One of the biggest tells about people’s confidence is how they talk about themselves and their accomplishments. When I'm interviewing people I always look for slip ups in how they speak. Two phrases that are absolute killers are ‘kind of’ or ‘sort of’.
Here are some examples:
You kind of generated more leads? Is there another way to generate more leads?
You sort of came up with a great idea? Wow, I’m sort of impressed.
Here's what to do about it
Here are some examples:
- “We developed the integrated campaign and we kind of generated more leads than we anticipated.”
- “I sort of came up with a great idea for solving this business challenge we were having.”
You kind of generated more leads? Is there another way to generate more leads?
You sort of came up with a great idea? Wow, I’m sort of impressed.
Here's what to do about it
Before you go to your next interview, sit down with a friend and ask her to ask you to talk about your accomplishments. Or better yet, just ask your friends and family to watch out for those key phrases when you talk about things in general. You’ll be amazed how often they come up, especially if you’re not feeling all that confident about what you’re saying.
As soon as I hear those phrases I know that either you don’t feel confident about what you’re saying, or you’re lying about your role in what you’re telling me. Neither are good scenarios for you. So eliminate the kind ofs and sort ofs from your vocabulary.
Now that you know what to look out for, try and listen for it yourself when you speak to people. It’s a fun game to play, but not one you want to lose at - especially during an interview.
