Page 151 - James Caan - Get the Job you Really Want

you for a thousand-word essay. I’m saying two minutes. All I really
need is the home page of our website. That’s all it is. It is no more
than what we say about ourselves. If you can’t do that, goodbye.
The twist on that is for me to ask, ‘Why on earth would
anybody want to work for Hamilton Bradshaw? This is a night-

mare. We’re frantic, the pressure’s crazy.’ I usually get a glazed
look back, because it’s an unexpected question, coming from
an employer. Again, if you have not done your homework, you’ll

fumble. You need to come straight back at me with, ‘Yes, but
James, Hamilton Bradshaw is a market leader, you’ve done this,
your performance has been that.’
Another question I always ask in every interview, even if I’ve
only interviewed one person, is, ‘Just so you understand, I have

met six other people for this role. What is it about you that makes
you think you stand out among all the other people I have met for
this position?’ The candidate is forced to declare their strengths.

It saves me from working it out. And then I follow that up with
the flip side: ‘If you were me, give me one reason why I shouldn’t
o≠er you this position.’ Remember that experienced interview-
ers will often ask the same question dressed up in a number of
di≠erent ways.

I will often ask, ‘If I called the three referees you have identi-
fied, tell me exactly what they would say.’ You don’t know
whether I am going to call them or not, so you can’t make it up.

If I do call them and hear the opposite to what you tell me, you
have just lost the job. That’s when I add in the joke about whether
you want to know what your boss really said . . .
Everyone comes into an interview prepared to answer

139 power