Interview Like You Already Have the Job – Changing the Interview Mindset
- Brainz Magazine
- Jan 20
- 8 min read
Written by Dan Williamson, Coach, Mentor, and Founder
Dan is a qualified coach and mentor with 20+ years of experience helping people unlock their potential by challenging perspectives and enhancing self-awareness. He founded Teach Lead Transform, an online platform for self-discovery, learning, and language growth.
It’s not an audition, it’s a consultation. The fastest way to change your interview performance is to change your mental model. When you walk into an interview believing you're being evaluated, the power dynamic isn’t in equilibrium. With the mindset that the process is two-way, mentally, you aren’t required to perform, just be yourself.
I’ve watched talented professionals sabotage themselves in interviews as a coach and in a professional capacity, not because they lacked competence, but because they approached every interview as a performance. They were so focused on being chosen that they forgot they also needed to choose. The shift in mindset is subtle, the results significant.
The traditional interview power dynamic
The traditional model is simple: The company evaluates, the candidate performs. They hold the power, you hope to be chosen. They ask questions, you provide answers. They assess your fit, you demonstrate suitability.
This model creates nerves, performance, a failure to be authentic, and frequently, poor outcomes.
When you're performing, you're not present, but overthinking. Did that answer land well? Should I have said it differently? Do I sound confident enough, or cocky?
That internal monologue prevents genuine engagement, and this natural back-and-forth of two parties discovering whether they want to work together is what creates connection. Connection is memorable.
Meanwhile, they're making a decision that will affect them daily for years. They need to get this right. A bad hire costs them time, money, team morale, and their own reputation.
They're not looking for perfect, because perfect in an interview often becomes problematic three months in, when the performance can't be sustained.
A consultant mindset: What changes
Consultants don't audition for work. They assess whether they can solve the problem, whether they want to solve it, and whether this client is a good fit for them.
They come with informed perspective. They ask questions to understand the problem. They evaluate whether the client has the resources and commitment needed for success. They decide whether this engagement serves their expertise and career.
In short, they interview whilst being interviewed. This changes everything about the process.
Your body language shifts. You're present, engaged, curious, and open. You smile more, relax, and show that you already belong and aren’t intimidated.
Your tone shifts. You express enthusiasm and curiosity, with answers demonstrating critical thinking and active listening.
Your questions shift. You stop asking the questions you think make you look good and start asking ones of relevance.
Your energy shifts. You're not depleted after an interview. You're energized or at least informed, because you were participating in discovery, not performing for approval.
The irony? This mindset makes you more hireable, not less. People want to work with people who have judgment and choice, not people who are desperate.
What you're evaluating
When you interview as a consultant, you're assessing across several areas whether this is an engagement you want:
Leadership quality: Will you learn or leave?
Your manager matters more than the company. More than the salary. More than the title.
A great manager in a mediocre company will develop you. A poor manager in a great company will make you miserable. You're not just evaluating the role, you're evaluating whether you respect the person you'll report to.
What to assess:
Do they have a coherent leadership philosophy, or are they managing by instinct and reaction?
How do they talk about their team? With pride? With frustration? With a genuine interest in their development?
Can they articulate how they support growth?
How do they respond when you ask about failure? Defensively? Honestly? With reflection?
You're looking for self-awareness, intentionality, and the capacity to develop others. Your 1st impressions count, listen to them.
Opportunity or chaos?
There's a difference between an interesting challenge and walking into organizational chaos.
Some "transformation roles" are really "scapegoat roles" you're brought in to fix systemic issues without the authority or resources to do so. Some "exciting opportunities" are actually "we have no idea what we're doing, good luck."
What to assess:
Can they articulate the problem clearly?
Do they understand what success looks like?
Have they tried to solve this before? What happened? What did they learn?
Is this a real problem they're committed to solving, or a nice-to-have?
If they can't clearly explain what they need and why, you can't possibly solve it.
Set up to win or fail?
The role sounds exciting until you realize you'll have no budget, no team, no tools, and unrealistic timelines.
Some organizations bring people in to accomplish miracles with resources that guarantee failure. Then they blame the person, not the impossible mandate.
What to assess:
What budget, team, or support comes with the role?
Are the expectations aligned with the resources? Or are they expecting €100,000 results with a €10,000 budget?
What's required for success, or are they hoping you'll figure it out?
You're not being difficult by asking these questions, you're being professional.
Cultural authenticity: Performance or presence?
The question isn't whether the culture is "good" or "bad." It's whether you can be yourself.
Some organizations say they value authenticity but reward conformity. Some claim they want innovation, but punish anyone who challenges the status quo. Some promote work-life balance but celebrate people who work long hours.
What to assess:
How did they respond to your real questions? Defensively? Openly? Thoughtfully?
When you expressed yourself naturally in the interview, how did they react?
Do the people you've met seem genuine?
Can they give you specific examples of how they've supported authenticity?
If you had to perform in the interview to get the offer, you'll have to perform every day if successful.
Aligning values: Words vs. behaviour
Every organization has beautiful values. What matters is whether behaviour matches.
The real values of an organization aren't what they say they value. They're what they reward, what they tolerate, and what gets people promoted.
What to assess:
How did they treat you throughout this process? Responsive? Or did you chase them for updates?
