Just Jot It Down
If you’re a fast typist, you probably reach for your computer instead of a pen when you need to take notes.
Not so fast!
Leaving aside the fact that an open computer is a temptation to browse the wide world of distractions, studies have shown that hand-writing notes stimulates learning comprehension in a way that typing doesn’t. “The act of typing effectively turns the note-taker into a transcription zombie,” as one Dartmouth College professor puts it. Typists get a lot down, but they absorb and remember very little.
Princeton and UCLA researchers confirm that for retention of material, “the pen is mightier than the keyboard.” When students are armed with laptops, their “tendency to transcribe lectures verbatim rather than processing information and reframing it in their own words is detrimental to learning.”
Writing is slower than typing, forcing you to interpret content and make a selection of what is most important. Putting pen to paper encourages critical thinking, making the material stick in the memory better than the “shallower processing” power of auto-pilot typing.
Source: Psychological Science Journal, January 2014.
The Power of Persuasion
Persuasion is a skill that can help you nail a job interview. While it comes naturally to a lucky few, others have to work at it! Persuasive people are, first and foremost, good listeners. They exude confidence (but not arrogance!), and express honesty and level-headedness.
Ken Sundheim, CEO of New York City-based recruiting firm KAS Placement, recommends practicing three things before a job interview:
- Establishing rapport with the interviewer. Hone in on your interviewer’s point of view and pick up on their feelings. If they’re excited about something, share in that excitement.
- Integrating compelling verbiage. Don’t speak in long, convoluted sentences and avoid using clichés. Be direct.
- Avoiding patterns of speech that weaken your persuasive ability — those little “kinda,” “sorta,” “you know,” and “I think” qualifiers that unconsciously slip into your speech.
Above all, give your conversation partner — job interviewer or anyone else — your undivided attention. To speak the language of persuasion, you first must listen.
Source: Personal Branding Blog, http://personalbrandingblog.com/the-language-of-persuasive-interviewers/
