If you are a student of the art who continually wants to improve your ability to conduct increasingly effective interviews, I recommend that you experiment with different techniques whenever possible. Add those that work to your tool box. Find ones that work best with your personality style, and, continue to hone those techniques.
Here are some thoughts on starting the interviewing process or “Breaking the Ice.” If you currently are employing one or more of these techniques, look at this as validation of your own process.
- Setting the tone of the interview is very important. Putting the interviewee at ease should be your initial goal. Once done, “chase” them for the details to support each aspect of their statement. A great icebreaker is to open the interview by asking someone to tell you about themselves. This usually allows them to start talking without worrying whether their answers are correct. Some people may be so nervous about the interview that you have to work harder at putting them at ease. If asking them to talk about themselves doesn’t work, try asking them about hobbies, a local sports team, news, weather, or anything that you can think of to open them up./span>
- You will know that you have been successful in getting them to relax when they verbally warm up and begin to offer information that’s not necessarily on point. You will notice that they will start to smile, breathe deeper and drop their shoulders a bit. It is at this point that they will begin to display their true feelings.
- Along similar lines, and preliminary to the questions relating to the subject of the interview, ask a question that really has no right or wrong answer. This tactic will allow you to hear how they will talk, reason and analyze issues. It might also give you some insight into how truthful they will be. Talking about a matter unrelated but important to them such as work or something that they cherish may be quite revealing.
Once you get them talking, then how do you start the serious questioning? This will be the topic of our next newsletter. Please watch for it, and, in the meantime, “play” with these suggestions!
Research North, Inc. (RNI), is a professional private detective service providing support to the business community, the insurance industry and individuals in Michigan and Wisconsin since 1981. The company also offers pre-employment background checks to small and medium sized businesses through a subsidiary called Backgroundcheckswork.com that is fully staffed by professional investigators who are retired from law enforcement.
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