Getting past the interview
Theresa remembers feeling stuck. In her early twenties, she, like many soon-be-grads, felt the pressure to land a job and launch a career.
Theresa, however, was unable to make it past the interview. After a period of interviews, she had absolutely no leads. When she met Jim, he recognized her situation immediately. Theresa had no idea how to present herself, she wasn’t using the interview to see if the job was right for her, and she had never thought sincerely about what it was she wanted.
In her time working with Jim, Theresa had several eureka moments starting with the day when she realized that she had gotten herself—and her goals—all wrong. When Jim had her describe her perfect day, Theresa said that she loved things like statistics and coding that brought out her technical side and was much less keen on writing reports and doing presentations. With this realization, Theresa was dumbfounded: she had been applying to jobs that she wasn’t even remotely interested in.
That came as a shock. How could she have started the job hunt without considering her true interests? She had been presenting herself based on who she thought she was versus who she actually was… no wonder the interviews flopped.
With a better self understanding, Theresa became better able to articulate who she was. She learned how to pitch herself, made it past all the initial screenings and gained an immense amount of confidence. Before, the workforce had seemed intimidating but when taking stock of her skills and experience, she realized that she actually did have ground to stand on. She did have qualifications. She was providing value. Looking back now, she thinks she was better able to reach this conclusion having worked with a coach whose clientele isn’t tailored to just one age or profession and thus has a birds-eye view of the whole job market.
Soon after, Theresa met with a prospective employer in a discussion where she understood her right to interview the company too. She saw the job as a fit and accepted the offer but not without first negotiating the salary and terms. She started her first day of work with a newfound confidence and an understanding that she was worth the chance to delve into something in line with her true goals.
*All names have been changed to protect the privacy of clients.
Article by Sinead Mulhern
Jim Beqaj
I’m the founder of an international recruitment agency and I’ve worked on Toronto’s Bay Street for years, but most importantly, I’m a career performance coach. I make people better.
I’ve written a book called True Fit, and my podcast Be You, The World Will Adjust releases every Monday.