In This Video We will answer the Situational interview question
Tell me about a time you were faced with conflicting priorities.
We'll cover:
A sneak peek into the mind of the interviewer and WHY they ask this
what to say when you're answering And a concrete example of my own experience
to get you thinking!
STAY TUNED:
Ok So What's the point of this question?
This question is to determine basically how you handle stress- you could use the same
story to answer questions like “tell me about a time you were in a stressful situation,
or tell me about a time you had to make a difficult decision” This question is just
a bit more specific than that, but they are all from the same tree.
So you want to talk about a time here where you literally had 2 things that needed to
be done at the same time, or you had to be in two places at once or you were overwhelmed
with work, so much so that it was impossible for one person to handle it?
Most people handle this by getting stressed out, spinning their wheels, and ending up
getting nothing done because they’re so stressed out by the situation.
They wait until the last minute when it’s inevitably going to come out that they weren’t
able to achieve the (sometimes) impossible demand.
So here’s how you answer:
You answer it by telling your story in my favourite Story way using:
The SARI Formula which we'll go through here.
SARI stands for (Situation, Action Result and interesting Features)
The SARI Formula stands for (Situation/Task, Action, Result & Interesting Features)
You want to tell a powerful story that paints a good picture of the situation, how you rose
to the challenge and the end result.
STEP 1 The Situation (setting the stage) So For Example:
I was working on a large event and I had literally too many things to do at one time.
My list was as long as both my arms.
And to top it off we were working on a new space remodelling and there were deadlines
that needed to be met.
So there were two very large projects happening at the same time!
That was a lot for one person to handle.
Step 2: ACTION: What were the actions that you took and what outcome did they lead to?
So for example: Action: So from my experience I couldn’t go wrong
with writing out the priorities and going to my boss and say this is what I need to
do.
This is why these things are time sensitive but I don’t have bandwidth for all, this
is what I think I should do?
Do you have a different idea or are you in agreement?
Step 3: RESULT So the Result was: This was well received if the boss was available (which
he wasn’t 100% of the time) So with that example.
The result was good, my boss either agreed or he disagreed, and supported me in switching
things around, getting things off my plate, getting help of whatever was needed.
If he wasn’t available the best I could do was to make the best call I could, get
help where possible and COMMUNICATE to everyone who expected things of me.
Tell them when I’d have time to get to something so I set expectations.
Step 4: Bonus interesting features - Highlight anything interesting about the story - For
example Supportive bosses are there to help you juggle priorities and if you try to do
it alone and fail that’s way worse than just stepping up and asking for help in the
first place.
If your boss isn’t available, you’re only human you have to make the best call you can.
Also understand that you can only do so much as one person.
Sometimes it is impossible and you need to get creative and resourceful, whether that
be asking a coworker for help or communicating the need for more time.
There we have it:
Can you remember a time when you just had waaay too much on your plate?
Couldn’t handle it all?
What did you do?
In the end something had to get done about it?
Either you succeeded in prioritizing with help from your boss or own your own.
Tell a story of how you came out successful on the other side though!
At least for the interview!
Thank you for watching!
And remember Nailing the interview questions is great!
But There is a lot more to interviewing than just answering the questions.
In fact if all you do is answer the questions alone, you’ve already lost at the interview.
There is a whole interview strategy at play and if you’d like to learn more you can
get started with me by clicking the link below to grab my free guide:
You get free instant access and Ultimate situational interviewing guide.
What you'll get when you download the guide:
An in-depth look at The SARI Formula (and the psychology behind it)
A series of Concrete Examples for the top 10 most commonly asked situational questions
Fill in the blank templates for each question
& if you are still getting stuck (because preparing your own stories is tough) I've
also included
25 Questions to come up with your own stories much quicker.
You'll also get the beautifully designed workbook, designed specially for you to prepare for
your next interview.
By the end of working through the guide you’ll be totally ready for any situational interview
question that gets thrown your way!
Click below and grab it now.
Thanks for watching and I'll see you next week on Natalie TV.