The Blabber Mouth…
Entering The Lions Den…
Although this simulated interview process was not going to make or break anything major, I still felt anxious as the day rolled around. I tried to convince myself ‘this doesn’t matter, it’s just my classmates, I see them every day, no big deal! … it’ll be fine…’ Nope. The pit in my stomach grew deeper and deeper as I walked into what no longer felt like our familiar classroom anymore. This was mostly due to the fact that the only interviews I have ever gone into have been simulated, or ‘mock’ interviews, the last one being in my final year of school. As you can imagine, I wasn’t sure on what types of questions I might be asked, and with little to no experience of interviews, I knew how important it would be to prep myself adequately. Though as the time of my interview grew closer, I couldn’t remember what my strengths were, and I knew that answering ‘interviews’, as my weakness, wasn’t going to go down well…
The Borton Model.
In order to effectively communicate and reflect on my experience of the interview process, I have chosen to use the Borton Model of Reflection. This model, although slightly more simplistic than other reflective models, is extremely effective in guiding the process of reflection. The model is a ‘‘continuous integrated flow’ with no beginning or end.’[1] Firstly, I will describe ‘what?’ I did and what happened. Then I will ask myself, ‘so what?’, meaning I will analyse the event, and whar I may have done differently, or why things may have happened how they did. The final part of the cycle asks, ‘Now what?’, here, I will think about what I will do in future, or what have I gained from this experience.[2]
[1] John Dabell, Bortons Model of Refelction (2018) https://johndabell.com/2018/08/05/models-of-reflection/ [Accessed Feb 23 2023]
[2] Ibid.What?
The interview began quickly, and I was immediately thrown questions such as, why I had applied for this job as a production assistant, and why I felt I fit the job description. My mind went straight to the STAR technique which we had been taken through in a lecture previously, little did I know that this would be my saving grace. I began talking about my experience with Cinemagic, reciting situations which proved coherence between my own experience and skills which were listed for the job, all situations which I had previously thought of while preparing for the interview. This all was going fine, STAR … STAR… STAR… until, I run out of prepared situations, and I’m asked about a time I felt under pressure… umm does right now count?! As I also work part time in a shop, I thought about the many times things have went wrong, people not paying for fuel, being confused about which change to give when someone hands me the 38p after I’ve put the money through the till… However, I landed on a situation that has happened a few times, the Wi-Fi going down. This means that the fuel pumps don’t work, tills shut down, and card machines cut out all while agitated customers await an explanation. However, as I began talking, I realised I wasn’t smoothly using the STAR technique as I previously had been. This was more of a… let’s say… meteor. I was going backwards and forwards, trying to hit every letter of the technique, but never in the right order. I felt myself rambling, and in fact, forgot the second part of the question during the course of my rambling.
So What?
As you can imagine, I could feel myself rambling, I could feel my hands flying around as I nervously gestured almost every word I was saying. I knew I had messed up this question, especially when it dawned on me that I had forgotten where I was going with my story, and therefore couldn’t round of my answer by linking it back to the question. My interview panel also (non surprisingly) , had noticed this long winded and slightly irrelevant situation I was attempting to explain, and noted this on my feedback sheet. Although this was an uncomfortable situation, I’m eternally grateful that in reality, it was only my classmates witnessing this blabbering individual in front of them, and not a real interview panel. Although I am fully aware that next time, it may well be a real interview panel, and I never want to feel my hands flying around like that again, or lose track of the star technique.
Now What?
As I mentioned, this is not something that I want to happen again, and, if it does so happen that I receive a question that I may not have a situation prepared for, I want to be able to handle it in a much more sophisticated way than I previously did. In future, I will prepare more situations that are relevant to the job I am applying for. I will also keep my hand gestures to a minimum as much as possible, as my interview panel also noted that at times this was distracting for them.
When All Has Been Said and Done…
Not only did the interview itself allow me to identify strengths and weaknesses in terms of interviewing skills, The Borton Model has also helped me to reflect on the process more deeply. Although my peers did review my interview, I feel it has been much more valuable going through each step of the cycle, and closely analysing what I did, what I may have done differently and what this means going forward. Although there are some aspects of my interview which could have gone better, I am happy with how it went, and will use this experience to my advantage for interviews to come.