It’s what you know that isn’t so.”
One of the smartest mentors I had used to quote this phrase a lot. I try to ask myself, fairly often, what I’m assuming that might not be true.
One of my clients is a great example of this. I’m beginning to think of her as the black swan, because she’s disproving so many of my previous beliefs.
Most of my clients are referrals. Some of them are people I know from my prior work experiences at Bowdoin College, Tufts University, AccessLex Institute, or Maine Law. Many more are referred by those people; and now those former clients are telling others about me. It’s delightful to have new clients arrive this way.
So I’d begun to believe that was the ONLY way people found me.
But my black swan client found me through Chat GPT. Oh my! I was surprised and tickled — and very curious — to learn I’m being discovered that way. And she’s a great fit, so GPT hit the bullseye there.
Another belief that this black swan helped me set aside is my strong distrust of online job boards. I tend to think these are time wasters, and I can get pretty grumpy and ranty about why there are better ways to measure progress than online applications submitted. But this client found something on Indeed.com, and is moving quickly through what feels to both of us like a great-fit organization and a thoughtful hiring process. Hurrah!
And I like to think I’m helping my client set aside some of her assumptions. We spent some time preparing for a high-stakes conversation with the CEO. At the beginning of the session, she expressed some “imposter syndrome” and a lot of fear and baggage about the ways she didn’t feel prepared. The role is in a new industry, so she’ll be playing catch-up compared to colleagues. She’d heard the CEO was a nitpicker who loved to grill people during presentations. Those beliefs weren’t helping her show up with the kind of credibility and likeability that would win her this stretch opportunity. So we focused on a narrative that she could believe, and deliver, with conviction and her full personality.
She sent along this note after the interview:
Hey Sherry!
Sending a quick update to let you know the interview went great! I enjoyed the CEO very much and appreciated the quality of personal questions he asked. The hiring manager said he’ll reach out either later today or Monday with next steps.
When we spoke yesterday we talked numbers and he said if the meeting goes well today he wants to put an offer in front of me early next week.
Your prep questions and coaching on Wed really helped clarify my value prop today. I was clear on what I wanted them to know and feel about me. I was also ready to address any “shortcomings” with my evaluation of the job description items. Thank you!
I’ll keep you posted and schedule time after I have more info!
I love reading this. She found a way to question and replace her assumptions so she could show up in the interview as the dynamic, fun, and confident learner that she really is. Big win.
And if she gets the offer, she’s taught me to question my grouchy beliefs about Indeed.com — maybe it’s not a total waste of time!
Don’t believe everything you think.
UPDATE: She got the offer, and negotiated everything she hoped to get. I consider myself corrected.
