Interview Tips, Know Who You Are
As a job seeker, you must define your strengths and hone a message (your unique selling proposition). This is called branding. Branding is a process that clearly defines who you are and what clear benefit you bring to an employer.
On Idol, almost everyone who begins the show is a decent singer. Those who know who they are early in the show always enjoy a huge advantage over those who haven't a clue, even though they may be better singers. Those who understand this principle include Sanjaya, Blake Lewis and Melinda Doolittle, to mention three. Sorry, but none of them is a "great" singer. They did know their strengths and they stayed with them, often maddenly so. But in the end, look where they are now. They know who they are, what they do best and they never strayed from that path.
In many ways, this is not about finding and molding raw talent, it's about finding and marketing talent that's already well-branded. I believe the interview process is much the same. The branding should occur long before you walk into the interview room.
Too many job hunters try to get through the interview by merely giving the "right" answers. The real issue: They haven't a clue about who they really are or what they bring to a company.
If you can't do that, then please watch "American Idol" next week. You'll see the fate that awaits the next fallen Idol who failed to learn this message in the singing world.
