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Next Time, Take Miranda to Your Interview

Written by Bernie

Bernie Frazier, SPHR is the Founder and President of CAREERCompass, LLC, a speaking and career coaching firm in St. Louis, MO. She also spent almost 25 years recruiting talent to six organizations across four industries and led the talent acquisition function for four of those organizations, including one global team.

“You have the right to remain silent.  If you give up the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law….” 

These Miranda rights statements are generally read to every person in the United States who is being questioned while in the custody of law enforcement.  In essence, even a person in custody has rights with the prevailing authority.  So, why shouldn’t you have rights when you’re interviewing with a company? 

Bernie, what are you talking about? 

In my years of experience, most candidates spend the majority of their interview prep time preparing to answer questions.  Either people don’t know they have the right to ask probing questions or they merely discount its importance.  Bad move!  Asking questions of your interviewer is not only wise; it’s perfectly within your rights.

You’re given 24 hours each day to accomplish and enjoy as much as you can in life.  According to health experts, you should strive to get eight hours of sleep each night, leaving 16 hours to use at your discretion.  Of that 16 hours, most will spend a minimum of eight hours working.  Adding on time to get dressed and travel to and from work, it’s almost guaranteed that you’ll spend at least 10 of your remaining 16 hours engaged in work and work-related activity.  Knowing that you’ll spend at least 63% of your discretionary hours focused on work; don’t you want to know more about the job, company, people and culture than “describe a typical day”??? 

As you prepare for your next interview, jot down a few questions (4-5 in total) you’d like to have answered about the following:  

  • Performance expectations in your first 90 or 180 days
  • The boss’ management style
  • The people you’d work with
  • Biggest challenges of the job
  • How decisions are made and who makes them
  • Who are your customers/clients
  • Anything else you think of

Just like a company wants to make sure they’re hiring someone who will be a great fit for their company, culture, and job, you have the right to find out if the company, culture, and job will be a great fit for you and your career goals.  Further, the more probing your questions are, the more you’ll impress your interviewers with the amount of effort you’re putting into your job search.

Until next time….