At the bottom of this hierarchy—the amateur level—anyone can participate. To qualify, you merely have to show up, make a halfway decent presentation, and pass a minimal background check. Because most hourly positions do not pay well, talent scouts do not expect much.
From the interviewer’s perspective, the biggest challenge amounts to finding a halfway decent candidate who will accept low wages. From a jobseeker’s perspective, the biggest challenge is getting noticed.
At the major league end, only a handful get invited to play. To qualify, you usually have to know the right people, and possess the right credentials or pedigree. The salaries are heady, to be sure. Image, however, tends to curry more influence than interviewing dexterity.
Ironically, at these upper echelons, interviewing dexterity only has to be a few rugs above those seeking hourly employment. One’s referrals, social standing and references often become the deciding factors—not one’s interviewing prowess.
Where interviewing skillsets become important is when you apply for salaried positions between these two extremes. These positions usually require a degree, a clean background, some related experience or talent, and the ability to navigate the interviewing process.
For most jobseekers, this is where the action is. Salaries will range from $50,000 to a quarter million. Add a few bennies and performance incentives, and competition becomes downright fierce. The non-serious quickly strike out.
Not everyone has the stomach to compete. If one is modestly secure in one’s position, and there exists no incentive to change, most potential candidates simply sit on the sidelines. When they do decide to enter the job market, they do so reluctantly and with trepidation.
The transition from sitting in the bleachers to stepping up to the home plate tends to be sobering. You are expected to hit a homerun each time you step to the plate. To exacerbate the situation, the pitcher throwing you fastballs and curves may have 20 years playing the game.
Tragically, many have to strike out a half-dozen times before they realize they are playing outside their league. For those with poor and deficient résumés, they will never be called to the plate, let alone have an opportunity to strike out.
Statistically speaking, the magic number is five. If you consecutively strike out that many times at bat, you may consider yourself interviewing deficient. Once you bomb that many job interviews, you qualify for the 80% who show up for tryouts but fail.
To reverse this statistic requires developing a passion to perform well. Merely having the desire will not suffice. The bleachers are filled with ballplayer wannabees. As New York cabbies are prone to quip to questions like, “How do I get to Yankee Stadium?” If you cannot guess the punch line, you never will.