Yesterday, I highlighted the importance of assessing a candidate’s “self-awareness” during an interview.
An individual’s “awareness of others” is equally important, but it’s more difficult to detect.
Again, Dave Mashburn gives us some help on how to uncover this trait during an interview:
To access a candidate’s awareness of others, start by asking:
a. Can you give me some examples when you detected (through empathy or feeling) what someone else needed without them telling you directly?
Then change your line of questioning by asking:
b. How often do you seek out advice and input from others?
Follow-up with: Do you find it difficult to ask for help?
Being emotionally attuned to others is what causes us to recognize their wants, needs, and desires.
And awareness of others often goes hand in hand with an awareness of needing help from others.