Job Interview Tip: It's not what you did, it's how you talk about it

When I coach clients for interviews, I often hear them answering competency-based questions by telling me what they did, step by step. The story makes sense, but it's not what the interviewers are listening for. The example itself isn't the problem, but how they talk about it.

Changing the way you explain your actions can make all the difference between a good answer and a great answer.

Here's 5 steps you can take to turn any interview question into a behaviour-focused answer that shows your skills, thinking, and alignment with company values.

From question to behaviour-focused answer

Example question: Tell me about a time you worked on a project with colleagues from different teams or backgrounds

Step 1: Understand what they're really asking

Most people hear this and think they want a simple answer of teamwork or collaboration. But a deeper look shows they're assessing multiple things:

• How you communicate with different people

• How you collaborate and include different perspectives

• How you adapt your approach (without losing authenticity)

• How you problem-solve when people have different priorities

• How you demonstrate professionalism and leadership

Another important layer is the company's values. A lot of organisations use interview questions to see not just what you did, but whether your behaviour aligns with that they care about. For example,

• If inclusivity is a value, showing that you intentionally give quieter voices space

• If collaboration is a value, explaining how you actively bring different teams together

• If innovation is a value, highlighting how you encouraged diverse perspectives to generate better ideas

When you understand both the behaviours and the company's values, you can frame your language in a way that shows how you think, act, and that you're also a good cultural fit.

Step 2: Choose the example

Once you understand what they're assessing, pick a situation from your experience that demonstrates those behaviours. For this question, a strong example might be one where you had a clear goal and worked with diverse perspectives/ways of working.

If you're not sure how to find examples, read my blog on How to prepare for interviews when you don't know what to say

Step 3: Identify the behaviours and competencies to highlight

With your chosen example, think about what behaviours and skills it can demonstrate. This step goes deeper than step 1 - you're not just thinking about what the interview wants, but you're deciding how your story can show it.

for example, in a project where you worked with colleagues from different teams, you might want to demonstrate:

• Inclusivity / awareness: noticing quieter voices and encouraging them to contribute

• Communication / listening: summarising points, asking clarifying questions, checking understanding across the team

• Decision-making / problem-solving: balancing different priorities and helping the team to reach a solution

• Professionalism / leadership: keeping the team aligned, managing disagreements/conflicts and keeping the project on track

• Alignment with company values: demonstrating behaviours that reflect what the organisation cares about, e.g., curiosity, integrity, respect, excellence, sustainability, diversity and inclusion

Step 4: Frame your answer using behaviour-focused language

In the blog I referenced in step 2, I explained the CARR (context, action, result, reflection) structure. As a starting point, frameworks like this are really useful. But it needs to go a bit deeper.

Used as a tick-box exercise, "I did this, then I spoke to that person, the result was this." is technically fine. But it doesn't show behaviours, judgement, or thinking behind the action.

So instead of, "I organised a meeting, spoke to the team, and we agreed on a solution"

You can frame it in a way that shows awareness and intentional behaviour,

"I noticed some team members weren't speaking up in meetings, so I made sure everyone had a chance to contribute. I did this by asking the quieter members for their thoughts in smaller groups or individually before we discussed as a full team. That way, everyone felt their ideas were heard and we could make a decision that balanced priorities from every department. I learned that actively creating space for different thinking and communication styles leads to better decisions."

In essence, this is the same example, but the language now shows awareness, inclusivity, and decision-making as well as actions.

You can highlight different behaviours depending on the point you want to make:

• Facilitation: I made sure everyone had a chance to contribute by going around the room and asking each person for their perspective before opening the discussion more widely.

• Adapting to different thinking styles: I made sure everyone could share by offering different ways to share ideas. We started by writing our ideas down, then those who wanted to share out loud could. I then summarised the key points so everyone could build on them.

• Encouraging quieter voices: I checked in individually with team members who hadn't spoken yet for their ideas or concerns.

• Balancing dominant voices: When a few people were dominating the discussion, I helped make space for others by summarising what had been said and inviting the quieter team members to add their thoughts. This made sure all voices were heard.

Step 5: show multiple behaviours in one answer

A strong interview doesn't just demonstrate one behaviour in each answer but it layers multiple in every answer so the interviewer has a richer picture of how you work. For example, thinking back to step 1, in a project with colleagues from different teams, as well as inclusivity, you can demonstrate:

• Problem-solving: how you balance different priorities and guide the team toward the best outcome

• Adaptability: how you adjust your approach depending on different personalities, working styles, or unexpected changes

• Emotional intelligence: how you pick up on team dynamics and respond appropriately

• Decision-making: how you make clear choices while considering different perspectives

• Leadership/ownership: how you take responsibility for keeping the project on track

• Collaboration: how you actively encourage participation and teamwork

Takeaway

So before you answer a question in a job interview, pause and ask yourself:

• What is this question really trying to assess?

• What behaviours and competencies are they looking for?

• How can I show how I work, the thinking behind my actions, and how my behaviours reflect the skills and values the organisation cares about

Answering with this in mind will help you naturally shift your language from "this is what I did" to "this is how I acted and why" and you can turn your story into a memorable, high-impact answer.

If you want support turning your examples into behaviour-focused and memorable answers, get in touch.

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