The Interview Question That Makes People Focus on Your Strengths #shorts

21 Oct 2026 · 1 min

Watch on YouTube

0:40

In this brief YouTube short, Robert Cialdini illustrates two persuasive tactics. First, he recounts a job‑seeker who, before each interview, asked the interviewers why they had invited him, prompting them to articulate the candidate’s strengths and thereby framing the conversation positively from the start. Second, he describes a consultant who pre‑emptively mitigates fee objections by presenting a high‑priced anchor—showing a $75,000 proposal and stating that he could not possibly charge a million dollars—making the actual fee appear modest. Both examples demonstrate how strategic questioning and price anchoring can steer perceptions in favor of the speaker.

The guy who got the jobs?
Before every interview, he asked the interviewers, why did you bring me in today? What was it about my qualifications that made you attracted to my candidacy?
And what does that do?
It caused people to start focusing on the positive aspects of his case before they even began discussing it.
And the consultant who never got pushed back on his fees?
He would show prospects his proposal and his $75,000 fee, and he would say, as you can tell, I won't be able to charge you a million dollars for this.
And what does that do?
Compared to $1 million, $75,000 now seems trivial.