Transcript
Ted Seides (0:00)
Foreign this what ted's Thinking the Sydney Sweeney Interview Open Ended Questions and the Pregnant Pause Breaks down a recent viral video to highlight three important interviewing techniques. The interviewing module of Capital Allocators University begins with the why behind manager interviews? The goal of an interview is to gather information and learn so the Allocator can move the investment process forward. A well run interview creates the groundwork for better investment decisions, deepens relationships with managers, and builds a reputation as a thoughtful, desirable partner in a competitive market. In contrast, you can't learn much if you try to prove how smart you are or or steer others towards agreeing with your point of view. It sounds obvious, but it happens all the time. I recently came across a poor interview that illustrates the power of three timeless interviewing open ended questions, short questions, and pregnant pauses. Each is an essential tool for anyone looking to conduct revealing interviews. Here's the setup. Three months ago American Eagle launched an ad with the tagline Sydney Sweeney has great genes. The pun on jeans with a J and jeans with a G sparked both attention and controversy. While the campaign was commercially successful, some critics inferred an undertone of white supremacy in the mixed metaphor. Last week a GQ journalist asked Sydney about it. Here's a 27 second clip from the exchange.
GQ Journalist (1:47)
The criticism of the content which was basically that maybe specifically in this political climate, like white people shouldn't joke about genetic superiority. Like that was kind of like the criticism broadly speaking. And since you are talking about this, I just wanted to give you an opportunity to talk about that specifically. I think that when I I have an issue that I want to speak about, people will hear.
Ted Seides (2:14)
In the interviewing module of Capital Allocators University, I share a slide on tips for asking good questions. It includes openers and labels, avoiding compound questions, and the Columbo question. Let's tackle openers. You can learn more about labels compound questions in Columbo when we bring Capital Allocators University online next year. Great questions start with how, what or why? These words invite the interviewee to expand. So let's have another listen to the interviewer's question.
GQ Journalist (2:49)
The criticism of the content which was basically that maybe specifically in this political climate like white people shouldn't joke about genetic superiority. Like that was kind of like the criticism, broadly speaking. And since you are talking about this, I just wanted to give you an opportunity to talk about that specifically.