told CNBC Make It.
Duhigg studied hundreds of people while writing three books on productivity, habits, and communication. His last book “Super Communicators: Unlocking the Secret Language of Connection,” examines what sets the most effective communicators apart from the rest.
Duhigg shared three communication tips candidates should consider in their next job interview to connect with the person on the other side of the table (or screen) and make a stronger impression.
1. Give real answers
Interviewers know that candidates are eager to impress. However, your answers to interview questions If it sounds too pretentious or canned, you might be doing yourself a disservice.
“They know you’re performing; they know you’re there to try to get a job,” Duhigg says. But if we can “truly convey who we are,” the employer has a better “chance to see if we’re really going to be successful here.”
Answering questions genuinely but politely can help you stand out, he adds. “The interviewer will remember this answer,” he says. “The best communication is the most sincere communication.”
One of the most difficult questions to answer in an interview is “Tell me about your weaknesses.”
If they ask such a question, Duhigg says, “And I answer as honestly as I can; that doesn’t mean I have to reveal my flaws; it doesn’t mean I have to say anything that crosses the line.”
Career coach Madeline Mann previously told CNBC Make It that an ideal answer would briefly describe a real weakness, but not “the bottom line” before identifying the steps you’ll take to solve the problem area.
2. Ask questions
“I wonder how many people attend an interview and that person asks them, ‘Do you have any questions for me?’ Imagine asking: and the question they ask is completely predictable,” says Duhigg.
The best communicators often “ask a lot more questions” than their peers, Duhigg says. They also ask what you’re looking for deep questions, or questions that focus on the person’s values, beliefs, or experience.
For job candidates, this might mean asking the interviewer how they got into the job or what their favorite part of working there was.
3. Mirror body language
Some of the most important communications are silent. Body language can be very expressive, and mirroring things like your interviewer’s posture, gestures, and expressions can make you a more attractive candidate for the job.
This could be as simple as responding when they smile during a conversation or noticing when they lean in and do the same.
“The more prepared and comfortable we are when doing this, the better the interview will go,” says Duhigg.
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