Somewhere in the region of 18,000 of my peers, colleagues and friends in the NHS are about to find themselves being released from the loving embrace of NHS employment. I don’t yet know if I’ll be one of them. And all of us will find ourselves having to navigate the most unforgiving job market in a generation or more. It’s going to be brutal.

And most of the ones who do find themselves still with an NHS job come April 26 will have had to navigate one of the scariest things experiences the world of work can offer - the INTERVIEW

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Photo by Hans Reniers on Unsplash

So let’s talk interviews. I’ve been on both sides of the table more times than I can count. I’ve probably landed more jobs than I haven’t, but I’ve also made some almighty mistakes. I’ve also interviewed a lot of people, and seen more bad interviews than good.

So as we enter the next phase of operation ‘devalue dedicated NHS staff’, here are some honest reflections from the good, the bad, and the ugly of my interview journey.

Reframing the Interview: It’s About Showcasing, Not Selling, Yourself

An interview is an opportunity to ‘sell yourself’, right? So here’s the thing: a lot of people, particularly in pharmacy, say they’re not good at selling themselves. We’re not salespeople by nature. We are humble, risk averse, technically and clinically excellent, but not big on shouting about our achievements.

So let’s change that. An interview isn’t about selling yourself; it’s about showing who you really are. Being comfortable doing that immediately makes you feel more relaxed, and therefore more likely to give a good and honest account of yourself.

The best interviewees I’ve ever seen are ones that leave me with the feeling ‘I’d love to work with them’, rather than the one can reel off the slickest sales pitch.

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Talk About Failure More Than You Talk About Success

We all have a big long list of achievements. The time you planned, implemented and evaluated a new way of working. The award win. The graph moving in the right direction. The KPIs. The LinkedIn version of yourself.

That’s all good stuff. It shows you are capable.

But as an interviewer, I expect everyone I interview to be capable. If they aren’t then they shouldn’t have got an interview.

What sets people apart? The ones who can be open, honest, humble and insightful about their failures and mistake. I’m comfortable working with people who are not perfect. But I don’t want to work with someone who doesn’t see their own limitations and doesn’t learn from getting something wrong.

So by all means, talk about the great things you’ve done. But in reality that is more for the application form than the interview. It gets your foot in the door. But once you’re there? You are showing who YOU are, not what you have achieved.

My biggest error of judgement is my most often used interview example.

The Big ‘Taxpayer’ Disaster

So back in 2012, there I was, stepping into my first senior management role. I’d jumped up two grades, so let’s just say my imposter syndrome had unpacked its bags and was settling in nicely. A couple of months in, boom—bad CQC inspection. Lots of issues with safe and secure handling of medicines - the very thing I was now responsible for.

It was clear what the problem was; my team just wasn’t trying hard enough and/or wasn’t good enough. They must not care, right? So I decided to play the tough boss. I sent an email one evening telling everyone, “If you can’t look yourself in the mirror and say you earned your taxpayer-funded salary today, don’t bother coming in tomorrow.” Oops.

Photo by Jelleke Vanooteghem on Unsplash

Next morning, I pull into the car park and there’s a brilliant, and kind, senior pharmacy technician waiting for me. He basically says, “Look, people are fuming. You need to know you’ve really upset everyone.”

At first I stood my ground. I was right after all, it wasn’t good enough.

But after taking a few deep breaths, and being told in no uncertain terms that people were absolutely livid, I decided to listen to them, properly, for the first time. And I realised I’d completely misdiagnosed the problem. It wasn’t that people didn’t care; it was that the culture and systems were broken. They didn’t have the support. systems and processes they needed to do a good job. In fact the environment had made it impossible for them to do their jobs well. And I had come in determined to prove myself as competent, so had the arrogance to believe that they just needed organising and directing. I had an epiphany. And then I had to eat some humble pie, admit I’d been wrong (I literally apologised to every member of staff), and start listening to what my team really needed. I’ve learned so much from that experience, and I still cringe when I tell people about it.

There are so many things I can draw out from that story in an interview:

• misdiagnosing a problem, and learning how to take a step back

• leading at a time of crisis, and when it goes wrong

• the importance of surrounding yourself with people who will tell you when you’ve gone too far, and listening to them when they do

• the art of drafting emails, saving the draft, and then reviewing once your blood pressure has settled

It usually gets a laugh—because let’s be honest, it’s a bit of a facepalm moment and we’ve all had times when we’ve just about stopped ourselves from sending ‘that email’—but it also shows that I’m not afraid to own my mistakes and learn from them. And that’s a far more powerful lesson than just listing off achievements. And it’s completely honest. So when I talk about it I feel relaxed because I’m not putting on a show, I’m just being me.

Know your audience

OK biggest interview cock-up? When I told an interview panel that doctors don’t like being told what to do by pharmacists, and so you have to find ways to go above their heads to get them to listen.

Two thirds of the interview panel were doctors.

I didn’t get the job.

I was trying to make a point about working in a multidisciplinary team and knowing what the value in my role was, being assertive when need be, and using professional judgement. But I decided to take a risk and make a joke. It didn’t land well.

Photo by Caleb Woods on Unsplash

So if humour is a part of your character, as it is for me, then use it. It’s you. I don’t come across as authentic when I’m trying to be too serious. But it was pretty obvious that this one wouldn’t be well received. A preventable mistake, and one that cost me a job.

So know who’s on the other side of the table, and what they care about. Speak their language. And take the time to interpret their body language. If they are looking at you, smiling and nodding, then you’re probably saying something they like and they probably want to hear more. If they are all heads down, writing, frowning, or trying to interrupt you, then you’ve said enough. Stop talking!

It’s not about the job you’ve done, it’s about the job you will do

People working in ICBs and NHSe will be aware the ask of our organisations is changing, although it might not always be clear how. There won’t be many jobs that remain the same, doing the same thing they were doing a year ago.

Having been a great fit for the previous iteration doesn’t mean that the new job will still suit you. It’s equally important for you to decide whether you want to do the new job or not. Take the interview as an opportunity to be honest both with yourself and the interviewer about what sort of job you are well suited for. Feeling out of place or ill-equipped to do a job is very uncomfortable and will never be the right thing to do in the long run. Trust me, it’s another of the mistakes I’ve made.

Practical Tips and Final Thoughts

Of course, there are practical tools like the STAR technique that can help you structure your answers. But the real magic is in being authentic, learning from your stumbles, and focusing on mutual fit rather than a perfect performance. So take a breath, be yourself, and remember: the best interviews are just conversations.

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