For the last two classes of Teknik Wawancara, our lessons have consisted of role-playing tasks, in which we take turns to act as observers, interviewers, and interviewees. It was a task I knew early on in the semester we had to do, and I was actually quite excited about it, seeing as it’s not your average class-activity, and even sounds a lot of fun.
The night before our first role-playing class, I found myself in a panic. What if I ran out of questions before the alotted time? What if I couldn’t ask the questions in the theoretically correct ways? What if I stuttered a lot? What if my “interviewee” turned out to be an uncooperative classmate who wouldn’t make my task as an interviewer easier? Needless to say, I had a somewhat restless night. I fell asleep reciting the questions I would ask the next day in my head, and woke up with the questions still playing in my mind. I prayed to the universe and all higher beings to help me please not screw up.
The first role I got to play was as an observer. I got to sit behind a one-way mirror, and listen through headphones what the “interviewer” and “interviewee” said. In a strange way I had a lot of fun doing it; I felt as if I had a taste of what I could be doing as a future psychologist, or researcher. It also helped calm my nerves a lot as I got to watch my friends role-play as interviewer and interviewee, as it acquainted me with what to expect when it is my turn to become the interviewer. It also helped that my friend who played the interviewer was very good, and I took note and reminded myself to follow some of her examples. For example, she spoke in a very calm and soothing tone, with a voice that invited you to trust her with all your worries, and conveyed how much she tries to empathize with you. I was thoroughly impressed, and realized just how much the tone of one's voice can make all the difference. This was, of course, already discussed in class, but seeing it applied in real life only solidified how very true it is.
After my time as the observer, I felt much calmer, though I was still quite nervous. The next role I got to play was as the interviewee, and that was a lot of fun. I was told to pretend to be a high school student who had been caught having sexual intercourse in the school bathroom. I tried to help my “interviewer” by making up crazy stories and alternate lives and taking my sweet time talking, so that she wouldn’t run out of questions and can manage to conduct a 10-minute interviewer, which was the minimum time given to us as interviewers.
As I pretended to be the interviewee, I was able to appreciate what it must feel like to be a client. I realized how intimidating it can be to reveal all your thoughts and feelings and memories to an essentially complete stranger. It was no wonder, I thought, that it takes painstaking effort to draw out stories from clients, especially when they have gone through something very uncomfortable to talk about. I then realized how very true it is that it is crucial we build good rapport with our client. In order to help our client open up to us, a warm, comfortable, and trustworthy environment is essential; without it our client might be reluctant to discuss her problems, and that would hinder in our effort to help them with their troubles.
My perspective as a client helped me tremendously in thinking of how I can be a better interviewer. For example, when I found myself having a hard time opening up and telling my story, I started thinking of what I wished the interviewer would and would not do to make me feel more comfortable and trust her enough to tell my stories....and that's when I realized that I should do those exact things I wished when I myself am playing the role of the interviewer. For example, I realized that it's better as an interviewer to really give time for the interviewees to warm up to them, and not ask question after question in rapid succession, and just give time to the interviewee to really think their answers through, and decide what they want to say. I came out of that role-play feeling much better, as I was able to gain new ideas and perspectives on how to be a better interviewer, though a little of the nerves still stayed with me.
As I pretended to be the interviewee, I was able to appreciate what it must feel like to be a client. I realized how intimidating it can be to reveal all your thoughts and feelings and memories to an essentially complete stranger. It was no wonder, I thought, that it takes painstaking effort to draw out stories from clients, especially when they have gone through something very uncomfortable to talk about. I then realized how very true it is that it is crucial we build good rapport with our client. In order to help our client open up to us, a warm, comfortable, and trustworthy environment is essential; without it our client might be reluctant to discuss her problems, and that would hinder in our effort to help them with their troubles.
My perspective as a client helped me tremendously in thinking of how I can be a better interviewer. For example, when I found myself having a hard time opening up and telling my story, I started thinking of what I wished the interviewer would and would not do to make me feel more comfortable and trust her enough to tell my stories....and that's when I realized that I should do those exact things I wished when I myself am playing the role of the interviewer. For example, I realized that it's better as an interviewer to really give time for the interviewees to warm up to them, and not ask question after question in rapid succession, and just give time to the interviewee to really think their answers through, and decide what they want to say. I came out of that role-play feeling much better, as I was able to gain new ideas and perspectives on how to be a better interviewer, though a little of the nerves still stayed with me.
