The interview mistake even Senior Leaders make (and how to avoid it)

Hey reader,

You’ve built an incredible career: years of getting great performance reviews, leading teams, and driving revenue. But when it’s time to explain it all in an interview, does it ever feel... overwhelming?

How do you condense 15+ years of wins, lessons, and challenges into a few minutes without losing your interviewers?

This is exactly what Sarah, a Senior Sales Manager with 18 years in Tech, struggled with before we started working together. She knew her experience was strong, but her delivery wasn’t landing.

With the right approach, you can turn your incredible experience into interview power stories. Let me show you how.

Too much, too fast

When Sarah started describing her experience, she felt like she had to cover everything.

• The time she turned around an underperforming team.

• The big restructures she led.

• The new region she opened and hired an entire sales team for.

• The fact that she still likes to get her feet wet and close deals every so often.

But instead of showing her value, she was overwhelming her interviewers. Her stories blurred together, and her impact got lost in the noise.

It’s time to shift your mindset from wanting to prove you’ve done it all to proving you’re the perfect fit for the role you’re interviewing for.

Here’s how I helped Sarah refocus her story using the Winning Trio framework, and how you can do the same.

The Winning Trio framework

The framework is simple: pick 3 stories that highlight your most relevant strengths and experience for the role.

1. Your strategic impact
Choose a moment where your actions solved a high-priority issue. For Sarah, this was about helping her team sell a complex new product to their top-tier clients by breaking down the value proposition into messaging that was ready to send out to clients right away.

Her results? A 25% increase in revenue within the first quarter of the product launch.

2. Your leadership in action
This is where Sarah showed her ability to lead and inspire. She told the story of re-aligning her team during a tough quarter, turning around low morale, and finishing the year 115% to goal.

3. Your results-driven approach
Numbers speak louder than words. Sarah focused on her measurable successes, like implementing a streamlined deal review process that reduced close times by 20%.

The key to acing your own stories

The key is tailoring your stories to your audience.

Before her next interview, Sarah researched the company’s biggest challenges and matched her stories to what mattered most to them. She went in ready to show:

• How her messaging strategy could help their sales team handle an upcoming product launch.

• How her leadership style aligned with their culture of collaboration and accountability.

• How her track record of driving results would directly impact their bottom line.

By focusing on their needs, she made herself the clear solution, and it worked.

Sarah walked into her next interview with clarity, confidence, and focus. Instead of rambling through her entire CV, she told 3 clear and impactful stories.

Her interviewers leaned in, loved her examples, and she ended up landing the role AND a 25% salary increase.

Your turn

What stories from your career show your strategic impact, leadership, and results?

If you’re ready to take control of your career narrative, there’s never been a better time to join my Tech Career Catalyst Program.

Until 31 May, you can join with €650 OFF by using the promotion code FRIENDS650 at checkout.

Have questions? I’m here to help! Just hit reply to this email, and I’ll personally answer any questions you have about the program or your next career step.

This is the last cohort of 2025, don’t miss your chance to join!

Let’s make your next career move the best one yet.

Talk to you soon,

Jenn

When you're ready, there are 2 ways you can currently work with me.

• Ready to land your next role in Tech with community support? Join the Tech Career Catalyst​ for the last cohort of 2025. We start on 16 June, and I’m offering € 650 OFF the program investment until 31 May (use promotion code FRIENDS650 when checking out).

• Want 1:1 support to land your next role in Tech? Book a 1:1 Career Boost Call