Frameworks for Crafting Interview Responses

🎯 Interview Tip: Stand Out with the STARE Framework 🎯 Interviews are all about storytelling—showing how your past experiences make you the perfect fit for the future role. To help job seekers tell their story more effectively, I created the STARE framework, a fresh twist on the classic STAR method. The difference? STARE goes beyond the what and how to include the why—your Emotion. Adding this element not only makes your answers more authentic but also highlights the deeper meaning behind your work and the impact it had on others. Here’s how it works: ✅ Situation: What challenge or context were you facing? ✅ Task: What was your responsibility or goal? ✅ Action: What steps did you take to address it? ✅ Result: What was the outcome? (Quantifiable if possible!) ✅ Emotion: Why did this matter to you? How did this work impact the people, team, or organization involved? For example, instead of ending your answer with, “…and we reduced costs by 20%,” add: “This mattered to me because it helped our team work more efficiently, reducing unnecessary stress and freeing up resources for more strategic initiatives. It was rewarding to see how this positively impacted our team’s morale and the business outcomes, ultimately reducing costs by 20%.” Emotion is where the magic happens. It connects your story to the larger purpose behind your work. It helps hiring managers understand not just what you’ve done, but why it mattered—to you and to others. Next time you prep for an interview, try using STARE to structure your responses. You might be surprised by how much more compelling your stories become! Have you tried the STAR method in interviews before? How do you feel about adding Emotion to the mix? Let’s discuss!

I've interviewed tens of thousands of candidates. The majority struggle with behavioral questions ("tell me about a time when..."). Here's my 4 step process for nailing these questions and getting your dream job: Interview questions will often explicitly or implicitly seek a specific example from your past history. When they do: 🤯 Use an actual example!!! Most candidates provide a "general" approach in response to behavioral questions (rather than a specific example). Interviewer asks "tell me about a time you were having difficulty with a colleague." Most candidates will say something like "when I'm dealing with conflict, I do X, Y, and Z" rather than "I was working with a colleague when this specific scenario occurred." The first response is not an example - it's a framework. The second response is an example. You need to give an example, and it needs to be specific. ⭐ Use the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) method when providing examples The STAR method is a simple way to bring structure to your response: - Situation: team, company, budget, anything material as backdrop - Task: what was expected out of you, and by whom - Action: what YOU actually did - Result: what happened as a result ("we hit our KPI") From the example question above - tell me about a disagreement with a colleague - it'd be smart to give context about your relationship with the person, if you were 1:1 or in a meeting, if it was over zoom or in person - all of this context is applicable to understanding how a disagreement unfolded. LinkedIn wrote a whole page on this - check it out here: https://lnkd.in/gDpuMWMV 🍒 Frameworks are the "cherry on top" You might have a "framework" for the topic (ex: dealing with conflict, building relationships, goal setting, etc.). You can mention the framework either throughout your answer (harder), or at end of your answer (easier): eg: "on the topic of goals - [long STAR method example] - this example is a good illustration of my general goal setting approach, which is is A -> B -> C" Avoid sharing JUST the framework ("my general goal setting approach is A -> B -> C"), or leading with the framework before providing the example. 🔁 Repeat Back & Summarize Re-state their question at the end of your answer. "You asked X." Then provide back a VERY brief summary of your answer. Directly ask if you've provided the context they are looking for. By asking the question, you are reminding them as much as you are reminding yourself. You might find that you've wandered and that your story did not answer their question. If it hasn't, ask if you can provide another example, or at least acknowledge that you drifted off topic. ------------------------------------------------ 👋 Follow me (Jordan Mazer) and Jordan Carver for more tips just like this, and join the a16z speedrun talent network here: >>> https://lnkd.in/gfgRTgrm <<<

I don't like the STAR interview method, so I'll give you an alternative: (please steal it if you're interviewing) As a candidate, I always found STAR too vague. - What should "the situation" include? - What is the "task" if I proposed the project? - What's actually the best way to set up my story? It left me with more questions than answers. I used the PARADE method instead: P - the primary Problem A - Anticipated consequence of not solving it R - your Role in solving it A - Actions you took to solve it D - Decision-making rationale you used E - End results (including learnings) This comes from consulting case interview prep legend Victor Cheng, who designed it because consultants are tasked with solving organizational problems. But ALL roles exist to solve company problems... the candidate who shows they can solve the company's problems better than anyone else gets the offer. This framework highlights the problem you solved, why it was important, and your thought process — not just what you did. The context of your stories won't transfer into a new role, but the way you think will. Show that off, baby! Once I wrote my 5-8 best career stories into this framework and practiced them often, I started slaying interviews. I never got stressed by "Tell Me About A Time" again. Have you seen this framework before? Few people have. P.S. Repost ♻️ if this could help more job seekers in your network turn interviews to offers.