How to Develop Anecdotes for Interviews

Politicians know the value of anecdotes. Listen to their campaign speeches and you'll hear them tell mini-stories of people who were helped from hard times - thanks to the politicians' policies, of course.

The same principle can be - and should be - followed when interviewing. Anecdotes and very short stories provide a brief yet powerful way to illustrate points. More to the point, they allow job seekers a way to highlight strengths while minimizing weaknesses.

When you develop anecdotes for interviews, keep in mind these winning formulas:

Beginning, middle, end. This is the basic structure for all stories. Otherwise, the event you're verbalizing will lack a point and prove unsatisfying to your listener. That could be disastrous in interviews. Using this basic structure, however, allows you to illustrate and highlight you skills and experiences during interviews. This structure helps you make your point in narrative form. In short, this basic structure improves your chance of interview success.

Intro, conflict, resolution. Hiring managers will often ask you to detail times when you had difficulties with others (co-workers, peers, supervisors, clients, etc.). This is a good thing for job seekers because conflict is what creates interesting stories. Utilizing the basic structure above, you would introduce the situation that needs resolution, then describe the interpersonal conflict, and finally, how you resolved the issue.

Preface, hardship, lesson. This version of the basic structure provides you opportunity to show personal and professional growth. Here, you begin with a short back story of the situation, then tell how this initially caused you difficulty, then show what you learned by how you solved the situation. You might also mention how you may handle the situation differently if you face it again.

Now that you have the basics of developing anecdotes, let's look at some templates you can start with (a word of caution: at first glance, these anecdote templates may remind you of MadLibs). Once you're familiar with how to assemble a anecdote, it's important to practice your stories. If you're still suffering from writer's block, feel free to use these templates (as is or as guidelines):

Obstacles. Employers want to see how candidates handle adversity. The hiring manager will say something like, "Tell me about a time you faced difficulty and how you solved it." Your response could be:

"At (name of the last company you were at), I had to (task). I was quite happy to (verb) for the company because it allowed me to (verb). Unfortunately, I ran into (issue) which (synonym for "hindered") progress. Initially, I didn't know how to solve it, but I (past tense verb) to get some more (information or ideas). Once I started (process), things became easier. Eventually I was able to tweak the process even better."

Conflicts. Employers also want to see how candidates handle conflicts. Eventually, the hiring manager will ask something like, "Tell me about a time you had a conflict with your (supervisor or co-worker) and how you resolved it." Your response might be:

"Personality conflicts are bound to happen no matter where you go. At (one of the companies you've worked for), my (boss or co-worker) and I had lively debates regarding (process or item). Unfortunately, it became quite (adverb) and at times quite personal. I decided the best course of action was to (process) and then (verb). This really helped, and as a result (positive outcome)."

Learning. And, of course, employers want to see if candidates can learn from their mistakes. The hiring manager might also say, "Tell me about a time you failed." Here, to show you learned from the experience, you might say:

"Nobody's perfect and, unfortunately, we've all failed at one thing or another at some point. When I was at (company), for instance, I (failure in ten words or less). That stung and (verb) the (company or team). I never wanted that to happen again, so I (synonym for "researched") and decided to find out how to prevent it in the future. While it was a short-term set-back, it turned out to have benefited the company as well as me professionally."

IN A NUTSHELL: Illustrate your points in interviews by using the basic structure or a derivative thereof. Use these templates as guidelines to formulate your own interview anecdotes.