Finally, when it was my time to play the interviewer, I realized that I had read my interview guide so many times and recited the questions in my head endlessly, that I didn’t even need to look at my interview guide for help as I asked questions after questions to my “client”. I then realized how very true it is when our lecturer, Bu Henny, stressed many times to learn your interview guide, as it will help you conduct a smoother interview. Practice indeed makes perfect, my friends. (If nothing else, rote memorization makes a pretty good impression of perfect).
I also made a conscious effort to put into practice all the things I’ve learned in class about what makes a skilled interviewer, and how to conduct a good interview, and I was quite confident that I managed to pull it off. I remembered to nod a lot, stay silent at times to allow my client time to really say everything they need to say. I avoided the words "kenapa" or "mengapa" as if they were the strict and unforgiving go-to-jail cards.
I felt my anxiety and nerves slowly dissipate as the interview went on, as I grew more and more confident in myself (which is, by the way, one of the best feelings ever). I was also lucky that a friend of mine was chosen to be my interviewee, and she was so helpful in truly embodying her role as a sleep-depraved student who have been witnessing her parents fight frequently lately as she answered my questions. She even pretended to yawn many times during our interview! That's how committed she was. Before I knew it, my 10 minutes was up, and I hadn't even asked all the questions I had prepared (that's a good thing, by the way--I was really worried I'd run out of questions before my 10 minutes was due). I walked out of the interview room with a huge smile and hugged my "interviewee" and squealed my thanks. A classmate who observed my interview then told me that I had forgotten to ask permission from my interviewee to record the interview; instead I had just started recording as soon as I entered the interview room. I realized that she was right, and I felt a bit disappointed in myself. That experience has now reminded me to always ask permission to record first. But the immense relief that I hadn't made any major mistakes in my interview overrode the unfortunate news, and I found myself overall feeling quite satisfied with how I did.
For my second turn as the interviewer, I was feeling a lot less nervous than I had before my first turn. I was very lucky again that I was paired with another friend as my interviewee, and she was also helpful in portraying a believable sexually harassed employee, giving out long and varied answers which allowed me to practice my interviewing techniques, such as probing or paraphrasing. I also learned from my previous mistake and made sure I asked my "client" for her permission before I began recording the interview. I exited the room on my second time as an interviewer feeling again very confident and quite pleased with myself. Most of all, I felt a huge sense of relief that I had managed to gone through 2 out of 3 role-playing tasks without any critical errors or failure.
Two weeks later, it was time for our final TekWan class, in which we were to role play as a clinical psychologist. By this time, I was feeling much, much more calm that I had before my first ever role-playing class. As I conducted my third and final interview, I was almost amazed at how much calmer I was feeling, all simply because I was more acquainted with the process and situation. I felt like I had much more control of the situation, and more confident that I could do this, I can conduct a good interview because I'd managed to do it before.
This was when I realized how very true it is that "jam terbang" really does make all the difference. You can only become better at something, like interviewing, by constantly practicing and doing it over and over again. This really put my mind to ease, as it made me realize that I can always work on becoming a better interviewer, and that I wouldn't always be stuck at this beginner's capabilities. Previous to this realization, I had always admired professional psychologists I met or my lecturers when they recounted stories of their encounters with clients, and the brilliant ways with which they handled their clients. I always thought to myself, "gosh, how on earth did they come up with those genius ideas on how to handle their client?? How have they managed to be such skilled therapists and interviewers?? They're so clever! I didn't think of those solutions....I probably wouldn't be a very good psychologist. I'm not as clever or creative as they are! I could never be like them." But now I realize that those brilliant and creative ideas can come with a lot of practice and experience in dealing with various different situations. There is always room for improvement, as long as we're willing to put the time and effort into it.
On that positive note, I will now end my already must-too-long post. I'd like to thank Bu Henny and Ci Tasya, who have been such kind, supportive, understanding, and all-around awesome lecturers that they are. They explain the class materials in ways that made it easy to understand, and shared stories after stories of their experiences, which were nothing but helpful and even inspirational. They've pushed us to think critically and creatively, a feat that not many teachers attempt. They put up with me when I pestered them with questions after questions about assignments (especially Ci Tasya....if you're reading this Ci, makasih seribu kali lagi ya! Hehehheee...) I hope they've had a lot of fun in teaching our class, as I had had fun attending them.
