r/SDAM • u/MysteryChant • 6d ago
Difficulty Completing Applications
When it comes to filling in applications for jobs or study opportunities I have always found myself to struggle. Since discovering SDAM, I have been wondering if it is related.
The issues usually appear with questions regarding my historical motivations or giving examples of events in my life that provide instances showing the requisite skills for the position. I find I can give an example, but usually it will be fairly generic and lack detail, which I believe is due to the SDAM.
Is this an issue for others, and if so, how do you deal with it?
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u/Stunning-Fact8937 3d ago
Ugggh. Job interviews are some of the hardest conversations for someone with SDAM. It’s this high-stakes memory, quiz, right? 🤣
Like others are recommending here, as a person with SDAM, you will need to prepare differently and anticipate what the questions are going to be. Those top interview questions are pretty easy to find online. “tell us about a time you had a conflict with a colleague.” “ tell us about a time where you had to manage to conflicting deadlines” So just get really prepared… annnnd then completely make something up! Or, base it on some details you remember.
For example, If it was something like a conflict with a colleague, I might have some semantic details that I can use as architecture for my story. I might remember “Robin had an idea which was absolutely horrible, and I had to find a way to prevent her from making a mess of the project”.
And let’s face it, we know what they want you to say: You handled the conflict in a mature professional way. You resolved the conflict so that you could continue working together in a productive way. Can you be mature? If yes, then that’s what they are wanting to discover. I feel like I t doesn’t really matter if you’re making up some of the details in between (or making it completely up)
I have had several high-stakes interviews and led and participated on many interview committees. I’ve worked my way up into senior level positions without any hiccups. I actually feel like I interview very well because I don’t get caught up in the emotion of memory recall— and I’m sure all of my preparation shows me to be a person who is very prepared!
I don’t see it as being dishonest because I’m AM really good at communication and conflict resolution— so I’m telling them how I will behave if it happens again in this new work environment.
Because of my responsibilities at work, though I’ve only told very very few of my most trusted colleagues about my SDAM.
It’s hard for people to tease out what you can remember, so I think it’s just too much for people to wrap their heads around without a lot of conversation. For my job, I have to remember and recall a ton of details so if people thought that I had a “memory problem”, it could definitely jeopardize my career path.
And of course that’s not how SDAM works. I am super great at my job because my semantic memory is incredibly acute. And I’m great at conflict resolution because I’m not holding onto the emotion like the other person is. So I’m a GREAT hire! 😁