Be Human: Let Your Personality Show

One piece of coaching advice I've noticed myself giving more and more: relax and allow a bit of your personality to show through.

There are many people I coach who they have great natural EQ and energy when talking with me "off screen" but as soon as we go into interview mode, something peculiar happens. They get too professional. It's like they put on a bit of a mask and disconnect from the energy and warmth that was previously flowing.

Don't do this. Of course you're going to be "professional" in the sense that you'll never ask illegal questions. And you don't want to overly bond with candidates based on shared personal preferences. But allow your personality and your warmth and humanity to come through. Don't play a perfect AI interviewing avatar.

Being your authentic self is a form of lowering your guard and being slightly more vulnerable with the candidate. It removes a film or layer that exists between you and the candidate. It will subconsciously signal to the candidate that it's safe to lower their guard and be more real with you. 

The result? Better rapport, more real stories (less spin), and more authentic, truthful data from which you can base accurate hiring decisions.