Stand Out with Stories: A Guide to Behavioral Interview Success

On August 12, 2025, Steve Dalton offered another session to the Pivot with Purpose community to provide tips and tricks to stand out with stories in the behavioral interview. Laura Sheehan (Georgetown SFS) moderated this event.

As seasoned international development professionals, we know the behavioral interview is coming—questions like “Tell me about a time you led a team,” or “What is your biggest weakness?” But what if we imagined the behavioral interview as an art exhibition where you’re the artist and the interviewer is the curator? To truly sell your art—your rich experiences—you need to avoid the trap of scripted, inauthentic, or robotic responses.

To help us come across more authentically to our interviewers, Dalton recommends we employ a practical, fill-in-the-blank formula (taken from his book, The Job Closer) that makes storytelling in interviews easier, faster, and far more effective.

Instead of memorizing long answers or scrambling to improvise, you’ll learn how to use formats like the CAR Matrix and Ready-to-Eat Stories to deliver polished, authentic responses—without the stress.

According to Dalton, it is important that we prepare for interviews smarter—not necessarily harder—with simple stories and examples, so that our narrative works for us, not against us.

Other Previous Sessions

Please feel free to browse our other previous sessions to access summaries, video content, and more information about our other events!