The EQ Interview - Adele's article on Harvardbusiness.org

The EQ Interview by Adele B. Lynn

It's interview day.  The months of preparation are about to be put to the test.  The interviewer asks that classic behavioral interview question, "Tell me about a time when you volunteered your expertise to assist a peer."  A perfect answer follows.  A good first step, the interviewer and the interviewee both seem pleased. Then, comes the follow up questions and the interview suddenly takes a different turn. 

The follow up questions, designed to assess the candidate’s emotional intelligence, ask the candidate, “Tell me what you were thinking when you decided to offer assistance. And how did you feel about offering assistance?”  These follow up questions offer insight into the candidate’s intentions and also insight into how a person reflects on his behavior and the situation.  You’d be surprised at what you hear when you ask these questions.     

So, what are some examples of desired emotional intelligence qualities? Classic emotional intelligence competencies include an understanding of self, an understanding of one’s impact on others, and the ability to manage oneself. According to various studies, EQ competencies account for 24- 69% of performance success. (There are twenty-two competencies defined in The EQ Interview.) 

The interview process aimed at assessing EQ can lead to a wealth of information such as: Does the person have a strong awareness of what is driving his behavior? Is the candidate acting from intention? Or does he tend to react to something or someone? Does the candidate reflect from the point of view of blame? Or does he sound like a victim?  Or perhaps arrogance or a need to be right drives her behavior?  Or, maybe defensiveness is her hallmark.  The candidate’s reflections reveal much about him or herself including self-awareness, self-control, and accountability for behaviors.
                              
These telltale thought patterns can offer strong predictors of future behaviors.  Thoughts both precede and follow behavior.  Therefore, gaining self-reported insights into the thoughts that precede and follow behavior indicate the penchant for repeating actions. If during the interview process, the candidate’s reflections sound like Skippy the Skeptic, or Danny Defense, chances are that’s who is going to show up on the job.
 
If you’re the interviewer, look for behaviors and thought patterns that are well established. When you ask the interviewee for his reflection on a series of questions about difficult situations, conflicts, and troubling peers, and you hear a common thread that it’s always the other person’s fault, beware.  On the other hand, if the interviewee’s reflection provides concrete evidence of how past experiences have led to changed behavior, you’ve learned that the person is open to learning from past behavior – especially important for emerging leaders.  

If you’re the interviewee, spend some time to get to know yourself.  Listen to your reflections.  Ask yourself, “What do I sound like when I reflect on my behaviors?  Am I defensive? Do I place blame? Do I rationalize or play victim?  What have I learned from my shortcomings?”  Failures provide great opportunity for growth.  No one is perfect. People with high EQ incorporate past experiences into greater self-awareness and manage their future actions with greater intention and purpose.  

Oh… and what about that seemingly perfect answer our candidate gave to “Tell me about a time when you volunteered your expertise….” The follow-up question, “And how did you feel about that?” revealed the first of a series of answers that went something like this… “I don’t mind lending my expertise, although I do get tired of always correcting other people’s mistakes.  I’m always the one they call to save the day.  I realize that I know more than my colleagues. I just wish they’d appreciate me.”  

We’d like to hear from you… Please let us know your thoughts about this topic.   

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