The trap underneath this: the Situation is the safe part — you’re just narrating facts, nothing you can be judged on yet. So under pressure people expand the bit that feels safest and rush the Action, which is the only part actually being assessed. Catching yourself going long on backstory is a decent real-time tell that you’re dodging the exposed bit.
Right. The Situation—and the Task and Results too—are only there to understand the Actions. The Actions are what allows the interviewer to predict the candidate's future performance on the job, but a story with only Actions would be odd and hard to interpret :)
This post touches a nerve and reflects a recent experience.
It’s been years since I went through big tech interviews.
At first, I was failing coding and system design interviews. It took weeks to get back into interview shape. It’s painful and requires daily practice.
More recently, I failed two final interview loops because of the behavioral interview, even after marathoning through the technical rounds. That hit even harder.
My most recent learnings:
1. Remember the vibe, not the details
I don’t remember the details of most presentations I’ve watched, but I remember how they made me feel.
2. Focus the situation on the problem.
Rather than setting up a lot of context, highlight what needed to be solved.
3. Spend time on results and learnings.
Everyone wants to hear about success and growth.
4. CARL > STAR.
If you’ve only heard of STAR, look up CARL.
5. Take a deep breath before every question.
You need to quiet the fight-or-flight response.
6. Oversell it.
Almost no one has perfectly smooth stories from problem to success. Unfortunately, you have to treat it more like an Instagram Reel than a long-form podcast.
7. Try to put yourself in the other person’s shoes.
They’re busy, they’re in meetings, and the interview means far less to them than it does to you.
---
Most importantly, take everything I said above with a grain of salt.
"They want to get an accurate sense of your abilities and experience, but won’t be able to, because they’re asleep." Haha epic!!
The trap underneath this: the Situation is the safe part — you’re just narrating facts, nothing you can be judged on yet. So under pressure people expand the bit that feels safest and rush the Action, which is the only part actually being assessed. Catching yourself going long on backstory is a decent real-time tell that you’re dodging the exposed bit.
I've realized I've got a thoroughness problem 😅 Thanks, Wes. Your articles are always useful!
100% agree!
Right. The Situation—and the Task and Results too—are only there to understand the Actions. The Actions are what allows the interviewer to predict the candidate's future performance on the job, but a story with only Actions would be odd and hard to interpret :)
This post touches a nerve and reflects a recent experience.
It’s been years since I went through big tech interviews.
At first, I was failing coding and system design interviews. It took weeks to get back into interview shape. It’s painful and requires daily practice.
More recently, I failed two final interview loops because of the behavioral interview, even after marathoning through the technical rounds. That hit even harder.
My most recent learnings:
1. Remember the vibe, not the details
I don’t remember the details of most presentations I’ve watched, but I remember how they made me feel.
2. Focus the situation on the problem.
Rather than setting up a lot of context, highlight what needed to be solved.
3. Spend time on results and learnings.
Everyone wants to hear about success and growth.
4. CARL > STAR.
If you’ve only heard of STAR, look up CARL.
5. Take a deep breath before every question.
You need to quiet the fight-or-flight response.
6. Oversell it.
Almost no one has perfectly smooth stories from problem to success. Unfortunately, you have to treat it more like an Instagram Reel than a long-form podcast.
7. Try to put yourself in the other person’s shoes.
They’re busy, they’re in meetings, and the interview means far less to them than it does to you.
---
Most importantly, take everything I said above with a grain of salt.