Prepare to talk about your strengths

We all know that you are going to be recruited for your strengths and not your weaknesses. Here is another question which is very straightforward and in sync with what the interviewer is looking for. You need to be aware of your strengths and what is going to be your unique contribution to the job and the organization if you were to be offered the job. This is another one of those innocuous little questions which could throw the candidate out of contention if he or she were to come across as some one who is arrogant or egoistic. Some candidates hit the other extreme and end up being too humble and spineless. Both extremes are undesirable.
This might seem to be an oft repeated theme but it is so true it bears repeating. We learnt earlier that your first and foremost strategy is to find out what does the interviewer want the most before you even begin to answer any questions. The best way to do that is to do your research and if there is still something you need knowing; ‘ask’. You need to do your homework and be prepared for answering this question. Know what your greatest strengths are. Be prepared to talk about your strengths and site examples and instances from your life to substantiate your claim. It is easy to understand ones reluctance to talk about oneself as we have been trained from the very beginning not to blow one’s own trumpet. In most people’s mind it goes against the basic tenant of edification which says you can edify anybody else in the world except yourself. Yet you need to prepare yourself mentally to talk about yourself and your strengths and achievements in an edifying manner without coming across as someone who is pompous and egotistic. The best way to do that is to state your achievement or your strength in an even tone and immediately get down to narrating an incident or a stating statistics to illustrate your strength or achievement. The more recent the example the better it is.
The secret to responding successfully to such a query is to prepare for it. The preparation obviously starts at home. You should take some time out and write down some of your strengths and achievements which are similar to what the employer is looking for in a candidate for the job you are being interviewed for. Then think back and also write own some incidents, statistics, or anecdotes that will illustrate or reinforce your claim that strength or achievement. This is another one of those innocuous looking questions which unless you are prepared for it will cause a few problems. Once again chances this question will be lobbed at you in one form or the other. The interviewer wants to find out whether you have introspected or not. He also wants to see where is your self esteem is at. Can you talk about your strengths and achievements without being boastful? Or do you swing to the other extreme and act so humble and self effacing that you become part of the furniture? The focus of the interviewer is as much on your tone and posture as it is on your strength and achievements. Being prepared for this question will require a bit of effort and sometimes some change in attitude. Are you the kind of person who takes the entire credit for your self or will you give credit to others where it is due?
Generally speaking some of the strengths employers are looking for are what every, well socialized young person already has and one does not have to ponder too deeply about them. For example character traits like honesty, integrity, sincerity, loyalty, commitment and a strong work ethic are all prerequisites that are non negotiable. No amount of talent, skills and enthusiasm and motivation will compensate for a little bit of lack of honesty. In fact there is no such thing as a little lack of honesty. One is either honest or not. You either have 100% integrity or not. Yet interviewers will want to see some of these strengths and achievements illustrated. If you have proven track record of being an achiever it helps the interviewers take appositive decision. Employers are looking for someone who is intelligent yet humble, someone who is an achiever and yet a team player who will fit into their corporate culture, someone who will be comfortable around other people, someone who is dedicated and will walk an extra mile in pursuit of excellence, has clear cut personal goals and targets which can be aligned to the goals of the company and of course someone who has appositive attitude and looks to the future with optimism and expectation.
So the best way to tackle this question is to be prepared for it. Preparation is done at home and is sometimes quite boring. But remember spectacular success is always preceded by some very unspectacular (read boring) preparation. Another similar question which needs solid preparation is what your greatest weaknesses are. More about it in the next post.

Price of Success is Not Negotiable

No one ever found himself on top of the Mount Everest taking a morning walk. It requires a dream, a goal, a strategy, training, practice, determination, commitment and execution of the plan to reach the summit. All these things are equally important. You can’t leave out anything or ignore even one of these. The price of success is not negotiable. You can add a few more things like focus, teamwork and good communication and interpersonal skills to the list depending on what field you are working in. As the Olympian's motto goes 'No pain no gain.

It is easy to admire a Sachin Tendulkar bat like a champion because he makes it look so simple. But people who know Sachin will tell you how disciplined he is and how long he practices in the nets. I have seen Jeeve Milkha Singh practice at the Golf Course in Chandigarh for hours on end when he was a teenager. One look at him and you knew here is a champion in the making. Navjot Sidhu’s rise to stardom as one of India’s best opening batsmen along with Sunil Gavaskar was a through the same route called hard work. I watched him practice in the Gymkhana Club in Patiala and would be amazed by his commitment and focus. Abhinav Bindra’s single-minded pursuit of his goal should be an inspiration for everyone and encourage us to set big goals and reach them.

All these sportsmen know that spectacular success is always preceded by not so spectacular preparation. There are times along the way when you could feel lonely and disheartened. What keeps you going at such times is if you visualize yourself at the victory stand and everyone in the stadium applauding you. So it is important for you to visualize your self as a successful person even before you are successful. I remember when I had set myself a goal to lose twenty kilos of extra weight that I had put on I visualized myself as having Mohammad Ali’s body. I even pasted a picture with his body and my face in my dream book. It took me a year to lose the twenty kilos and though I did not acquire the same muscles as Mohammad Ali I have never looked fitter in my life. To be able to say that at 57 is some achievement. Every time I wanted to give up my workout I would look at my goal and the visual and would be encouraged to spend those minutes on the treadmill. Age is no barrier to achieve what you set out to achieve as long as the goal is reasonable. We will talk about reasonable goals another day.