First Impressions are Critical During a Job Interview

First impressions are critical during a job interview.  Knowing exactly what is being evaluated can help you best present yourself.

Amy Cuddy, Harvard psychologist and author of Presence, shows how your body language influences others and even changes the way you see yourself. Social scientists have shown that we make sweeping inferences and judgements based on body language, judgements that can predict meaningful life outcomes like who we hire and who we trust. 

In Presence, Ms. Cuddy reveals that we have the power to affect how others see us simply by changing body positions. Cuddy says that people quickly answer two questions when they first meet you:

1. Can I trust this person?
2. Can I respect this person?

---

Cuddy says that most people, especially in a professional context, believe that competence is the more important factor.  But in fact, warmth, or trustworthiness, is the most important factor in how people evaluate you. While competence is highly valued, Cuddy says that it is evaluated only after trust is established. And focusing too much on displaying your strength can backfire.

She says that some people are often so concerned about coming across as smart and competent that it they come off as unapproachable.

---

As I prepare candidates for interviews I stress the importance of presentation. This not only includes dressing appropriately but also body language aka non-verbal communication.  So as you prepare for your next interview never underestimate the importance warmth and trustworthiness play in how the hiring manager or human resources person will evaluate you.

Scot Dickerson, CPC | President | Capstone Search Group
 

The Fundamentals of Hiring

Stop looking for reasons not to make a hire.

Overly narrow job descriptions and overly choosy managers are killing companies. It might be the economy that makes managers so risk-averse. Such aversion often clouds business thinking. Their companies are hurting while they hesitate to hire good people.  Their current employees are being overworked and morale is suffering while they find reasons not to make a hire. 

---

What is it going to cost the company to leave this position un-filled and the job un-done for several more months?

What is it going to cost when one (or all three) of those “fit and qualified” candidates join the company’s competition — and work against this employer? 

---

Hiring someone who actually hits on every bullet point in a job description is rare indeed. And what if you wait months and actually DO find that person?  Just because someone did amazingly well at a previous role doesn’t, unfortunately, ensure they’ll do the same with you...

1. Holding out could  impact you in numerous ways. You’ll never be satisfied with candidates until you find that star and they could cost you a lot, both in salary, and, if you are wrong, in undoing the mess they leave behind.
2. Instead, look for people who will add real value, supported by data driven hiring practices and tools.
3. Unless an amazing candidate lands in your inbox, and they are suitable following pre-screening, due diligence and an interview, then look for the best fit from the candidates in front of you.
4. Avoid analysis paralysis. Slow to hire and you lose. 

Being stuck on the bullet points and you spend months with an open job.  If the person has a proven track record, you like their energy and personality but they lack a license, so what?  Allow them to get the license.  Otherwise you could go months with an open position, when in reality the person could have gotten their license and have become a productive part of your team while you are still waiting.

---

Sticking to the fundamentals of hiring the right way, finding the right candidates, not hunting for a unicorn, is much more likely to lead to a successful fit, plus gets your positions filled quicker so you stop hurting your business.

Scot Dickerson, CPC | President | Capstone Search Group