Introduction
There are many ways in which Dora could use in persuading the managers that she is fit for the position offered by the organization. When she went for the interview, she failed to persuade the managers of her ability to work and become the organization’s asset. From Mortensen’s description, “Persuasion is the process of changing or reforming attitudes, beliefs, opinions, or behaviors toward a predetermined outcome through voluntary compliance (Mortensen, 2004). Here, Dora should have gone ahead to persuade the managers of her capabilities as an individual and personal level instead of focusing on the educational qualifications which are evident in her papers. “I desire to exercise my faith in the difficult points, for to credit ordinary and visible objects is not faith but persuasion.”
Evaluation
Confidence is vital for anyone going for an interview. If one is not confident, then their esteem is low making it difficult to proof to the interviewers one’s worth. “The phenomenon of a message having more impact on attitude change after a long delay than when it is first heard is known as the sleeper effect (Kelman & Hovland, 1953).” Dora lacks the confidence required from interviewee.
Acting in a too formal manner also makes it difficult for the managers to know her on a personal level and identify her strengths as an individual. She puts too much focus on her academics and forgets to build on her social skills. “Interpersonal communication is humanity’s most important characteristic and its greatest accomplishment.” By acting all formal, she puts in the image that she is closed up and is too serious with her work. “Although other variables are important, including a communicator’s perceived attractiveness and power, credibility is the most critical variable affecting the ability to persuade (Bordens, 2000).” Communication is a key feature in any situation. The managers expected her to open up and give them more about her life that would have given them a better understanding of her. She would have made them understand that she is credible if she opened up about her life and changed their overall view about her life.
Best solution
The expectations of any employer lies on some specific characteristics they want form the employees. The mangers have a clear picture of who they want in the organization. Dora had spent so much time reading books and forgot that it is vital for her to go out and interact with others in order to gain essential survival skills. However, she should have covered this aspect by changing the position of the managers to see things from her point of view. By dressing in a semiformal way, she would have given the impression that she is open for anything and this would in turn shift the situation from the tense one evident during the interview. By having information about the requirements and the type of job being offered, Dora would have had a good time coming up with arguments that would help her navigate the waters during the interview. “Instead, it involves careful preparation, the proper framing of arguments, the presentation of vivid supporting evidence, and the effort to find the correct emotional match with your audience (Spears, 2009). Doing research on the job expectations and the dress codes would have gone a long way in helping her go through the interview successfully.
The other way she could have persuaded the mangers of her credibility and eligibility of her qualification for the post was by examining and understanding the managers and the perception they have of their successful candidate. In this case, the managers’ expectations should have been the perfect guidance for Dona once she entered the room. From the case study given above, the managers wanted someone with good communication skills who could open up about their life and allow conversations to flow freely. “Instead, examining and understanding the other person's perceptions is core to successful persuasion”, (Spears, 2009). This means that she should have paid more attention to the preparation and planning aspect of the interview. Instead of relaxing and waiting for the interview day with hope of remaining calm and relaxed, she should have done some research about the organization, the kind of work and requirements for a successful candidate. “The initial stages of persuasion involve discovery, preparation, and dialogue.”
Conclusion
For Dora, her low self-confidence made it difficult to relate to the managers in a way that would have given her the job she wanted. “Aristotle believed that audiences could be persuaded if they perceived a speaker as credible (Mortensen 2004). She was closed and even thought it was her English that made it difficult for her to relate well with the managers. “Persuasion is the resource of the feeble and the feeble can seldom persuade.” Having confidence helps one ask questions and ask for the mangers to repeat questions. “Attributional confidence will correlate positively with interpersonal attraction (Clatterbuck, 1979).
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