What are you so afraid of?
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In your interviews, cover letters, and resumes focus on confidently describing what you have to offer and the growth opportunity in front of you rather than being afraid of what your background lacks.
Photo by Dirk Ribbler on Unsplash
One of the most feared questions in an interview is some flavor of, “This role calls for people with experience in [x]. I’m not sure I’m seeing that in your background. Can you explain this to me?” For many that’s an instant “deer in headlights” moment. It shouldn’t be.
Recently a coaching client reached out to tell me I "called it" when a recruiter had questions about his past experience (namely a lot of contract work and short stints while they were applying for a full time role). We'd spent a large portion of our most recent session focused on exactly that back and forth and I was proud of the way my client responded.
I asked them what their most feared question was and they said they just didn't know how to make it not look like all they had done was short projects and contracts. Looking at their resume it was... almost exclusively short projects and contracts. In describing why that was, it was a mixture of choice (wanting exposure to a lot of different problems and technologies) and circumstance (companies reprioritizing and eliminating their tech teams). Why couldn't they just share that?! You know, the truth. We spent the rest of the time thinking through how to better describe the experience he has and why he’s looking for something different, focusing on what he has to offer rather than what his background lacks.
The truth shouldn't be scary. YOUR truth shouldn’t be scary. You've done what you've done, you’ve learned what you’ve learned, and you have reasons for that. You also have reasons why you want to do something else. Why isn't that enough?
I spent many years on the board for Unloop, a nonprofit that helps formerly incarcerated individuals get careers in tech. Some of the stories participants have are indeed shocking, but the entire point of the program is founded on the belief that people deserve a chance. That includes you.
Let’s consider a different approach. Be confident in what you've done and what it's meant to you.
You did short projects and contract work because you didn’t want to be pigeon-holed into an industry or platform.
You haven’t been a manager because you wanted to focus on your craft.
You haven’t worked at a large organization or cross-functionally because that opportunity wasn’t afforded to you.
All very fine and real reasons for things. The next step is to be confident in describing how what you’ve done sets you up for the job you want.
“To date I've wanted breadth and to see different parts of the software world. What makes sense for me now is depth. I want to gain deep technical expertise, have more formal mentorship, and see more of the software lifecycle, all of which I can get in a full-time role."
“I’ve assumed an increased level of leadership and mentorship on my teams as my own craft has improved. Now I’m ready to take my next step and become a manager to help others thrive in their own careers as well.”
“I’ve enjoyed working at smaller organizations and learning how to be a good colleague within my own discipline. Now I want to see more of how everything comes together and experience the tradeoffs, collaboration, and higher level decision making involved.”
You may be thinking that speaking this approach may exclude you because you don’t have some particular experience. But…you don’t have that exact experience, that’s the whole point. You may have been adjacent to it or done it informally and you should enthusiastically share that. Generally though, what do you think is going to serve you better, fumbling to spin straw into gold or confidently talking about your experiences and the growth opportunity ahead of you? I think it’s the latter. It also shows respect for the recruiter/hiring manager, who likely sees right through all that fumbling anyway. If a role really requires expertise you don’t have then you’re just not right for that role (yet), but if growing while in the role is an option, you’re teeing yourself up for it (and setting appropriate expectations while you’re at it).
As scary as it sounds, the truth is more than enough.