Same Old Same Old

I woke this morning to a plea from my friend Kirti to give her some inputs for a PCom interview she had. And I sent her a message back with the same old..same old advice we have been given in different words by different people.....over the ages.......as far as interviewing advice is concerned.

Dress neat.

Stand straight. Sit straight.

Smile.

Be Polite.

Highlight your achievements.

Same old questions. Same old answers.

Why can't it be different?

Why can't I talk of my first lesson in team functioning which I learnt at 7 during the Dahi Handi festival? Why can't I talk of the real reason of why HR fascinates me (which actually got me rejected from an interview) rather than the same old, same old "HR is an emerging field....emerging as a business partner, so lots of oppportunities in a growing field....etc etc."

My friend has an excellent outlook towards this, which I realised is quite true after being on the other side of the table for a mock interview yesterday. All interviews are role-plays. The interviewer is a director and you are an actor following his script. Give a perfect take and you are in.

Which brings me to my original question: what are we recruiting for? Averages? Typicals? Standards? Those who fit in?

What about those who are unique? Who are genuinely creative? Who'd rather stand out than fit in and still give the best outputs?

And then we complain of lack of innovative practices and leaders.....