Hopefully I'll be able to attend other classes with them as my lecturers (thought not on the same subjects, please). And here's to a successful final exam to everyone :D
I also made a conscious effort to put into practice all the things I’ve learned in class about what makes a skilled interviewer, and how to conduct a good interview, and I was quite confident that I managed to pull it off. I remembered to nod a lot, stay silent at times to allow my client time to really say everything they need to say. I avoided the words "kenapa" or "mengapa" as if they were the strict and unforgiving go-to-jail cards.
I felt my anxiety and nerves slowly dissipate as the interview went on, as I grew more and more confident in myself (which is, by the way, one of the best feelings ever). I was also lucky that a friend of mine was chosen to be my interviewee, and she was so helpful in truly embodying her role as a sleep-depraved student who have been witnessing her parents fight frequently lately as she answered my questions. She even pretended to yawn many times during our interview! That's how committed she was. Before I knew it, my 10 minutes was up, and I hadn't even asked all the questions I had prepared (that's a good thing, by the way--I was really worried I'd run out of questions before my 10 minutes was due). I walked out of the interview room with a huge smile and hugged my "interviewee" and squealed my thanks. A classmate who observed my interview then told me that I had forgotten to ask permission from my interviewee to record the interview; instead I had just started recording as soon as I entered the interview room. I realized that she was right, and I felt a bit disappointed in myself. That experience has now reminded me to always ask permission to record first. But the immense relief that I hadn't made any major mistakes in my interview overrode the unfortunate news, and I found myself overall feeling quite satisfied with how I did.
For my second turn as the interviewer, I was feeling a lot less nervous than I had before my first turn. I was very lucky again that I was paired with another friend as my interviewee, and she was also helpful in portraying a believable sexually harassed employee, giving out long and varied answers which allowed me to practice my interviewing techniques, such as probing or paraphrasing. I also learned from my previous mistake and made sure I asked my "client" for her permission before I began recording the interview. I exited the room on my second time as an interviewer feeling again very confident and quite pleased with myself. Most of all, I felt a huge sense of relief that I had managed to gone through 2 out of 3 role-playing tasks without any critical errors or failure.
Two weeks later, it was time for our final TekWan class, in which we were to role play as a clinical psychologist. By this time, I was feeling much, much more calm that I had before my first ever role-playing class. As I conducted my third and final interview, I was almost amazed at how much calmer I was feeling, all simply because I was more acquainted with the process and situation. I felt like I had much more control of the situation, and more confident that I could do this, I can conduct a good interview because I'd managed to do it before.
This was when I realized how very true it is that "jam terbang" really does make all the difference. You can only become better at something, like interviewing, by constantly practicing and doing it over and over again. This really put my mind to ease, as it made me realize that I can always work on becoming a better interviewer, and that I wouldn't always be stuck at this beginner's capabilities. Previous to this realization, I had always admired professional psychologists I met or my lecturers when they recounted stories of their encounters with clients, and the brilliant ways with which they handled their clients. I always thought to myself, "gosh, how on earth did they come up with those genius ideas on how to handle their client?? How have they managed to be such skilled therapists and interviewers?? They're so clever! I didn't think of those solutions....I probably wouldn't be a very good psychologist. I'm not as clever or creative as they are! I could never be like them." But now I realize that those brilliant and creative ideas can come with a lot of practice and experience in dealing with various different situations. There is always room for improvement, as long as we're willing to put the time and effort into it.
On that positive note, I will now end my already must-too-long post. I'd like to thank Bu Henny and Ci Tasya, who have been such kind, supportive, understanding, and all-around awesome lecturers that they are. They explain the class materials in ways that made it easy to understand, and shared stories after stories of their experiences, which were nothing but helpful and even inspirational. They've pushed us to think critically and creatively, a feat that not many teachers attempt. They put up with me when I pestered them with questions after questions about assignments (especially Ci Tasya....if you're reading this Ci, makasih seribu kali lagi ya! Hehehheee...) I hope they've had a lot of fun in teaching our class, as I had had fun attending them.
Hopefully I'll be able to attend other classes with them as my lecturers (thought not on the same subjects, please). And here's to a successful final exam to everyone :D
29 Mei 2014
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