An Introvert’s Guide to Interviews

Self-promotion isn’t an exercise for everyone – especially introverts. If you’re naturally modest, here’s how you can get past your inhibitions and be assertive in a way that works for you.

Before Susan Cain published her best-selling book, Quiet, in 2012 and made a persuasive case for introverts, the world had an inclinaton to extroversion. People habitually associated an outgoing nature with success and various other positve traits, while introverts were seen to be less driven.

And Susan has a name for this. She calls it the Extrovert Ideal – the belief that “the ideal self is gregarious, alpha and comfortable in the spotlight”.

The Extrovert Ideal is stll prety prevalent in the employment landscape, where many employers feel that extroverts typically give a beter frst impression during interviews because they’re more comfortable with promotng themselves. Introverts, by contrast, are ofen seen as uninterested or aloof – even when they’re genuinely excited about the job.

But self-promoton doesn’t have to be painful. There are many ways for introverts to promote themselves without coming across as bragging. Realise your own strengths Say you are good without actually saying it

The frst step to being assertve is to recognise that you have skills and strengths worth talking about. Start by looking at the diferent day-to-day actvites that you engage in, and relate them to the skills employers look for in potental candidates.

Have you writen essays and given presentatons in school? Those are writen and verbal communicaton skills. Did you play football or hockey in your spare tme? That shows teamwork. Extra points if you were team captain, because that shows your organising, leading and motvatonal skills.

Even successfully juggling coursework, actvites in a society, a part-tme job and spending tme with family and friends can be translated into tme management and an ability to prioritse – employable skills.

Also, don’t forget about other qualifcatons or courses you may have atended outside of school! Mine those for examples of marketable strengths. If you really aren’t comfortable making statements like “I’m good at managing my tme”, try giving examples instead, such as, “There have been tmes when I’ve had to manage my tme carefully to get things done. In my second year, I volunteered two mornings a week at the local SPCA. But in that same week, I also had to hand in two essays and juggle working eight hours at a supermarket. It was tough and I had to swap shifs with colleagues on a couple of occasions, but I made it through.”

See what just happened there? You’re not explicitly saying you’re good at tme management, but it’s clear that you are.

Use your portfolio Switch your thinking Make use of testimonies

Alternatvely, you can make use of visual aids to help you promote yourself. Consider keeping a portolio of work samples, photos, graphs or charts, news artcles, recommendaton and appreciaton leters and any other relevant documents that you can display when asked about your accomplishments. Get the interviewer’s permission to show an example of your work, and you can base your answer on the things you have in your portolio.

Having a portolio not only makes things easier for you because there’s visual proof of your accomplishments, but can also act as a prompt to jostle your memory. More importantly, it takes the limelight away from you, giving you some breathing space every now and then.

However, be selectve about what you want to include in your portolio. It may be temptng to include every single certfcate or work sample, but remember that a portolio should complement your answers, not substtute it. If you’re worried about over-selling yourself or coming across as arrogant – don’t be. What you’re doing in your interview isn’t boastng; you’re simply providing recruiters with evidence that you’re the right person for the job!

Recruiters need to be told about your skills or they’ll probably hire someone else who has done a beter job of showing it. So approach an interview knowing that you’ll help them make the best hiring decision when you’re able to clearly showcase your skills and relevance for the positon on ofer. Another good method to promote yourself without coming across as boastul is by making references to the testmonials of others, such as performance evaluatons from your supervisors, lecturers, or managers. You can also obtain testmonials from clients, co-workers and suppliers you’ve worked with.

For instance, when asked about a skill or achievement, you can answer with: “My supervisor commended me on my ability to troubleshoot problems calmly whenever emergencies arise. He made specifc mentons about how I had contributed to the company during my performance evaluaton.”

Aside from sounding less boastul, it also sounds more credible. To add to this, do your best to bring in testmonials from the referees listed in your resume. This way, employers will be able to verify your claims, which will improve your credibility even more.