Share this excerpt on Facebook and Twitter.
-
“Metaphors are analogies between two objects or ideas; the analogy is conveyed by the use of a metaphorical word in place of some other word. Metaphors also denote rhetorical figures of speech that achieve their effects via association, comparison, or resemblance.”
From a psychological warfare perspective, metaphors are an excellent mind control technique because the unconscious is extremely receptive and persuaded by stories and parables, and what better way to make sense out of something than by illustrating it in an example. Think back to all of the children’s books you read and Disney movies you watched as a kid to learn about socially acceptable morals and ethics, etc.
How you respond to the Human Resources interviewer determines if you get the job, and effective metaphors can easily be employed when you describe your previous job responsibilities.
One good strategy to answering questions is the S.T.A.R.technique whereby you describe:
- a [S]ituation or [T]ask you were faced with,
- the [A]ction you took to overcome it, and
- the [R]esults you achieved.
But c14ism doesn’t recommend you stop there! Embedding metaphors into your answers have an even greater direct impact on the employer’s overall impression of you, whether they are aware of it or not. So use metaphors to reveal your personality, knowledge of a subject, and positive characteristics that you don’t want to directly tell the employer, but instead want to discretely convey.
If you’re applying for a job overseas, then your language barrier will be an added handicap, it is possible that the most efficient way for you to thoroughly get your point across, especially when it comes time to convince Human Resources to pay for your work visa, will be through the successful employment of metaphors.
Essentially, each metaphor you use should:
- Begin by making a statement that catches the attention and creates confusion or anticipation in the mind of the employer.
- Introduce the information you are about to explain, and correlate it with a subject that you have adequate knowledge and vocabulary about and that the employer will be able to relate to. For example, if the interview is for financial analyst, then reference your information to the stock market, etc.
- Contain as many embedded language patterning tactics as you can realistically and naturally fit into it, without disrupting the flow of the story.
- Not take up too much time that it dominates the interview, but not so short that it is inadequate and leaves the employer with more questions than answers.
- Thoroughly address and disarm any heuristics you want to overcome.
- Conclude with a strong ending that leaves you looking confident and positive, and the employer feeling like s/he just learned something useful.
- Influence the outcome in your favor.
Example:
HR: “Tell me about your last job.”
You: “My last job was detrimental to the company (1), and involved assessing the usability of software based on its qualifications and ease of integration into the company’s existing software (2) [S]. The biggest problem you face in having to assess so many applications that do basically the same thing. Some software seems easy to install compared to other software, but you’ll find that better software requires just a little more work and is more user friendly, efficient, globally adaptive, and have far better benefits than perceived costs; especially compared to all the other equally qualified candidates (3,5). It’s hard sometimes to distinguish ones that you don’t need, or may even be detrimental to the company in the long run, even if the perfect one for the job is sitting right here in front of you (3,6,7).[T] During the 18 months I worked for my team tested over 50 different software packages [A] and in that time the company experienced no computer problems due to incompatability. [R]”
Share your advice | + articles | Facebook (share) | Twitter (share)
