Employers just want to know one thing
All Interview Questions are really one question. Because they all seek a single answer.
“What do you VALUE?”
Sounds simple, right?. It can be. But a lot of you haven’t sat down to figure this out or how to convey this succinctly in an interview. Worse, you are misunderstanding your values and this can come across as faked.
And interviewers see this a mile off.
So, what are these questions really for? What is that person trying to find out from you? because you’d just tell them the answer if they’d well, ask.
What's the Answer?
Well, we’ve got the question and we’ve got the answer. Not your answer, but how to find it. You will need to find your own answer but don’t worry we’ll give you the tools and approach to find it, but we suspect a great deal of you will have the answer already. And you just need to know where and how to find it
The "Questions" are just one Question
What do you VALUE?
That’s the question. That’s what all the other questions are trying to uncover.
Why my Values?
Your values are your beliefs, your philosophy and if your life were a movie, it would be the third act Mission you’ve just been sent on. Values are the things that are the most meaningful to you. It’s your creed, your unique individual essence.
You’ve been curating values all your life and they are directly connected to your needs. Whatever those needs are. Your values are those things that you fight to get, to keep, and then protect like a lion. The reason companies are asking this is because…
If they know what you value – they can better predict your future behavior
I know my values… kind of
When you know what you value, you will live and work in alignment with those values. This is what true personal satisfaction and fulfilment feels like.
When your values are deep set and support your existence as a human being then nothing, or no-one, will be in any doubt about who you are as a person and what’s valuable in your life. If you do NOT know your values or somehow, you’ve lost your way. Then you are in conflict as a person.
A kind of tension has infiltrated your thinking, and this is what leads you to making bad decisions. Like adopting destructive habits or unhelpful behavior.
Alcohol does this. It fogs the brain and makes you forget – or ignore – your values. Most (all) bad decisions ever made were made under the influence of something.
The Role/Value Connection
We’ll get to the practical stuff shortly but before we do we need to tell you why you should do this. When your values dictate your professional life, it creates the best you possible. It lets you be YOU.
You don’t have to pretend to be someone else, or act differently or be that Chameleon that seems to adapt to all corporate situations. How f**** tiring must that be? Why not just be comfortable, confident, and more resilient than you ever thought possible.
Because when you have your own value-map locked down something magical happens – you see it in other people.
Real Experience
You see it in their actions and their decisions. You’ll notice it when it’s good, and when it’s bad. You will empathize with them because you will see the wood for the trees. You will see the sub-text. That’s values.
It’s like you can read their minds. And what’s better is you learn from your values, and they help you make better decisions. Decisions based on what’s best for you and your career and your future. Not on what you think other people want or expect you to do.
So what should you do?
Find a quiet place for an hour, it’s better if you can have two. The first thing I would like you to do is forget everything you think about yourself. You need to be open to what you think is true but also willing to accept and “hear” what might be true even if you weren’t expecting it.
This can be challenging for some people – akin to therapy. But believe me, it’s the most liberating thing you can do as well as the most empowering. It’s also incredibly important because your core values are what guide your principles and thus your actions whether you know or accept that or not.
Very few of us have discovered or mastered the Carol Dweck end status of “yet” – and so we act and answer in accordance with rules buried deep in our subconscious.
The Real Questions
Now that it’s quiet, take a piece of paper and a pen or a device and write down these questions and answer them.
- Take three positive experiences from your life. Things you are proud of and feel it was the “best” version of you. Write down what was going on at that time. What VALUES do you think were being honored at that time?
- Take three Negative or frustrating experiences from your life. Things you felt challenged you to your very core. The opposite of the previous question. What VALUES do you think were being challenged or suppressed within you?
- Code of conduct. What is my personal code? What must I do to experience life the way I want to live it?
- List what is important to you about the following things.
- The people you work with
- The kind of work you do
- The Organization you choose to work for
- The environment you work in
Your values are like a compass. They show you the True North when it comes to what is important to you. Values are NOT who you’d like to be or who you think you are or should be for others.
If you find that you fall into that category – and don’t worry if you do, we all fall into that category daily – then you need this exercise more than you think.
Elvis Presley
"Values are like fingerprints. Nobody’s the same. But you leave ‘em all over everything that you do”.
When you have done the exercises and you have found peace with the list and the answers, then let some time pass while you come to terms and digest what they mean.
Some people validate what they already know but others can spot the negatives and are concerned. Don’t be, you’ve done something good. You’ve started the journey to being YOU.
When the interviewer asks her questions, you will recognize her value question and your values will spring up like a willing soldier ready for action. And at the end of the meeting, you’ll have questions too.
Like “What’s the company’s values?” “What’s their current practices on ESG?” or “Will my creativity be welcomed?” because it’s important to me that I can express myself. If that’s you! You will begin to see companies as being worthy of you and not the other way around.
And when they ask, “Where will you be in 5 years’ time?”. You will have Ten answers queuing up in your head. And at the front of that queue will be a value. Driven and based on where you are going as a person.
Now we are never going to rank for the Interview Question subject on Google. We know that. But if somehow, you’ve gotten here and are looking at lists of Interview questions and answers. Stop right there. Because you will never be able to remember these answers or hundreds of replies at the ready.
And they are not even interested in the answers to these questions. What they want is you and your values.
Know your values. And when they ask you any question you will have a ready answer.
