- According to a former FBI hostage negotiator,
Chris Voss, questions that start with a word why,
should always be approached carefully,
because they immediately place you on the defensive.
So it is no wonder that even the most seasoned interviewees,
find it difficult to provide a meaningful answer
to the interview question,
Why are you leaving your current job?
or what are your reasons for leaving?
while staying truthful and positive.
In this video,
I first share the ETP structure you should use,
regardless of the specific situation you're in.
Be a bad boss or slow career progression.
Then I go through a full sample answer
I used when I was still a managing consultant applying
for a role here at Google.
So let's get started.
Hi friends, welcome back to the channel.
If you're new here, my name is Jeff,
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In a nutshell,
the ETP method helps you structure your answer to,
why do you want to leave your current job,
around three pillars.
Number one, explain.
This part helps you address the question in a direct
and honest manner, by framing response in a positive light,
and letting the interviewer read between the lines.
Second, transition.
This part helps you answer transition away
from your current job,
to what your future looks like in the new role,
that you're applying for.
Finally, potential.
This part helps you indicate your excitement
for the new company and role,
by conveying to them the research you've done,
in a natural and conversational way.
Let's dive into each one of these.
Number one, explain.
This part of the answer should demonstrate
to the interviewer, that you are dignified, professional,
and will not talk negatively about another company or boss.
And the way to do this is to simply keep this part
of your answer, short, honest, and to the point.
Although it's important to fully
answer your interviewer's question,
in explaining why you wanna leave your job,
keep your prepared response to one to two sentences.
The main reason for this,
is because if you don't prepare a two sentence explanation
ahead of time, it's very easy to start ranting,
and go off on a attention,
especially during the heat of the moment.
This might result in you oversharing,
and risk giving the interviewer and impression
that you only have negative things to say
up by your current employer.
Even if that's not your intention in the first place.
You might also hear advice saying,
to avoid this part altogether
and focus only on the new role you're applying for.
But interviewers are generally wise to this sort
of non-answer, and we'll follow up by saying,
"Wait so, why are you leaving a current job again?"
Therefore, the rule of thumb here,
is to word the negative information carefully,
use phrases that keep the mood positive,
and allow the interviewer to read between the lines.
Here's an example of how this part looks like in action.
And you'll see this again at the end and my sample answer.
Also note I threw in a small trick there.
I'm supposed to explaining why I'm looking a new role,
but I also stated I'm especially interested
in this role at Google,
giving the impression that if it weren't
for the specific role, I might not be looking.
And this gives me a little bit of leverage.
Moving on to number two, transition.
This part of your answer to demonstrate,
that you're not just making stuff up,
by providing a concrete example,
as to why you're considering leaving your current role,
and tying that to the new job you're applying for.
When done correctly,
this part of your answer should convince the interviewer,
that indeed there seems to be a slight mismatch,
between your strengths,
and what your current role asked of you.
But Hey, the new job seems to be a much better fit.
Let's see how a good transition sounds like.
Hopefully it will take you at least one more replay,
to pinpoint the exact moment I pivoted
from the negative aspects about consulting,
to what I look forward to the new role,
because the interviewer shouldn't even really notice,
that you've moved on from just answering,
why you're leaving your current job.
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Number three, potential.
For this part, you wanna demonstrate your interest,
your excitement, your potential for the new role,
by making some educated assumptions,
based on the research you've done so far.
The reason you make these educated assumptions,
because it shows the interviewer that you know
what you're getting yourself into.
In other words, okay,
it seems like there's a slight mismatch in your current job,
but moving forward, that issue should not exist.
Ideally at this point,
the interviewer should be completely convinced,
that whatever reason it is, you're looking for a new job,
that's not going to be a limiting factor to your success,
in the new role.
Putting all this together,
here's how my final answer looked like,
when I first interviewed for the sales position here,
after two years in management consulting.
So as you can see, I've refined the answer a little,
and re-emphasize at the end,
why I'm specifically interested in this role.
Not just any role.
If you're going through interviews right now,
you might wanna check out my playlist,
on all the common interview questions and answers,
and I'll link that right over there.
Let me know down in the comments,
if you have any questions,
subscribe if you haven't already,
see you on the next video and in the meantime,
have a great one.