On the Difficulties Being Interviewed

I was recently a guest on the Reaktor Podcast Fork, Pull, Merge, Push, giving my thoughts on being a sysadmin. This is the second time i’ve been interviewed in recent times, and i can tell you that it’s a whole ‘nother beast from any other forms of communication. You might think talking with your colleagues —which it in all essence was— would prepare you for being interviewed by your colleagues, but boy, it was a rollercoaster. Yes, some things went alright, whereas some went down the can, and back again.

I tried to keep my sentences short and my answers concise (which is a challenge itself for me!) but when coming to a full stop, i wasn’t sure i had answered well enough or if i should go back and clarify. There is a saying in Finnish that clarifying things will only make it worse, so i didn’t. I was stumbling and mispronouncing words. There were times i got so enthused i forgot the question i was answering. At times, it felt disastrous, and i hope the editor will do a merciful job in cutting my ramblings into something coherent.

You might think my historical background in radio doing interviews would have prepared me, but no. Thinking of what to ask is not the same as answering. Sure, i knew that if i stumbled on words, it’s easier for the editor if i pause briefly, then rewind and say the whole sentence again, because it’s really tedious to edit stuff within sentences (for added points, try to say the sentence with the same tone as you just stumbled with, so that the edit will sound more natural).

Anyways. From a sample size of N=2, i can tell you that being interviewed is a skill. Like any other skill, it requires preparation and practice to master. Or that’s what i assume, as i had neither. And with that insight, i have discovered another skill i don’t have … yet! I’m not sure exactly how to fix it, but if you’d like practice your interviewing skills, we could help each other improve :)