Human Ineraction

I interviewed someone today for an open sales position I have. Over the past few years I've interviewed quite a few people, and although I'm far from a seasoned interview vet, I do feel like I can get a pretty good read on someone within the first few minutes of meeting them. For instance, when I interview someone for a sales position I need to see that they're comfortable interacting with someone they don't know. Simple, I know, but you'd be surprised how many people try to get sales jobs when they can barely hold a conversation. If I'm interviewing for an account management position that requires strong problem solving skills, I need someone that can show me persistence, perserverance, and patience, among other things. Again, qualities that not as many candidates have as you might expect. Anyway, after having a solid amount of interviews under my belt and having quite a few other things to do throughout my day besides conduct an interview, I can sometimes become quickly uninterested when someone doesn't "wow" me in the first few minutes. I honestly don't want to sound arrogant, because that's not the feeling I'm conveying, but it's just a fact that sales candidates need to do something to stand out. When someone comes in to try and sell themself to me, I expect to be drawn in fairly quickly. If they can't convince someone like me who is trying to give them a chance, they likely won't convince someone that doesn't trust them or want to talk to them in the first place. Every once in a while, though, I'm reminded that just because someone doesn't scream "Hire me!" (figuratively, of course) in the first few minutes of an interview, doesn't mean that they don't have a wonderful personality that is very well suited for sales. Today was one of those days.

When I shook John's (not his real name) hand, I saw someone that was a little overwhelmed by the moment. We're not a huge company, but we've got between 300-400 people in our San Diego headquarters, and a fairly large office covering 3 full floors, so I could see how it would be a tad bit intimidating for an outsider. Still, I expect a certain amount of confidence from an interviewee, or at least a facade of confidence. And when John didn't show that, my mind immediately went into "what's my next appointment" mode, which, I admit, is terrible. I walked him upstairs to one of our conference rooms, exchanging small talk along the way to try and make him feel comfortable, and we proceeded to sit down and begin our talk. For the first few minutes we talked about sports and he was still a little, how should I say, stiff. I was clearly carrying the conversation and it was zero fun for either of us. But about 10 minutes into the interview, mostly sports talk to that point, an interesting thing happened: John began to open up. All of a sudden his hands were moving, he was smiling, and I sensed that he was really settling in. What started out as an awkward interpersonal communication had turned into a comfortable, free flowing conversation. We talked about his past experience, what our company is about, and most importantly, at least in terms of him showing genuine interest and intelligence, he asked a lot of questions about what the job would entail. It was truly and enjoyable experience and it wouldn't have happened had I let my mind "check out" of the conversation.

Short story, I know, but I was reminded today of a simple, yet time tested lesson of human interaction: Don't judge a book by its cover. In this situation, the "cover" wasn't what John looked like; rather, the cover was the initial energy that he put out. I'm finding that it's important to give people a little time to express themselves, in or out of the office. Some are outgoing and some are more reserved. Some are colorful and some are drab. Everyone is unique. Whether or not I get a chance to see what is special about someone depends on my willingness to learn and be patient. The more I expect positive encounters, the more I'll have them.



Cheers,
TWF