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The Art of the Self-Brag
Job interviews: One of the few occasions that it is socially acceptable to hype yourself up for an hour straight.
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The Experience
As part of our work experience module, our class undertook simulated interviews as a preparatory step for post-graduation work in our desired industries. The experience was not only a practice run, but a tool for reflecting on my qualifications and level of confidence in professional situations. I will be using Boud’s Reflection Model to re-evaluate my experience and improve on it in the future.
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While I prepared for the interviews, I realised the questions would differ significantly from those in my previous retail job interviews, requiring a deeper understanding of the industry and its expectations. My interviews for both, Cinemagic and Northern Ireland Screen were held via Zoom/phone call and had ended up being more of a chat than a formal interview. For this faux interview, I chose an entry-level job as a production assistant in Lamb Films, knowing I had the skills of organisation and communication within pre and post-production that they desired from a candidate. Experience is vital for a role like this. I prepared for the interview as McGuire advised to “pre-empt the type of questions that you will be asked and rehearse the answers out loud” (p.574). I researched typical Production Assistant questions from Indeed and Glass Door, like ‘How would you deal with a scheduling conflict’ or ‘How would you create a positive work environment for the crew?’, I had previous experience in dealing with these situations on past jobs and knew they wouldn’t be too challenging to answer. I felt secure in whatever could be asked of me. Throughout our second semester of our Work-Based Learning module, we learned how to weave the STAR method into our interview answers. This method shown below, helps you to structure your answers and prevent any nervous waffling.
We undertook the interviews in groups of five, having each prepared three question for our other group members. I have to say, I was most nervous when sitting outside the classroom while the panel of four deliberated which questions I was to be asked. During my interview, I felt like I kept a sense of confidence and calmness; it did feel at times that my demeanour and posture were perhaps too laid back, possibly due to the casual, peer-reviewed classroom setting. I felt that the interview was going well until it came time to talk positively about myself. In true Irish self-deprecating fashion, I froze. I find it so embarrassing having to almost promote myself. Self-praise often leads me to feel flustered and anxious, and I seem to forget about every positive attribute I have. This feeling of anxiety put me in a kind-of autopilot mode, and my answers, in turn, seemed shallow and lacking any kind nuance. The three words I used to describe myself: hard-working, reliable, and organised, sounded like something an AI would generate when asked the same question.
The Reflection
I often worry that my body doesn’t know when the right time is to be nervous. I feel anxiety about frivolous things but unphased when it comes to something important. My lack of anxiety allowed me to exude an aura of confidence – although this may have led to me being too comfortable. At one point answering, ‘Why do you want this job?’ with ‘Because I’m £600 in my overdraft.’ This may have seemed like a funny way to break the ice, but not all employers will embrace a bit of light-hearted humour. My feedback from my group noted that I, ‘presented myself professionally’ but my answers ‘were a little casual.’ I realise that my casualness may have been perceived as unprofessionalism, although I do think it’s hard to try to toe the line between relaxed but not too laid-back. Though it was also a weakness, I would have said that my relaxed and confident nature in the interview was my greatest strength. I was friendly, able to keep eye contact, and confidently present myself – traits that are necessary in a people-orientated role like ‘Production Assistant’. A study by Twin Employment showed that 65% of employers wouldn’t give a job to someone that failed to make eye contact. Although, I should improve on my tone and language, making sure I don’t allow myself to speak to the interviewer like a friend, rather than a potential employer. It wouldn’t hurt to eradicate my use of filler words also, if I want to be viewed as a young professional. Nonetheless, I do believe that it’s better to come across as too relaxed, rather than too nervous, it gives the impression to interviewers that you can keep your cool in any situation which is highly important in the film industry. Besides, personality hires do A LOT for staff morale.
I don’t find the self-brag to be an easy task, the more personal section of the interview caused me to appear more self-conscious than I had previously been. After answering ‘highly organised’ to ‘how would your friends describe you,’ my mind flashed immediately to the heap of clothes in the corner of my room and a bout of imposter syndrome began to set in. Like I had mentioned before, Irish people aren’t known to be the most boastful group of people. Self-degradation is commonplace in Irish work culture, with Inglis arguing this humility stems from ‘a legacy of being a colonised nation’ (p.37). I also found in my research on the topic of confidence in the workforce that ‘men tend to overestimate their abilities and performance. Women, on the other hand, underestimate both,’ (Kay and Shipman). It occurred to me that these feelings may be quite common for other women I know, possibly even the members of my group I went on to interview after.
