Interview

The Gorse Fox was working from home. In his calendar lurked an appointment. This appointment snuck up on him and at lunchtime he found that, along with a colleague, he was interviewing a possible recruit for Starfleet.
GF has always considered himself a fair and perhaps gentle interviewer and the majority of recruits he has processed in the past were accepted and turned out well. Sometimes, however, you have to admit that the round hole that you are trying to fill is not best served by a square peg. It was a long interview – the recruit had no concept of summarisation or brevity – and whilst he was obviously very experienced in his speciality, that was not a speciality that Starfleet needs at present.
Some rules for aspiring consultants and interviewees:

• You have two ears and one mouth – use them in that ratio
• Silence does not need to be filled
• Waffling is a warning sign that you have no content – be brief and clear.
• When you don’t know – say you don’t know – don’t guess.
• I all you know about is aero-engines, don’t start a discussion of brain surgery.
• Answer the question you were asked – not a question you would like to have been asked
• Steer the conversation so that you are asked the questions you want to be asked