3 ways to transform your interview from a quiz to a conversation

I was part of a panel once interviewing a senior developer. Our engineers were asking technical questions related to the position. The candidate answered one of the basic opening questions but for the second one responded “uhm… pass”. What followed was a moment of silence that was one part awkward and one part eerie.

The candidate answered a question here and there, but for most of the questions they simply said “pass”. I can’t remember if it was after the 4^th or the 5^th time when I stepped in and said the interview is not going to be helpful if the candidate passes on every second question.

To be clear, I am not saying it’s unacceptable to not have an answer. I just think there are much better ways to handle it. Most of these – as you will see – have something in common. They all change the dynamics of the interview from a quiz to a conversation.

1. Buy yourself some time

Candidates mistakenly think they must answer every question immediately. I’ll tell you a secret, no interviewer expects this. And taking time to think before answering a question reflects net positive on you. It makes you appear both human (a good thing) and thoughtful (a very good thing).

I love it when a candidate says: “Okay, so you’re asking about XYZ, let me think about that.” This is only bad when the question is trivially simple. For instance, don’t use this tactic when they ask the last company you worked at. But if it’s a question that is complex or difficult, give yourself a moment. Gather your thoughts. Think it through before opening your mouth.

A good interview helps a panel get a feeling for how someone will perform on the job in the real world. And the real world is not a pop quiz. In the real world we have plenty of time to think about things. Especially knowledge workers and IT professionals.

2. Make sure you understand the question

If I had a bitcoin for every time I saw an interviewer and candidate misunderstand each other I’d be a rich man. Actually, I’d gladly take even one bitcoin. But jokes aside, it’s always a good sign for me when a candidate says: “I’m not sure I understand the question.”

Bonus points when they reflect back in their own words what they think the question means to check with the person who asked if that is what they were saying. Another secret is that interviewers are not perfect. They don’t always ask their questions in a good way. Asking your own clarifying questions will force them to take this conversation seriously and get their act together.

Remember that you might be the 12^th person they have now asked this list of questions. And they might do 50 or 100 interviews over the course of a year. It’s up to you to engage them and get them to snap out of the ho-hum. Showing the panel that you care about understanding what people say is probably more valuable than any amount of “technically correct questions”. Why? Because being able to communicate well, gain true understanding and think critically are key skills for every professional.

3. Be 100% honest

But what if you’ve tried to understand the question and given yourself some time to think things through, and you still don’t have a good answer? This is still an opportunity to impress. The key is to be honest. If you’ve never heard of the thing they are asking you about, then you should simply say you’ve never heard of it. People like it when other people are humble and honest.

My final secret for this article is that interviewers are not expecting you to have an answer for every question. Most of them would not pass their own interviews if that was the standard. They are trying to see what you’ve been exposed to – and yes, what you’ve mastered – but I’ve never been in an interview where the candidate had a perfect answer to every question.

If this is true, why did I take issue with the person who said “pass”? Good question. I think it comes down to interpersonal skills. Maybe the right word is decorum, manners or professionalism. Call it whatever you want but tell the panel as nicely as you can that you don’t know the answer to the question. Don’t give them a one word “pass”. That just sounds odd and reinforces the dynamic that the interview is a test as opposed to a conversation.