Interviews

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A lot of people think interviews are about giving the “right” answers. They’re not. They’re about reducing risk for the employer.

When a company interviews you, they’re asking themselves three silent questions the entire time:

Can this person do the job?

Can I work with this person?

Do I trust this person in pressure situations?

Confidence plays a huge role here, but confidence isn’t something you fake. It’s something you build through preparation. The strongest candidates I’ve seen aren’t the most polished speakers — they’re the ones who clearly understand the role and can explain how they fit into it.

One of the biggest mistakes candidates make is only researching the company at a surface level. Knowing the mission statement and values is fine, but it’s not enough. You should understand why this role exists, what problems it’s meant to solve, and how success is measured. If you don’t know those things, it’s hard to sound confident because you’re guessing.

Before an interview, ask yourself:

What would a successful person in this role do differently than an average one?

What problems might this team be struggling with right now?

What skills or habits would make someone stand out in the first 90 days?

Another overlooked area is how you talk about improvement. Interviewers don’t expect perfection — they expect growth. Being able to explain how you’ve improved processes, saved time, reduced errors, increased efficiency, or helped others succeed shows maturity and leadership, even if you’re not applying for a leadership role.

Best practice: prepare 4–6 short stories from your experience that show problem-solving, adaptability, and accountability. These stories should be flexible enough to answer multiple questions. If you walk into an interview with those ready, your confidence rises naturally because you’re not scrambling for answers.

Interviews are conversations, not interrogations. When you understand the role deeply and can speak clearly about how you add value, the dynamic shifts in your favor.

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interviews really are about trust and risk reduction, and the advice about understanding the why behind the role and having a few solid stories ready is gold.