5 Uncommon Interview Tips

EP 3030 This is based on an article from Penny Pearl about different things you can do to interview well. ABOUT JEFF ALTMAN, THE BIG GAME HUNTERPeople hire Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter to provide No BS job search coaching and career advice globally because he makes job search and succeeding in your career easier. Schedule a discovery call to speak with me about one-on-one or group coaching during your job search at⁠www. TheBigGameHunter.us. You will also find great info and job search coaching to help with your job search at⁠⁠JobSearch. Community⁠⁠ Subscribe to No BS Job Search Advice Radio, the #1 podcast in Apple Podcasts for job search with more than 3000 episodes. Connect onLinkedIn:⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/T⁠⁠heBigGameHunter⁠ We grant permission for this post and others to be used on your website as long as a backlink is included to⁠www. TheBigGameHunter.us⁠ and notice is provided that it is provided by Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter as an author or creator. Not acknowledging his work or providing a backlink to⁠www. TheBigGameHunter.us⁠ makes you subject to a $1000 penalty which you proactively agree to pay. Please contact us to negotiate the use of our content as training data.

• 0:00Speaker 00

  Shop Black Friday appliance savings and get up to an extra $1,250 off select appliance purchases like GE Profile. Plus, free delivery on appliance purchases of $398 or more. Make life easier with the fridge that doubles as your personal kitchen assistant. Or upgrade your laundry room with the Ultra Fresh Vent System Plus Front Load Washer. So your clothes stay fresh after every single wash. Shop Black Friday appliance savings with fast free delivery at The Home Depot. Offer valid November 4th through December 2nd at participating stores and at homedepot.com. U.S. only. See store online for details.

• 0:30Speaker 01

  All right, so you're prepping for job interviews in 2025.

• 0:33Speaker 02

  Yep.

• 0:34Speaker 01

  And you want to like really make an impact, right?

• 0:36Speaker 02

  Absolutely.

• 0:37Speaker 01

  We're going deep on some kind of unusual tips, actually, to help you stand out.

• 0:40Speaker 02

  Uncommon would be a good word.

• 0:42Speaker 01

  Yeah, uncommon tips, yeah.

• 0:43Speaker 02

  Yeah, uncommon, that's it.

• 0:44Speaker 01

  From this career strategist, Penny Pearl.

• 0:47Speaker 02

  Oh, yeah, Penny Pearl, she's great.

• 0:49Speaker 01

  I'm getting a lot of this from her December 13th post. It was called "Five Uncommon Interview Tips to Help You Stand Out."

• 0:57Speaker 02

  Catchy title.

• 0:58Speaker 01

  Yeah. So let's dive into these, because these are, these are good.

• 1:03Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 1:03Speaker 01

  Her first tip is about research. Don't just like skim the company website, right? We all do that.

• 1:09Speaker 02

  Oh, yeah, the bare minimum. Everyone does that.

• 1:12Speaker 01

  She wants us to think like, what was it, a detective?

• 1:14Speaker 02

  Yeah, like a detective, do some real digging.

• 1:16Speaker 01

  Okay, so what does that even look like? What, what are we actually doing?

• 1:20Speaker 02

  So, think about setting up Google Alerts, right?

• 1:24Speaker 01

  Cool.

• 1:24Speaker 02

  For the company, maybe even for some of their leadership team. Really dive into their blog posts, see what they're talking about. And, and here's where it gets interesting. She even says to check out their earnings report.

• 1:34Speaker 01

  Whoa, whoa, whoa.

• 1:36Speaker 02

  I know, right?

• 1:37Speaker 01

  Earnings reports? That's getting kind of financial.

• 1:39Speaker 02

  It is.

• 1:40Speaker 01

  Isn't that too much for like, you know?

• 1:42Speaker 02

  Look, I know it might seem a little intense.

• 1:44Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 1:45Speaker 02

  But think about it, right? Let's say you're going for a marketing role, okay?

• 1:49Speaker 01

  Okay.

• 1:50Speaker 02

  Understanding those financials, those earnings reports, lets you ask these really sharp questions like, hey, I saw revenue in this sector is way up.

• 1:58Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 1:59Speaker 02

  What's the marketing team's plan to like ride that wave? How are we going to capitalize on that?

• 2:05Speaker 01

  Okay.

• 2:05Speaker 02

  It shows your thinking, big picture.

• 2:08Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 2:08Speaker 02

  You're connecting the dots.

• 2:09Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 2:10Speaker 02

  You're not just siloed in marketing. You understand the whole business.

• 2:13Speaker 01

  Oh, I see.

• 2:14Speaker 02

  And that can really make an impression.

• 2:16Speaker 01

  Okay, I'm getting on board.

