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Amazing informational interviews

Carl 17 December 2012 0

There’s a fantastic technique I’ve used for learning from other people.  Although I don’t care for the name “informational interviewing,” it’s powerful and useful in all kinds of situations.

A couple of years ago, I was evaluating a range of business coaching companies to find out if I might want to join one.  The problem was that information was coming to me in random and unreliable ways, and wasn’t leading me to any clear conclusion.

I needed to use an organized process.

I decided that I wanted to talk with at least five people who had useful information about each company I was evaluating, so I could get a range of viewpoints.  I wanted to ask a consistent list of questions, giving me results that I could compare.

I quickly realized that this could take a LOT of time, because setting up appointments with dozens of people is not an easy task.  So I decided to try a novel approach: the 15 minute informational interview.  I figured that almost anybody would be willing to chat for 15 minutes, and in that time I could get most of what I needed.

After looking at this carefully, I decided that there were just five truly essential questions I needed to ask:

  • What is the value that you get from your company?
  • How well do you like the people you’re working with?
  • What are your biggest frustrations?
  • If you were doing this again, what would you do differently?
  • What other questions should I be asking?

It turns out that I got some absolutely brilliant information out of this, far beyond what I expected.  I uncovered some key concerns, and rapidly refined my decision criteria.  When I ultimately joined up with Small Fish Business Coaching, it was based on confidence that I knew what I was getting into.  And I haven’t regretted that decision for a moment.

If you’re looking to switch careers, evaluate employers, or join a group, this could be a powerful technique for you.  Here’s the principles I learned:

  • Have courage – this is important, and if you think through it carefully, you’re not really imposing on others much at all.
  • Talk to a range of people.  They’ll have different points of view, and each one can help you to refine your understanding.
  • Make it as pleasant as possible for the other person.  Be gracious and thankful.  Keep it short.  Buy them coffee or lunch if possible.
  • Create a focused set of questions, to get comparable results and to minimize wasting peoples’ time.
  • Have them be open-ended questions.  Let the person expand in the direction that’s most meaningful to them.
  • Be clear about why you’re doing this.  People may put up barriers if they think you’re trying to gain advantage or gather information for underhanded purposes.

Give this a try!

You might also find this interesting:

  • How to design a fantastic informational interview
  • What did you learn?
  • Are you serious?
  • You never know the impact you have on others
  • Creating that amazing personal brand

Posted in Career Coaching
Tagged career, interviewing, learning, tools
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