Everyday is an Interview

In my job, I am responsible for hiring the staff in my department. It is a big responsibility with a lot at stake, not only for us but for our community. At home, I am also in charge of hiring services for our house. Here are two examples of how every day is an interview.

We just got our new house and there was a small leak that I did not have the skill to fix our downstairs ceiling. There was no shut off valve for the line that was leaking, and the water was staining our drop ceiling. We had used plumbers at our old house, but no one that we wanted to hire again. I had no solid recommendations and I had to make a choice quickly. Earlier that week, I had been driving around town doing errands. A truck from a well-known plumbing drove by, cut me off, and drove aggressively. I automatically knew that I did not want to hire that company. I did not want that driver driving on the streets that my or my neighbors’ children play. I went with a different well-known company. Every day is an interview.

My oldest child plays sports and is getting to the age where it was time to start training his body to be stronger, faster, more flexible, and more resilient. I have seen a million trainers and very few have impressed me. The trainer we hired we did without checking out his gym. We hired him because we watched him workout. I was in the gym one day before I made a home gym for the family, and I saw this guy working out hard. However, he wasn’t that he was lifting a lot of weight. Instead, he was concentrating on perfecting the movements of his workout. I was in awe of his attention to detail and I knew right then that if I ever needed a trainer, this was the guy. Fast forward 4 years later, he opens a gym, my son tells me that he wants to start training, and the rest is history. Even in the early morning, when hardly anyone is in the gym, every day is an interview.

I truly believe that actions speak louder than words. A person may claim they are one thing, but in reality, they are acting as someone different. The manner in which we act when no one is looking is the true measure of our character and who we are.

The “Every Day is an Interview” philosophy is focused on how we act at all times, not just when the stakes are high. I have seen so many people in interviews who were acting their best in the hopes of getting the prize… a job and a paycheck. As hard as we try, sometimes we hire people who act differently than they did in their interview once they are hired. Their actions spoke louder than their words. They usually do not last long.

Each time I meet a person, I make a mental note about how they act, if they look me in the eye when they speak, if they are a “yes” person, if they have good posture, and if they are kind to others. I am interviewing them and I am taking notes. They might not be applying for a job, but they might have an important role in my future.

The reverse is also true. We are always being interviewed by others that we meet. Are you acting in a manner that is aligned with who you want to be? Are your words and actions in agreement? If not, what do you have to change? What steps are you going to make to enact these changes? Start with how you act when nobody is looking. This is a true measure of who you are. Remember that every day, and every moment, is an interview and each interview can have a profound influence on your life.

Continue the conversation and let me know what you think.