prepare a 3 min presentation telling us something about you you think we should know

DiscoStu

fob said:

I sat in on a round of interviews where the applicants were asked to do this - no time limit though. Far and away the best one was a guy who demonstrated how to wire a plug. A little bit of history (why we have three pins, why there's a thin coating partially covering the safety-pin etc.), a quality presentation poster and a live demonstration all went to making him stand out on the day.

Did he get the job though? 

VimFuego

yup phil, the subject I thought of was playing in a community orchestra. It's something about me they don't know, plus it teaches/encourages skills etc that would be useful for the job.

TheBigDipper

Telling people what you can do in answer to a question at an interview isn't the same as demonstrating you can actually do it. 

Everything you do in life is a presentation in some form or another. I once sent a team of office-based customer support staff on a presentation skills course. Mainly because I thought they were all great and capable of much more, but they preferred to support each other at staying within their comfort zones. They came back rather enthused (which made me feel fantastic) - one of them explaining to me how they were "presenting" when they talked a customer through a technical problem over the phone. And they were right.

So, if your job will involve being in front of NT members/customers - and even car park assistants do that at the NT - then it's understandable they'd like to get an idea what you're like at being in front of strangers and explaining things. Don't think it's about selling yourself so you're the person they want to work with. That's the last thing they'll think about - it's "can you do the job"? 

Sporky

Phil_aka_Pip said:

Sporky said:

Probably something that demonstrates you'd be great at the job. 

That's exactly what everyone else will do. Same as writing "I am hard-working and conscientious" on the Personal Profile dept of the cv. It's meaningless BLX and won't differentiate from the rest of the applicants.

Are you suggesting he should present something that demonstrates that he wouldn't be great at the job?

I didn't suggest a boring CV buzzword speech, but as it's part of a job interview there should be consideration as to what impression the presentation will give. It's an opportunity (if a rather tired one) to set yourself apart. The community orchestra idea of Vim's is excellent - it demonstrates outside interest but can very easily be made a way of illustrating useful edge skills.

Phil_aka_Pip

@Sporky ; no, .... and yes, Vim's idea is a good one

fob

DiscoStu said:

fob said:

I sat in on a round of interviews where the applicants were asked to do this - no time limit though. Far and away the best one was a guy who demonstrated how to wire a plug. A little bit of history (why we have three pins, why there's a thin coating partially covering the safety-pin etc.), a quality presentation poster and a live demonstration all went to making him stand out on the day.

Did he get the job though? 

He did.

Fretwired

Being serious for a moment  a friend of mine does tree work for the National Trust .. here's his website ..

http://www.wilsontreesurveys.co.uk/

Arborists are two a penny.  He got the work because he was passionate about the countryside, protecting the environment and trees. A bit of passion for what you do goes a long way. Can be the difference between someone who just wants a job to someone who can add value to an organisation.

VimFuego

as it happens I do really buy into what the NT do, though oddly enough my experiences while working for them before was that not many of the staff do. They say they do, but don't always act it. They often act high handed and dictatorial to people who may use the facilities. They forget they hold the assets in trust, for the public.

I may keep that bit to myself during the interview.

Sporky

I used to get a lot of suspicious glares when I presented my life membership card - my dear old mum bought me it when I was only 5, so it's one of the ancient leather-wrapped ones.

The new card isn't nearly as nice an object, but it does make life easier.

Roland

How about a useful presentation:

chillidoggy

Don't forget to dress properly. I suggest leaving the cloak and scythe at home, at least just for the interview.

57Deluxe

that putting parking meters in a small country pull-in parking spot that was until recently owned by the council and thus all of us, and that  the rates are skewed against regular dog walkers - £15 day ~ 50p half hour of us is criminal extortion...

Ref Frensham Small Pond

VimFuego

57Deluxe said:

that putting parking meters in a small country pull-in parking spot that was until recently owned by the council and thus all of us, and that  the rates are skewed against regular dog walkers - £15 day ~ 50p half hour of us is criminal extortion...

Ref Frensham Small Pond

I could bring that up at the interview, but honestly it may harm my chances.

ESBlonde

How to properly sharpen hand tools and care for the wooden shafts.
Plenty of yootoob vids by woodworkers etc. who are anal about diamond stones, then polishing and honing on a leather strop to shave with an axe kind of thing, others talk of linseen oil on the shaft of an axe (having removed all the factory 'varnish') to give a grippy, durable maintainable life long tool.
You could pull out a small bag and hone a hedging tool, try to resist slicing the flesh of te interviewer this time though!

stickyfiddle

Presumably they're just looking for evidence that you can communicate clearly and effectively when you know the topic inside well. 3 minutes is easy if you can come up with any topic you're well informed about, and it's a good way to demonstrate that you're a reasonably well rounded human being and not just a nutter with his own set of secateurs (no offence to any in-house nutters..)

The orchestra thing sounds perfect.

axisus

I'd do it through the medium of dance. 

Bygone_Tones

have you considered doing it through the medium of dance?

VimFuego

I won't lie, the thought of doing a 3 minute really crap mime does appeal. If they're gonna take the piss out of me, I'll take it back out of them

Phil_aka_Pip

VimFuego said:

I won't lie, the thought of doing a 3 minute really crap mime does appeal. If they're gonna take the piss out of me, I'll take it back out of them

Sound charades, a la ISIHAC?

munckee

VimFuego said:

I won't lie, the thought of doing a 3 minute really crap mime does appeal. If they're gonna take the piss out of me, I'll take it back out of them

Why don't you do a presentation of the ways of disposing of bodies, reference the pig quote from snatch etc with diagrams.