Job interviews are an essential step along pretty much any career path. But that doesn’t necessarily make them enjoyable – and few personality types are less likely to look forward to a job interview than Logicians (INTPs).
Logicians are known for saying exactly what’s on their minds (when they speak at all, that is), and they’re pretty much allergic to schmoozing. If you’re a Logician personality type, you might chafe at all of the social conventions that tend to go along with job interviews: the firm handshake, the chitchat, even the power dynamic that places your career at the mercy of an interviewer who inevitably has their own flaws and blind spots. To a personality type that places so much value on depth and candor, job interviews can seem superficial and arbitrary and more than a little unfair.
The good news? By using their self-awareness, Logicians can bring the full force of their many strengths to a job interview without getting too caught up in the aspects of the process that annoy them. Here’s how.
Harness Your Strengths
Most Logicians are driven forward in life by an unstoppable sense of curiosity. Rather than viewing a job interview as a particularly torturous form of social interaction, try to reframe it as an opportunity to gain new knowledge. Imagine that you’re an investigator whose goal is to find out exactly what’s going on at this company – not in a nefarious sense, but rather what the company’s goals and challenges are, particularly with respect to the job you’re interviewing for. Gather information. Learn about the business. And then use these insights to draw connections to your own experience and expertise.
What to Do
As a Logician personality, you love to get to the bottom of a problem, so why not share this side of yourself with your interviewer? Ask targeted questions to learn more about the company’s unmet needs – and present yourself as someone who can tackle these challenges.
What Not to Do
Don’t tell your interviewer what you think they or their company are doing wrong. A job interview is an opportunity for you to explain how you would contribute to their mission, not to tear down the methods that they’re currently using to go after it.
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Work With Your Weaknesses
Logicians’ minds work fast – really fast. As someone with this personality type, you might find your thoughts jumping from one topic to another, making connections more quickly than you can articulate them. In many settings, this is a strength, but job interviews are all about clear, effective communication. If your interviewer can’t follow what you’re saying (or why you’re saying it), then you probably won’t get hired – no matter how brilliant your underlying message might be. So do your best to slow down, stay present, and make sure that you’re offering enough context and explanation for your remarks.
What to Do
Listen with extra care to the questions that your interviewer is asking. Don’t tune out or assume that you know what they really mean. If there’s any uncertainty, restate the question to make sure that you understand exactly what the interviewer wants to know: It sounds like you want to hear about XYZ. Is that right?
What Not to Do
Avoid going off on tangents – instead, focus on answering the exact question that your interviewer has asked, and then you can inquire if they’d like to hear about something else as well. Try not to speak for more than a minute or two without giving your interviewer an opportunity to break in and say something. It can help to make periodic eye contact with your interviewer to check that they don’t look confused. If they do, pause to ask, Does that make sense? or, Would it help if I took a moment to explain what I mean by that?
Prepare Wisely
Logicians might worry that if they prepare too much for an interview, they’ll come across as unnatural or robotic. And it’s true that you shouldn’t script everything you’re going to say to your interviewer – as if that were even possible. But if you don’t plan out your key points, particularly when it comes to common questions that your interviewer will almost certainly ask, then you’re at risk of not using your time in the interview as effectively as you would otherwise.
What to Do
Think of three key points that you want to make about your experience, knowledge, and abilities that are relevant to the job. These should be your top three pieces of evidence that you would be a valuable contributor if you were hired for the position. Practice making these points until you feel reasonably confident that you’ll be able to weave in all three as you answer your interviewer’s questions.
What Not to Do
It’s tempting, but don’t lose yourself down such a giant research rabbit hole that you’re left with no time to prepare your talking points about yourself. Learning about the company and the opportunity is important, but it’s also important to think through why you would be an excellent fit for the job in question.
Conclusions
Job interviews do come with certain social expectations, but you don’t need to be fake or hide your true personality in order to succeed at them. Remember that each interview is an opportunity to learn and to ponder interesting problems – just do your best to stay present in the conversation, even if your Logician brain starts firing in a million (or more) different directions.
Logicians, what tips do you have for other interviewees with your personality type? And what are your most memorable job interview experiences? Tell us in the comments below!
Further Reading
- How Your Personality Type Can Help You Get Hired
- Canny Callings: Analyst Personality Types and Career Compatibility (Part I)
- Unlikely Leaders: Logicians (INTPs) Looking Forward
- Finding Your Life Purpose If You’re an Analyst
- Check out our Career Tools & Assessments for more resources to help you navigate the professional world.