Calm, cool, collected, self assured. Earning well in 6 figures at 31... he exuded self confidence. We had identified project behavioral areas of concern based on the Profile XT. The canidate parried and danced, showing the elegant footwork of the successful leader and sales person.
Then it happened... he volunteered being a voracious reader. What are the last 3 books you've read... he listed them --and indicated John Grisham's works are too low caliber. Hmmm... why did you choose to read those you've identified.... Well, he said, they are all written after early American, you know just before the Beatles, the 60's etc. Suprised --I inquired as to what he meant by early America - the 50's he replied: America began in the 1950's.... I must admit at being caught off guard by this MBA, highly read candidate from the West Coast. He went on to say his choices are in line with his beliefs... progay rights, pro anti gun, pro abortion, pro liberal causes, pro socialist. And all this went he knows he is applying for a sales poisition in a firm which is super conservative.
Ok-- I asked - tell me about who you are.... flushed, nervous in his chair, he talked about his dogs, his college grades, his drive for money..... There are times in an interview when what a candidate doesn't tell you is more relevant than what he/she says. When a candidate talks about his dogs but not his personal history or his family.... when this obviously very bright candidate cannot describe a "feeling"....
Lots of questions remain. A leader moves others through transparent values, modeling, and giving something of themselves. Where does this ego driven fit in?
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