This posting highlights an interview with Katherine Hays, chief executive of GenArts a visual effects technology company, conducted by Adam Bryant. The interview appeared in January 22, 2012 New York Times.
Failure is not a weakness when you are able to
embrace the failure, value it and learn from it. For Katherine Hays that means owning the
outcome not the process. According to Ms. Hays,
"That's the kind of person you want - someone who really is ready to be an
owner, even if it doesn't always mean success." Blaming failure on factors
you cannot control instead of believing you have the ability to influence
events and circumstances by making the most of what you can control sends the
wrong message to employers.
Think about your experiences where you really owned the
outcome. Now, think about how you would answer these questions.
- How did you define success?
- How did you think about what would happen if it failed?
- How did you get buy-in from others?
For Ms.
Hays your answers demonstrate,"... that
you had an idea, and you kind of went out on a limb and it was going to be
yours, if it was a home run, and it was going to be yours if it was a flop, and
you were comfortable with that."
In interviews talking about what worked and didn't work and
what you did to finally get the outcome desired shows a lot about your character. Character is what hits interviewers right in
the gut telling them you are a good fit for the job and the company.
No comments:
Post a Comment