Soul Aligned ~ Questions to Ask Your Potential Future Hiring Manager

Let’s scrap everything you’ve read about interviewing.

You and I both know you’re an over preparer. You’ve already run drills regarding your About Me story, prepping using the job description and crafting answers in the STAR format.

You have great references; always do well and have continually been promoted but you want to put your best foot forward…so you’d like assistance in crafting questions to ask your future manager.

I want you to stop. Take a big big deep breath in and ask yourself:

• What's important to me?
• What are my top 5 non-negotiables going into this next role?

You’ve been around the block enough to know what sort of management style breathes into you vs. steals energy from you…

You know you’d likely appreciate a hybrid model that, yes, rewards your good work and likeability by raises, more visibility with the c-suite and not just more work/taking over assignments others are dropping the ball in.

So…because of this; I’d like to invite you to close your eyes and take a deep breath in.

*Only once you’re done continue reading…

I’d like you to close your eyes again and imagine what this team and this manager behave like during Monday mornings, during all hands meetings, during a rough day, with pushy peers on your level….Imagine all the instances that come up at work and see how you'd like the person managing you responds to it.

"Imagine what this team and this manager behave like during Monday mornings, during all hands meetings, during a rough day, with pushy peers on your level…"

What sort of questions can you create to suss these ideal circumstances out now?

What typically works for our clients here is to create non-judgemental ‘either or’ 'no answer is bad' scenarios.

For example, let's say (*and again this is super basic but just go with me) you ideally want a hybrid model. You’re an extrovert with introverted tendencies so although you need at least two days off to work from home…you would actually enjoy three days in office to set a routine…and see more of your work friends.

A question I would recommend posing to your manager then would be:

"How has the company responded to hybrid work models? I’ve definitely worked in environments where we worked primarily in office and at home…I wish I could say I'm partial to one but I’m kind of open in this area? How does this teamwork…and potentially the greater organization?"

So, what we did there was make no answer bad - and opened up the space for the person to just say what's true vs. what they believe you’d want to hear.

So, what we did there was make no answer bad - and opened up the space for the person to just say what's true vs what they believe you’d want to hear.

Now obviously that's a super basic example so...

Here are some other areas that may be important to you, outside of what your subconscious already brought forward:

• Covid policies
• Paternity leave
• Autonomy even when WFH
• Round table decision making
• Active culture building… for WFH employees

There are a ton more of course.

A few resources our clients adore here; that’ll help you get your imagination running are elpha.com and fairygodboss.com

Actually here's a great place to start: https://fairygodboss.com/articles/interviewing-right-now-be-sure-to-ask-these-8-crucial-questions-hiring-experts-say

Good luck friend. You got this. 

*if you want more career or job search friendly tips geared for empaths, highly sensitive employees or just ambitious soft spoken professionals then read our blog, join our free private job search group and access the free Resource Library here.

Best,

Stephanie Heath

Founder, SoulWork & Six Figures