Jack finally scores an interview with a company he's had in his sights for quite a while.
He preps carefully for the meeting.
The day arrives.
He looks great.
He feels good.
He goes in primed and ready to hit a home run, but walks out...
disappointed.
The hiring manager didn't ask the kinds of questions Jack anticipated - and was hoping for.
As a result, he didn't get a chance to properly showcase his value.
He couldn't make a strong case for his candidacy.
He wasn't able to underscore his uniqueness.
Jack's pretty sure this won't go any further.
There won't be a follow up interview.
He won't get the job.
While Jack thinks his problems stem from this interviewer, he's got it backwards.
Jack was his own worst enemy, because he walked in to that meeting and ceded all responsibility for the conversation to the hiring manager.
He forgot that this job interview was a sales call.
Imagine for a minute that you're selling widgets.
You land a meeting with a potential customer.
During the sales call, you sit there meekly waiting for her to ask all the "right" questions about the features and benefits of your product.
You expect her to automatically know from why your product is superior (you sent her some literature, for Pete's sake).
If you're patient, surely she'll ask you everything you need to showcase your widgets.
You will walk out of there with an order.
Of course this is not likely to happen.
Those widgets aren't going to sell themselves.
A good salesperson isn't a passive participant in the conversation.
The job interview is a sales call, too.
You're the salesperson.
You shouldn't be a passive participant, either.
That means you can't cede complete control to the interviewer.
You can't sit there and hope she'll ask you all the "right" questions.
Know what points you want to convey before you walk in the door.
Then make sure you execute.