Stuart Cubbon, Jr. is a writer and special situations consultant based out of Northern New Jersey. He is currently a student in the M.S. program in Strategic Communication.
Imposter syndrome is the feeling that you aren’t good enough to be in a particular role. How do you get rid of it? That’s an undoubtedly complex question. For me, though, the answer was simple — diet orange soda.
Years ago, I was in New York City, midway through a job interview with a prominent consulting firm. I had recently shut down my 18-month-old startup and, quite frankly, my confidence had taken a blow.
In-person consulting interviews are all about “fit”. Hard skills like financial modeling and analysis get tested with at-home case studies. Firms bring you in the door to figure out how well you might fit with the team. Can you spend 70-hour-weeks on the road together without driving each other crazy? Fit is important. But on this particular day, fit was my enemy in every sense of the word.
In-person consulting interviews are all about 'fit'."
I hadn’t properly field-tested my new suit before coming in, and the intense perspiration caused by its slim-cut fit only magnified the struggle to connect with the first two interviewers. Fifteen minutes of awkward chit-chat into the third session, the interviewer — a senior HR manager — mercifully suggested a break.
In the kitchen, I snagged a diet orange soda then jabbed at the ice dispenser. Rather than beautiful chunks of sub-32-degree relief, it dispensed...nothing. I tried again...nada. So I did the only thing a non-mechanically inclined person can do — smacked the machine with the unopened can.
Instantaneously, the lack of ice was no longer my biggest problem. The impact had punctured the can, and as I closed my eyes against the sudsy orange torrent, the interview became a fourth-grade science experiment on rocket propulsion.
At that point, I felt two emotions. The first...sticky. And if you don’t think sticky can be an emotion, consider yourself lucky.
But more importantly, for the first time since arriving, I felt calm.
And if you don’t think sticky can be an emotion, consider yourself lucky."
The HR Manager asked if I wanted to reschedule. “Of course not,” I blurted. Why would I leave? I was supposed to be there, after all. Rather than a distraction, the ruined suit became a much-needed ice breaker. The remaining sessions flew by as the interviewers and I bonded over their own embarrassing stories.
The next morning, I received an email from the HR manager. “You made quite an impression yesterday — we’re glad you stayed.” A few days later, she followed up with a job offer.
The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of any other person or entity.
