vlbrown-mzydt

[ This is part 2 of a two-part entry. Part 1 is entitled “Following Up After the Interview” ]

Following a promising interview a couple of months ago, I was disappointed to be told the Company would be moving forward with another candidate. However, I decided to ask for feedback from the interview in an attempt to turn a disappointing loss into a learning experience.

I was unprepared for the response I received. I was also surprised (and confused).

During the interview process we found you technically competent and
found your experience very relevant. The main issue was that most members
of the team felt that you needed direction and that would have to come from
a good manager. Our hiring manager is new to management and felt we might
be better served by someone with a bit more experience working independently.
It was a tough decision for us.

Run that by again? “A bit more experience working independently”? More than 22 years?
This is deeply scary because it’s so far from the truth.

They felt I needed direction? Where did they ever get that idea? Were we in the same interviews?

What is Direction?

Direction^* is an unfortunately ambiguous word with multiple definitions and many shades of meaning.

The only “direction” I need is the “bearing” or “objective” type. Specifically, I need a list of what needs to be done. I’ve been in situations where there was no clear “direction” of this kind (i.e., no defined objectives) and the only assignments I had were those I made up for myself. I admit that this is not my favorite situation to be in.

I do not believe this company has that particular problem.

I perform best when my work is done in support of other people, helping them to get their jobs done.
In the ideal situation, someone else will want or need the results of my work and believe those results to be important. If only I choose what is to be done, I must personally feel the work is valuable enough to defend. Thus, I can be entirely “self-directed”; however, my decided preference is to start from recommendations (at least) or specifications (at best) to define my assignments.

The “command and control” meaning of direction chafes on me. I work best with clients, not managers (and gods save me from “mentors”).
My talents, values, and strengths assessments all point to my working best when I can do so independently with minimal supervision and few meetings required.

Alternately, I need to be given the authority to make decisions on my own and create my own direction. What I need most is a full task list.

I definitely want to determine my objective, plan my trajectory, and chart my course.
I’ll be sure to share my viewpoint and will gladly listen to yours.
Your outlook may differ from my own.

I may ask for advice and I’ll certainly provide notification of any changes, problems, or milestones, along the way. Feel free to set guidelines.

But please, spare me the guidance, control, command,
and supervision aspects. I don’t need oversight.
I work better independently, with minimal, er, direction.

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^*In the paragraphs that follow, all emboldened words are all synonyms of “direction”