The Pygmalion Principle

You know the charming myth of Pygmalion.  It’s a classic(al) ‘boy makes girl’ love story with a reprehensible lead character and some morally questionable intervention by the goddess Aphrodite. Its message seems to be that when it comes to women, Greek men prefer the chiselled look. But like every other* Greek myth, it also applies to job-hunting in general and job interviews in particular.  It applies to when you are going for a job for which you lack experience.


Here's what I sometimes** call the Pygmalion Principle:


Employers like - or at least like the idea of - moulding employees in their own image.  If there's any aspect of your target job for which you lack experience, you should exploit this quirk of human nature.  Here's how it looks:


'No, Barry, I have no experience in car sales.  I have great people skills, phenomenal drive and intriguing hair, but when it comes to selling cars, I'm looking for someone who knows the market inside out and who can mould me into his idea of the perfect Lada salesperson.'


You get the idea, I hope.  Fantastical as it may seem, the above trick actually works.  If it has any downside, it's that it makes you particularly attractive to precisely the kind of egotistical control-freaks you were probably hoping to avoid working for.  Otherwise, it's a winner!


Next week: the Pygmy Lion Effect.


* I meant 'no other'
** Or, more specifically, now