• 2:17Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 2:18Speaker 01

  All right, tip number two from Penny.

• 2:20Speaker 02

  Okay.

• 2:21Speaker 01

  Is all about picking the right time for your interview.

• 2:26Speaker 02

  This is a good one.

• 2:26Speaker 01

  I've never thought about this strategically.

• 2:28Speaker 02

  Most people don't.

• 2:30Speaker 01

  Like, at all?

• 2:30Speaker 02

  It's about playing the odds a little bit.

• 2:32Speaker 01

  So what's the strategy?

• 2:34Speaker 02

  She suggests aiming for mid-morning, so not too early, not too late.

• 2:39Speaker 01

  Okay.

• 2:40Speaker 02

  And specifically Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday.

• 2:42Speaker 01

  So Mondays and Fridays are out then?

• 2:44Speaker 02

  Pretty much, yeah.

• 2:45Speaker 01

  I get Mondays, everyone's still recovering from the weekends.

• 2:48Speaker 02

  Exactly, still dragging.

• 2:50Speaker 01

  But Fridays?

• 2:51Speaker 02

  Ah, Friday.

• 2:52Speaker 01

  What's wrong with Friday?

• 2:53Speaker 02

  Everyone's already checked out mentally, right?

• 2:55Speaker 01

  Oh, true.

• 2:56Speaker 02

  They're thinking about their weekend plans, they're not fully present.

• 3:00Speaker 01

  Yeah, you don't want to be the last thing they have to do before freedom.

• 3:02Speaker 02

  Exactly.

• 3:03Speaker 01

  Yeah, you want them at their best, focused on you.

• 3:06Speaker 02

  You want their full attention when you're dazzling them with your brilliance.

• 3:11Speaker 01

  Okay, that makes sense.

• 3:12Speaker 02

  Right, makes a difference.

• 3:13Speaker 01

  Yeah, yeah.

• 3:14Speaker 02

  Little things like that.

• 3:15Speaker 01

  Okay, tip number three.

• 3:18Speaker 02

  Right?

• 3:19Speaker 01

  Storytelling.

• 3:20Speaker 02

  Oh, this is a big one.

• 3:21Speaker 01

  I love a good story.

• 3:22Speaker 02

  Who doesn't?

• 3:23Speaker 01

  Everyone does.

• 3:24Speaker 02

  It's about taking those bullet points on your resume, you know, and turning them into something engaging, something memorable.

• 3:29Speaker 01

  So not just, "I managed a team of five."

• 3:32Speaker 02

  Exactly, like, what was it like? What challenges did you face? How did you inspire that team? What did you all achieve together?

• 3:39Speaker 01

  So it's about the why?

• 3:41Speaker 02

  The why behind the what, yeah.

• 3:42Speaker 01

  Yeah, I like that.

• 3:43Speaker 02

  It's about painting a picture.

• 3:45Speaker 01

  Okay, and she mentions the STAR method.

• 3:48Speaker 02

  Oh, yeah, the STAR method.

• 3:50Speaker 01

  What is that?

• 3:50Speaker 02

  It stands for Situation, Task, Action, Result.

• 3:54Speaker 01

  Oh, okay.

• 3:55Speaker 02

  It's a framework, right? Helps you tell a clear, impactful story.

• 4:00Speaker 01

  Okay, so how does that work? Can you give me an example?

• 4:02Speaker 02

  Sure, imagine you're talking about meeting deadlines, right?

• 4:05Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 4:05Speaker 02

  Instead of just saying "met deadlines," you could say something like, "We were facing a really tight deadline on this huge project."

• 4:13Speaker 01

  Okay.

• 4:13Speaker 02

  So that's the situation, right? And my task was to keep the team on track, make sure we deliver it on time. So the action I took was I implemented these daily stand-up meetings, you know, quick check-ins. And I created this shared project timeline so everyone can see the big picture. And as a result, we launched two days ahead of schedule.

• 4:35Speaker 01

  Wow.

• 4:36Speaker 02

  See, that's much more compelling.

• 4:38Speaker 01

  Oh, way more compelling.

• 4:39Speaker 02

  Than just a dry, met deadlines.

• 4:42Speaker 01

  Yes, yes, absolutely.

• 4:43Speaker 02

  It gives them a feel for how you work, your problem-solving skills.

• 4:46Speaker 01

  Right, right.

• 4:47Speaker 02

  It's powerful.

• 4:47Speaker 01

  Okay, love it.

• 4:48Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 4:49Speaker 01

  Tip number four: make your thinking visible.

• 4:54Speaker 02

  This is interesting.

• 4:56Speaker 01

  I don't even know what that means.

