The Power of Storytelling

Storytelling is a potent tool in job interviews, as it enables you to differentiate yourself from other candidates.

Remember: interviews are not merely about relaying information. They are about winning people over.

And when you tell stories – the right way – you craft narratives that resonate with interviewers, and demonstrate your value in a memorable and impactful way.

Why Tell Stories In Job Interviews

Storytelling during job interviews can significantly enhance how you are perceived and evaluated. And this is not conjecture…

Due to a neurological phenomenon called “neural coupling,” where the listener’s brain activity mirrors that of the storyteller, by telling good stories you can literally get in your interviewer’s head…

Here’s how it works:

While listening to stories, the brain goes through a “mirroring” process which spans multiple brain regions, including the motor and sensory cortices and the frontal cortex. This creates a shared, visceral experience of the story being told (PNAS). This shared experience can build a tremendous level of rapport, affinity and understanding. (All of which become significant advantages, as explained in our complete job interview framework)

But it’s not just about creating a shared mental experience. It’s also about the lasting effect of that mental experience.

When you tell a good story, because of the brain’s anticipation of the story’s outcome, it releases dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with pleasure, motivation and reward (NCBI). Higher dopamine levels can enhance the accuracy and retention of memories (Journal of Neuroscience).

Therefore, using storytelling in interviews also helps you create a lasting impression.

It’s Not Just About Memory

In addition to enhancing recall, storytelling can dramatically increase perceived value, as demonstrated by the “Significant Objects” project (Significant Objects).

This experiment showed that by adding compelling personal stories to mundane items, you could increase their worth. The project involved purchasing thrift-store objects for about a dollar each and reselling them on eBay with rich narratives attached.

There are many interesting examples of items sold for significantly higher prices. For example, a ceramic horse bust bought for $1 was sold with a humorous story about the author’s father, resulting in a resale price of $63 (6300% increase in value).

This significant boost in perceived value highlights a vital lesson for job interviews:

Just as stories increase the worth of simple objects, your personal narratives can enhance how potential employers perceive your skills and experiences.

Yes.. Being the candidate that leaves a lasting impression is valuable. But making sure that the lasting impression elevates your paygrade – that is masterful storytelling.

Let’s teach you how to do that…

Crucial Elements for Stories in Job Interview

As we do with all of our work, we’ll leverage insights from psychology, advertising, and neurology in your interview stories.

At a starting point, your stories need to incorporate the following elements:

  • Contextual Framing: Establish a vivid and specific context for your story. Creating a detailed setting helps your story become more memorable. The more sensory details and context you provide, the more effectively you’ll pull the interviewer into your narrative.
  • Action and Agency: Clearly articulate your actions and decisions. This makes it easier for listeners to visualize and feel connected to the narrative. Highlighting your direct role and the steps you took helps solidify your agency and the impact of your actions.
  • Quantitative Impact: Use precise metrics (numbers) to demonstrate the results of your actions. Research indicates that the brain processes numerical data in a way that helps your credibility.
  • Emotional Resonance: Incorporate elements that evoke emotions. Emotional engagement enhances memory retention and personal connection.
  • Professional Relevance: All of this must be done in a professional context. You need to directly tie your story to the specific requirements of the role.

Use Archetypal Frameworks

To meet all these needs effectively, you need to use archetypal stories. These are timeless narratives – stories that have been told by humans over millennia – that align with universal patterns and themes.

Telling archetypal stories makes them significantly more compelling and memorable, and resonates deeply with listeners. They provide a framework that naturally engages and connects with your audience at a very deep level.

For detailed guidance on how to integrate these archetypal frameworks into your job interview stories, see Launch Your Career.

Understanding the STAR Framework

You should definitely learn about archetypal stories in order to master interviews; it’s the most powerful tool available to humans when it comes to influencing decision makers.

But if you have an interview coming up in a few minutes and need a quick, poor man’s version of storytelling, the STAR framework is your next best bet.

Here’s how to use it:

  • Situation: Describe the context or challenge you faced.
  • Task: Explain your specific role or responsibility in that scenario. Your mission.
  • Action: Detail the steps you took to address the issue or achieve the goal.
  • Result: Share the outcome and how it positively impacted the organization or project.

The STAR method keeps your stories structured and to the point. While it won’t hit the deeply ingrained emotions or the primal brain centers that turn your audience into fans, it will at least make sure you don’t tell stories that are out of place or damage your reputation.

Examples of Effective STAR Storytelling

Let’s take two common stories and tell them using the STAR method..

Example 1: Problem-Solving Skills

Situation: “In my last job as a project manager, we faced a significant delay due to an unexpected vendor failure.”

Task: “My responsibility was to make sure we delivered on time despite the late vendor.”

Action: “I immediately met with the team to go over our timeline and find alternative solutions. Then, I found and negotiated expedited service with another vendor, and implemented a revised schedule to make sure our project could work with the new vendor.”

Result: “We completed the project only two weeks behind schedule. But without this workaround, it would have taken eight weeks.”

Example 2: Leadership Abilities

Situation: “While leading a cross-functional team for a product launch, we encountered resistance from several departments because of conflicting priorities.”

Task: “I needed to unify the team and ensure that everyone was working together.”

Action: “I initiated one-on-one meetings with key stakeholders from each department to understand their concerns and priorities. I then synthesized this feedback into a revised plan that balanced their concerns, but also made sure we achieved our target. To guarantee buy-in, I presented the updated plan in a public meeting. I also set up a public dashboard for real-time tracking of deliverables to keep everyone on point.”

Result: “The product launched on time – it was the first product that launched on time in our organization. The way I led the project has now been turned into an official template that everyone uses.”

Addressing Potential Pitfalls

While telling stories, and especially when using the STAR method, you need to be cautious about a few potential problems…

Overcomplicating Stories: Keep your stories straightforward and focused. Life is never as simple as stories make it sound. Therefore, your first job as a storyteller is to “simplify” and “make relatable”.

Lack of Relevance: Ensure that every story you share is directly relevant to the job or the competencies being evaluated. Going on and on about something that you think is interesting, is rarely interesting.

Neglecting the Result: Always conclude with the outcome of your actions. This highlights the impact of your work and reinforces your value.

Conclusion

Using stories in job interviews is no longer an option, it’s a necessity.

With the increased competition in the job market, and the difficulty in rising up the ranks, modern professionals need to use every technique at their disposal to succeed in the corporate world.

Authentic and well-crafted stories not only demonstrate your qualifications but also leave a lasting impression on interviewers, setting you apart from other candidates.

And if you learn how to tell your interview stories using archetypal themes, you will understand how our members bend, or sometimes even break the rules of the HR machine.

Make no mistake: Corporations are run by humans. Humans are run by their brains. And those brains run on stories…

As a result, mastering stories means mastering corporations.

Learn to tell stories the right way, and you’ll know what we mean when we say “we get their brain on our side”.