Effective listening Why is listening important when you are looking for a job?
The Art of Effective listening
Why is listening important when you are looking for a job?
Isn’t it about presenting yourself and selling the employer on your ability?
Well, here is the way I look at it, you need to listen every step of the way…listen to your gut, your instincts and your heart because if you ignore these things something very destructive will happen…
You will be a job hopper and someone that replaces their replaceable job with another replaceable job!
We have all seen it and some of us have been there…we know there is trouble ahead but we go there anyway…because we need a job.
I will explain…
I worked in an office at one time that I knew would be a terrible fit….I knew in the first interview…and the second interview that it would be a disaster…but I kept moving forward anyway.
The first interview was on the top floor of a beautiful office building and a woman who was well into her 60’s was wearing a leather skirt and called everyone “hun or honey” She smelled like cigarette smoke and had smeared red lipstick…now that had nothing to do with my job…but it was interesting to me that the company didn’t seem to be aware of how the woman representing their career opportunity looked like she was very untidy.
The interview consisted of her complaining about her coworkers and the lack of respect and resources she wish she had. She was sure to mention her years of service and her value to the company.
By the time we reached the actual interview questions she was fumbling around her desk drawers looking for my resume…yet she did not want the copy I brought…I guess it was more important to prove to herself that she knew where everything was than to simply conduct an interview with the candidate in her office...ready to go…
The interviewer seemed unmoved by anything I had to say about my job history and at the end she announced I will be meeting with the departmental boss next week…and we set a time to meet.
The second interview was oddly similar in the sense that it was another strange self indulgent affair with the man talking about his personal life at the start of the meeting. He went on to say he was going through a divorce and he wishes people could stop being evil…that marriage, in and of itself, was a surefire way to get people to hate each other…after his ranting started to sound like it would become angry I politely asked if things were getting better…big mistake!
My career search is based on finding the right fit for my skills and abilities..but it is also based on whether I will be able to coexist peacefully with my environment…
In this case…I was hired…I suspect on my ability to listen to him..I was his confidant…though I did a good job fulfilling my duties and job description that was not as important as being his “go to” guy when it came to going through a messy divorce…I wish I listened to my instinct instead of him for those few years. "Effective listening" written by Ken Bownes
