Are you preparing for an upcoming interview and find it difficult to express your experiences in a story format? The most effective way to answer questions that ask – ‘Tell me about a time when…’, ‘Demonstrate your skill in…’ or ‘Have you ever…’ – is to use the STAR Technique:
STAR Technique
- Situation – “The best example of a time that I showed excellent communication skills was when I was working with Company X as a sales assistant”
- Task – “I was approached by my area manager and was asked to develop a better system for communicating with our clients”
- Action – “Since I was approached individually, I had control over the project and decided that I needed a team to help me. I identified what was needed for the project to succeed and delegated tasks…” – Give a brief description of WHAT you did, WHO you engaged with and HOW you achieved certain activities.
- Result – “After clarifying objectives with my team, I gathered feedback from clients to see if communication pathways were improved. It was found that client satisfaction and loyalty was increased” – WHAT was the outcome?
When using this method, remember to keep the answers simple and to the point. You can use the same example for different skills; only change the narrative of the story.
