Interview blues

[vh380]

Originally Posted by LeaveWI

Thanks for the input all As fro as Mr Hot Head CEO, sadly i would report to him. Other this this, he seemd OK (at least he admitted it up front, why would he even do that) The other place with the work/life tizzy- sadly untl then that seemd to be the perfect fit for me. How can I convey to the companies up here that I will give the proverbial 110% for them, but I DO have a life outside of work. WI and Great Lakes area companies don;t get it apparently.

You're right, we all do want OUR version of work life balance. Here's the basic pivot point where people "go wrong" on this question, here are few simple rules to follow related to Work Life Balance Questions:

• 1. You're not in a position of strength or power. You're interviewing, so they HAVE NOT CHOSEN you as an employee yet.
• 2. Laws of nature and the job world are: You cannot negotiate from a weak position (remember you have no power yet, see #1).
• 3. Your balance is most likely different than everyone else and your version of 110% may be their bare minimum or vice versa. You could spend years defining this...meaning, you can't eat this elephant in one sitting.
• 4. Therefore it is better to ask and listen to them something minor and specific to see what they'd say, instead of trying to define your home and overall life obligations in their entirety (see #3). Try this:

"When there's a large scale project, how do you and the company's expectations change of me and the team?"


And if you still feel compelled to reveal something about your obligations. Choose a simple, low time requirement example of something important to you to reveal, such as:

"Once every quarter, I volunteer at my community shelter on a Friday, tell me how that time off would be handled?". Listen closely and you'll have your answer. Choosing something less demanding than being at doggy day care by 6pm (which throws warning signals of inflexibility to the new employer) will still get you the goal of all job seekers: AN OFFER! Now you're in charge!

And then based on what you've learned, you're now in a position to be DECISIVE. Right now, they're getting all the decisions and you don't get to play. You can always say no but at least you'll have choice and won't feel so discouraged.

Vicki Herrod