If you’re on the job hunt, or even considering new opportunities passively, it’s important to remember to put your ego aside. That is, if you want a better opportunity or higher compensation.
When you’re interviewing for a new role, even if you’re in a good situation, humility counts. Here are six ways ego surfaces in the job interview and costs you job prospects.
Ego Alert #1: Arrogance
Arrogance shows itself in many ways during the job search: not keeping everyone informed during the interview process, boasting excessively, and ignoring or speaking down to employees in administrative roles.
Arrogance gets in the way of making strong decisions, working well in a team, and creating a highly productive environment. People who don’t work well with others will lose out on new opportunities no matter how strong their technical skills are. And nowhere does it cost you faster than in front of non-sales interviewers, who walk in expecting exactly this from a salesperson.
Ego Alert #2: Refusing to Answer Why You’re Interviewing
If employers ask about your reasons for leaving your current employer and you’re unable to answer directly, ego may be getting in the way.
Employers want to know why you’re looking. Even if you’re only passively looking, avoid saying everything at your current company is perfect. Trashing your boss isn’t the answer either, but there is a reason you’re interviewing, and being coy about it only gives the impression you’re disingenuous.
No matter the situation, you’ll need to discuss your reasons for considering other opportunities. Review the following possibilities:
1. Things are going well. You’re performing and exceeding expectations, but you’re open to an opportunity that puts you on the fast track to leadership. High-growth companies are on your radar.
2. Your current organization is in disarray due to a recent acquisition. You’re doing fine and staying focused on business as usual. There’s been no talk of layoffs, but you have concerns.
3. You’re hitting it out of the park, but sales isn’t valued. The company executives believe the product “sells itself,” your commission plan is on the weak side, and all internal promotions come from the engineering group. Finding a sales-friendly organization would be a refreshing change.
4. You work for a large company and want to make more of an impact with a smaller organization.
Ego Alert #3: Providing Unsolicited Criticism (YIKES!)
Ever criticize the people you meet during the interview process?
We worked with a candidate years ago who felt it was important to go through each person he met and identify their strengths and weaknesses. He provided this information via email to the organization he was interviewing with. (Can’t make this stuff up!)
Although he was a top executive at one of the most prestigious firms in the industry, he didn’t get the job.
There’s an appropriate time to give feedback on others at the company, and it certainly isn’t during the interview process. Save the critiques for another time.
Ego Alert #4: Overvaluing Your Sales Skills
This one can be tricky. No one likes to learn that as we develop more experience in sales, our experience becomes more valuable to a certain subset of employers, and less valuable to everyone else.
Some employers are unwilling to pay a premium for general sales skills, because they prefer professionals who’ve developed career capital in specific verticals. This can be a matter of personal preference, past hiring experience, or perceived ramp-up time.
If you’re progressing as an individual contributor, don’t let your ego get in the way. Recognize early that today’s employers will pay you well if you stick to your domain expertise. If you’ve been selling to state and local for ten years, it will be easier and more profitable to continue doing so than to force a vertical change to enterprise companies.
Ego Alert #5: Getting Hung Up on Base Salary
Base salary takes center stage in a sales role, and salary is always an important consideration. But it isn’t everything.
If you can evaluate an opportunity based on the entire picture, you’re likely to make stronger job moves. Salary is partly tied to your personal expenses, but watch out if it’s really about your ego.
In most cases, working for an employer that pays a $140K base but won’t have a sellable solution for another year is less lucrative than a $120K base with a solution ready for prime time.
Ego Alert #6: Understand the Purpose of the First Interview
The first few meetings with a prospective employer are not about your individual needs. It’s not the time to ask about benefits, the financial health of the organization, or vacation days.
Have the business savvy to understand the buy-and-sell process. The first meeting is about getting invited back to the second round, and employers are assessing you for compatibility. After all, what difference does it make if they offer 10 vacation days or 13 if they don’t think you’re a good match?
The further you move through the process, the more exposure you get to future colleagues, and the more you learn about the role, the organization, and the problems you’d be solving. That’s how the process really works behind the curtains.
You’re leading with your ego if you walk into a first interview expecting an hour’s worth of your questions answered. There will be plenty of time for questions as things progress. In the first few meetings, you’re promoting yourself.
Don’t Let Ego Rule Your Job Search
Changing employers is harder at certain points in your career than others, and most strong job opportunities are highly competitive. As you gain experience, there are fewer senior-level sales jobs available relative to the number of entry-level roles you saw in your first five years. Chances are you’ve also become more selective as your career has progressed.
Attitude is everything during the job hunt. Set your ego aside, focus on the value you offer an employer, and you’ll find the right opportunity with a little persistence and continued focus.
