What Radio Taught Me About Job Interviews

[Joywtseo421]

For 19 years, I enjoyed one of the best experiences that anyone who loves to talk can have—radio. As “Fast Eddie” Francis, I did everything from produce a wacky morning show to host a late night mix show on a top-rated hip hop station. My last few years were spent on a top-rated adult R&B station where I hosted another mix show, guest hosted the popular “Mellow Moods” show a couple of times, and even co-produced an award-winning talk show.

So, let’s get the fun part out of the way. Yes, I have a “radio voice” (or so I'm told). And, yes, I’ve met celebrities. The late Earth, Wind and Fire lead singer Maurice White, Louis Gossett, Jr., Jeffrey Osborne, Venus Williams, and Danny azerbaijan phone number resource Glover (pictured with yours truly in 2007) were among my interview subjects. There were other cool notable folks I interviewed such as the two immediate past U.S. Secretaries of Education Arne Duncan and Rod Paige as well as Cornel West, NBA player David West, and Rwandan genocide survivor Immaculée Ilibagiza. Believe it or not, doing those interviews helped me grow into a better job interviewee.

If you want to become better at job interviews, be the interviewee that you enjoy hearing on the air. Be genuine, confident, polished, and sound like a leader. Here is doing radio taught me about doing great job interviews.


Confidence wins
We enjoy hearing our favorite people on radio for a reason. They entertain and inform us, and they know that is what we are looking for. Did you realize, however, that some of these folks really don’t want to be on the air sometimes? For example, singers struggle through radio interviews at times because their voices are shot from touring. Even worse, they have their interviews booked for them so they may have no idea what they’re walking into. What they do know is that the show must go on. They can’t let their fans down so they have to sound confident and alive.

Employers understand that you may have had to go through all kinds of craziness to get to a job interview or that you may be nervous. But an employer--like a fan--wants what he or she wants, and will offer the job only to the candidate who makes the best presentation. If your day is crappy as you’re heading into an interview, make no excuses. Be confident because the show must go on.