Scenario Based Mock Interview
Practice 20 Scenario Based interview questions covering problem-solving, decision-making, and real-world situations.
Question 8 of 20
How do you convince others to see things your way?
The Goal
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Retail
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What to Avoid
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Community Answers
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
The interviewer wants to know that you have solid persuasive skills. The goal of your response is to show that you can influence people through an inspirational approach rather than pushing others to see things from your perspective in an uncomfortable, forceful, or unprofessional manner.
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"When I would like others to see my way, I am sure to carefully lay out the ways that my idea will benefit them. I review those reasons, collect agreement from them, and then close them on the idea by having them agree that it's the soundest decision or choice."
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"When I'm trying to convince someone to be on my side, I am sure to make it clear how my ideas will benefit them. As I speak with them, I make small comments throughout the conversation to get them to agree with me along the way. As they start to say 'yes' to smaller questions or comments, they begin to come over to my side. Then, I review the reasons they just agreed with, getting another, bigger 'yes,' and conclude with them making a verbal statement of official agreement."
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"To get customers or coworkers to see things my way, I first learn what they want to achieve and work to understand their pain point. Then, by doing so, I can emphasize the points that are the most meaningful to their goals. In doing this, I craft a personalized, persuasive case that ensures they will get to the point of 'yes' that I am looking to achieve."
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"I often have to convince my students to see things my way, which usually involves getting them excited or challenging them in a fun, interactive way. Interestingly enough, it's a reasonably effective approach with adults, too. I find that if I can get my students excited about a task, project, or idea, they buy-in and do most of the convincing on their own without too much convincing from me."
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"If I want others to see things my way, showing them my raw passion is the best way to do it. I get excited about my idea and tell them the 'why' behind the excitement. Once someone understands the 'why' behind what I'm looking to achieve, it becomes much simpler to gain their buy-in."
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"I have found that facts are the best way to support an opinion and idea. If I have a big idea, I will create a presentation and gain buy-in from my team based on all the benefits of the proposed idea that I am pitching."
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"What's In It For Them (WWIFT) is one of the first things I was taught in marketing when it comes to gaining the interest of a new customer. If I want others to see things my way, I focus on what they will gain by coming to my side! This approach works for me nearly every time."
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
Avoid an answer that makes you sound pushy and forceful. Instead, give a response that shows you are persuasive without being a workplace bully.
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
There are a variety of persuasion techniques that are helpful to use in the workplace. Some approaches include:
- The 'Framing' method
- The 'WIIFT' technique (What's In It For Them)
- The 'BYAF' technique (But You Are Free)
- Describing how your approach is working for others
- Using words like 'we' rather than 'me'
- Gaining agreement on a more minor point and then working toward an agreement on the more significant point
- Leveraging data and evidence to make your case
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
Perhaps you are a confident and opinionated person, and maybe you are not. This question can be challenging to approach either way since you don't want to come across as a push-over, and you don't want to come across as too pushy in the workplace. It's essential to show that you have professional balance when convincing others to see your point of view. Describe your favorite method of persuasion.
If you have a real-life example of a time when you persuaded someone to see things your way, be sure to provide a brief story-based example for the interviewer. In that case, you can use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) when forming your story.
Interview Coach
Jaymie
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Anonymous Answer
A commitment to one's job goes hand in hand with promoting the welfare of the organization and what's best for it. Included in this is one's own personal vision. In developing my own vision, I found it useful to use supervisors and other co-workers as sounding boards. In this way, I profit from their thoughts and experience while allowing them to evaluate and appreciate my perspective.
Once co-workers know where you are coming from, the task of promoting ideas becomes much easier. Naturally, I don't expect acceptance for all of my ideas, but thanks to the context provided by this kind of honest exchange with coworkers, it is much more likely my ideas will be better understood and evaluated on their merit.
Rachelle's Feedback
This is a very well crafted, and thoughtful response. 10/10
Anonymous Answer
My method is convincing people to follow the concept with the connection of facts and data. My speaking style is very convincing and mixes with data. It is easy for people to look through my lens.
Rachelle's Feedback
It sounds like you are very persuasive in your communication and that you back this persuasion with data. Nice approach! If you have an example of a time when you deployed this method in the workplace, it's an excellent opportunity to give a brief story-based example.
Anonymous Answer
If I felt passionate about how to do something and I felt it was the best way to go about it. I would give all pros and cons. I would listen to everyone's feedback and then I would show why I feel my way is best.
Amanda's Feedback
With this question, the interviewer is trying to get a feel for your persuasive skills by learning more about how you present ideas to others. I appreciate that your answer shows that you use information and facts to support your opinions or ideas using a consultative approach. Make your answer more complete by sharing how you secure agreement after responding to feedback by asking for verbal agreement from stakeholders, giving team members time to think about it, and then reconvening to vote on an idea, etc.
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