• 4:57Speaker 02

  So it's about those tough questions, right? The ones that make you think.

• 5:00Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 5:01Speaker 02

  Instead of just like blurting out the first answer that pops into your head, take a moment.

• 5:05Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 5:05Speaker 02

  Talk through your process.

• 5:07Speaker 01

  Oh, yeah.

• 5:07Speaker 02

  You know, you could say something like, "That's a great question. Let me just gather my thoughts for a sec. Here's how I would approach this."

• 5:15Speaker 01

  Oh, so it's like you're showing your work, like back in math class?

• 5:18Speaker 02

  Exactly.

• 5:19Speaker 01

  Okay.

• 5:19Speaker 02

  Showing your work.

• 5:20Speaker 01

  Got it.

• 5:21Speaker 02

  It shows you're not just like spitting out memorized answers. You're thinking critically. You're analyzing the situation.

• 5:29Speaker 01

  You're in the moment.

• 5:29Speaker 02

  Exactly.

• 5:30Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 5:30Speaker 02

  And even if you don't land on the perfect answer, showing that process, that's what matters.

• 5:35Speaker 01

  Okay.

• 5:36Speaker 02

  It's gold.

• 5:36Speaker 01

  Makes sense.

• 5:37Speaker 02

  Right.

• 5:38Speaker 01

  Okay, last tip.

• 5:40Speaker 02

  Last but not least.

• 5:41Speaker 01

  Number five.

• 5:42Speaker 02

  Number five.

• 5:43Speaker 01

  This is about ending with a strong question.

• 5:45Speaker 02

  Strong closing question, yeah.

• 5:47Speaker 01

  But not the typical, "Do you have any questions for me?"

• 5:50Speaker 02

  Oh, no, no, no!

• 5:52Speaker 01

  That's so basic.

• 5:53Speaker 02

  Way too passive.

• 5:55Speaker 01

  So what do we say instead?

• 5:56Speaker 02

  Penny suggests something bolder, something like, "What other questions can I answer to really confirm that I'm a good fit for this role?"

• 6:05Speaker 01

  Whoa!

• 6:05Speaker 02

  Right.

• 6:06Speaker 01

  That's good.

• 6:06Speaker 02

  It's a power move.

• 6:08Speaker 01

  Yeah.

• 6:08Speaker 02

  It shows you're confident, you're eager to address any concerns they might have.

• 6:13Speaker 01

  It keeps the focus on you.

• 6:14Speaker 02

  Exactly.

• 6:15Speaker 01

  And your suitability for the job.

• 6:16Speaker 02

  It's all about taking control.

• 6:18Speaker 01

  I like that.

• 6:19Speaker 02

  Leaving a lasting impression. You want them walking out of that room thinking... Wow, that was impressive.

• 6:26Speaker 01

  Okay, so those are Penny Pearl's five uncommon tips.

• 6:30Speaker 02

  Five solid tips.

• 6:32Speaker 01

  To stand out in those 2025 interviews.

• 6:34Speaker 02

  Yep.

• 6:34Speaker 01

  And, and I think what it all boils down to is

• 6:37Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 6:37Speaker 01

  It's not just about what you know, right?

• 6:40Speaker 02

  No.

• 6:41Speaker 01

  Or your experience.

• 6:43Speaker 02

  It's about more than that.

• 6:44Speaker 01

  It's how you communicate.

• 6:45Speaker 02

  Communication is huge.

• 6:47Speaker 01

  It's how you connect.

• 6:48Speaker 02

  Building that rapport, that connection.

• 6:50Speaker 01

  With that interviewer.

• 6:51Speaker 02

  Yeah, it's human.

• 6:52Speaker 01

  So now that you've got these tips.

• 6:55Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 6:55Speaker 01

  Think about your next interview.

• 6:56Speaker 02

  Mm-hmm.

• 6:57Speaker 01

  What stories can you tell?

• 6:58Speaker 02

  Ooh, good question.

• 7:00Speaker 01

  What examples can you use to like really bring these tips to life?

• 7:03Speaker 02

  This is where it gets personalized, you know? It's taking those tips and making them your own.

• 7:08Speaker 01

  Absolutely.

• 7:09Speaker 02

  That's the art of it.

• 7:10Speaker 01

  Yeah, good luck out there.

• 7:11Speaker 02

  You've got this.

• 7:12Speaker 01

  Good.

• 7:13Speaker 02

  Break a leg!

• 7:14Speaker 01

  Thanks for joining me.

• 7:14Speaker 02

  Thanks for having me.

• 7:15Speaker 01

  We'll see you in the next deep dive.

• 7:17Speaker 02

  Good for it.

• 7:18Speaker 01

  Bye.