When they describe success, what values are being celebrated?
What do they not talk about? (Often as revealing as what they emphasize)
The entire recruitment process demonstrates the company’s values. If they're disorganized, disrespectful, or respond slowly, that's the culture.
Questions that signal consultant-level thinking
The questions you ask reveal how you think. Ask consultant questions, and you'll be recognised accordingly.
"What does success look like in the first 90 days? And in the first year?"
This shows you're already thinking about delivery. It also reveals whether they have clarity about expectations.
Listen for specificity. "You'll have built relationships and understand our systems" is decent. "You'll have completed the needs assessment and presented three options for the redesign" is excellent. "We'll figure it out together" is concerning.
"What's the biggest challenge the person in this role will face?"
This gets at the real job, not the job description. It shows you understand every role has challenges, and you want to know what you're signing up for.
Listen for honesty. If they say there aren't challenges, they're not being straight with you. If they list systemic organizational issues, you're walking into trouble. If they describe solvable problems with appropriate difficulty, that's real.
"How does the team currently handle conflict or disagreement?"
This reveals psychological safety and if collaboration is real.
"We don't really have conflict" means conflict is suppressed. "People need thick skin here" means toxicity is normalized. "We address it directly and respectfully," with specific examples, means they've thought about this.
"What happened with the last person in this role?"
This reveals patterns, expectations, and how they treat people who leave.
If they speak dismissively about the predecessor, that's how they'll speak about you. If they're vague or evasive, something uncomfortable happened. If they're honest about what didn't work and what they learned, that's maturity.
"What would make you consider this hire a mistake in six months?"
This is bold, and answers will show whether they've thought about what success means. It demonstrates you care about delivering value, not just getting the job.
If they can't articulate what failure looks like, they don't know what success looks like either.
Why this approach can get you the job
At first, this approach appears counterintuitive, but recruiters are looking for people who have options, who are in demand. If no one else wants you, why should they?
Engagement signals high value. If you're evaluating them as carefully as they're evaluating you, you must be good enough to choose.
Companies want to hire people who are choosing them, not people who need them.
The consultant mindset creates several advantages:
You're memorable. Most candidates are generic, but you're engaged in genuine discovery. That's enough to be remembered.
You demonstrate judgment. By asking good questions, you show sophisticated thinking, you’re seen as someone who can assess situations.
You make a connection. When you engage rather than perform, it’s easier to start imagining working with you because you're already working with them.
You get the information you need. You're not just trying to get an offer. You're trying to get the right offer.
Practical application: Your next interview
This mindset shift requires preparation:
Before the interview, prepare real questions.
Not "what does the role involve?" (that's basic). Questions that show you're assessing fit at a sophisticated level. About leadership, resources, culture, values, and decision-making.
Write them down. Prioritize them. Know which ones matter most.
In the first five minutes, establish the dynamic.
Your energy and engagement from the start set the tone. Come with genuine presence and curiosity.
When they ask, "How are you?" don't give the automatic "fine, thank you." Try "I'm genuinely looking forward to this conversation. I've been thinking about the challenges you mentioned in the job description, and I’m looking to understand them better."
That's engagement, not performance. It changes the dynamic immediately. A genuine smile and some eye contact with the panel will do no harm either.
Balance evaluation with appropriate enthusiasm.
You're assessing fit, not playing hard to get. When something genuinely interests you, show it. When you see alignment between your expertise and their need, name it.
"This problem is exactly what I'm good at solving" is different from "I'd be honoured to work here." Also, way more sincere.
Ask yourself the critical question before accepting any offer:
"If a friend asked me whether they should take this role, what would I tell them?"
Be as honest with yourself as you'd be with someone you care about. Don't accept a role you wouldn't recommend to others.
Your next steps
Your next interview doesn't have to be an audition. You can walk in as a consultant assessing whether you want this engagement. You can ask the questions that matter. You can evaluate how this opportunity serves your development and career.
This mindset won't work everywhere. Some interviewers will be put off by your evaluation. Some organizations want grateful, not thoughtful.
If you are yourself and unsuccessful? It probably wasn’t right for you anyway.
The roles worth having want professionals with judgment. The managers worth working for want team members who choose them. The organizations worth joining value people who ask good questions.
When you interview like you already have the job, confident, evaluative, engaged, you're more likely to get it, and more importantly, you're more likely to want it.
If you’re unsuccessful? Then you can also have no regrets, it wasn’t a good fit for you. You carried yourself as a professional whose expertise and time have value.
That's not arrogance, it's authenticity. At Teach Lead Transform, we offer interview coaching, tips, and role-playing for specific roles to help you show up as the best version of yourself and be sure that any role is a good fit for you, not the other way around.
Check out our website for more information and to book a free 20-minute session to discuss your needs.
Read more from Dan Williamson
Dan Williamson, Coach, Mentor, and Founder
Dan is passionate about continuous growth to positively impact others. As a qualified coach and mentor, he empowers people to deepen their self-awareness, strengthen their personal identity, and unlock their true potential. Using his own self-discovery experiences as a foundation, he helps individuals develop bespoke strategies to enable them to live as their authentic selves. Through his writing on Teach, Lead, Transform, his online learning, language, and self-discovery platform, his aim is to stimulate thinking and awareness to empower self-directed personal growth.