Although, I don’t think I was a complete lost cause. I was able to describe how I organised a succinct shooting schedule on my last short film after multiple major setbacks, even if my negative inner monologue did end up giving me a less confident disposition. This reflection has also revealed that difficulty in articulating personal attributes may stem from deeper self-confidence issues. Reflecting on my performance, I can see how it aligns with the module’s learning outcomes, particularly in communicating work-related skills. I have learned that, although I may feel outwardly confident, I also need to feel it within. My classmates provided valuable feedback on my interview performance. Their advice and the use of Boud’s Reflective Model to analyse my thoughts, feelings, and actions during the interview, and then also reflecting and evaluating the experience, has helped highlight my need for improvement in communicating my work-related skills and communicating professionally. On a more positive note, this experience has shown me that I have good interpersonal skills, the ability to keep calm under pressure, and the foresight to prepare thoroughly for an interview.
The Outcome
“Change is hard won; we can desire to do something and believe that it is possible, but still it is difficult to do. Maintaining a positive attitude towards ourselves as learners is a necessary prerequisite for us to overcome [our] problems” (Boud, p.35).
This simulated interview experience has shown me that I may not be compatible with an overly professional, corporate-type setting (thank God I switched from Economics into Film). While lower-level jobs in the film industry may embrace a more relaxed attitude and interview style, valuing creativity over decorum, I recognise the need to exhibit professionalism consistently. I intend to seek out other mock interview opportunities to practise in a more realistic setting. I also plan to consciously remove filler words in my vocabulary and start communicating in and outside of the workplace more eloquently. I’ll try to do this by hitting my reading goal of 20 books this year. In terms of my self-esteem issues, the film industry is known to be quite ego-centric, and this process has shown me that I need to build more conviction in my achievements if I’m going to succeed. While I am confident professing my attributes and qualifications in written form on my CV, being able to communicate this verbally without cringing is vital. Author Peggy Klaus suggests putting together a ‘bragalouge’ (p.9). A bragalouge is basically a concise 30-second elevator pitch to sell yourself in an interview. Creating one, by writing down traits about myself with evidence to back it up has already started to make me feel more confident with my abilities. I am also being more proactive in my job search. I have applied to over 20 paid and unpaid jobs to gain as much experience on set as possible, so I will be ready for any hypothetical situations future interviewers will throw at me.
I discovered more about my personality than I initially thought possible during this experience, and while I wasn’t sure how much I would benefit from a fake interview held by peers in the Peter Froggatt Centre – I was able to complete a critical evaluation of myself allowing me to better myself professionally and personally.
References
Boud, D., Keogh, R., & Walker, D. (1985). Promoting Reflection in Learning. London: Routledge.
Inglis, T. (2006). ‘From Self-Denial to Self-Indulgence: The Class of Cultures in Contemporary Ireland’. The Irish Review, 34, 34–43. https://doi.org/10.2307/29736295
Kay, K. and Shipman, C. (2014). ‘The Confidence Gap’. The Atlantic. May. Available at: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2014/05/the-confidence-gap/359815/
Klaus, P. (2008). Brag!: The Art of Tooting Your Own Horn without Blowing It. USA: Grand Central Publishing. Available at: https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Brag/9Ug1AQAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=PT5&printsec=frontcover [Accessed 4 March 2024].
N.D. (2018). ‘8 Surprising Statistics About Interviews’. Twin Employment. March 14. Available at: https://www.twinemployment.com/uk/blog/8-surprising-statistics-about-interviews/.
McGuire, R. (2002). ‘Continuing Professional Development: How To Master Interview Skills’. The Pharmaceutical Journal, 268, 573. Available at: https://www.floppybunny.org/robin/web/virtualclassroom/comms/models/articles/how_to_master_interview_mcguire_pg_2002.pdf
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