How to Nail Your Next Job Interview, The Big 5 Personality Traits, Intellectual Curiosity with Melanie Boudreaux

Melanie Boudreaux is an Assistant Professor at Nicholls State University—she teaches Human Resource Management. She’s also Faculty Advisor for the Society of Human Resource Management and works as HR Director at Environment Safety & Health Consulting Services (ES&H). And just in case Melanie found herself with free time—she’s also enrolled at University of South Alabama, where she will soon finish her PhD in Business Management.

In lieu of eating and sleeping, evidently, Melanie enjoys being a wife to Benny Boudreaux, a mother of 6-year old twins, and paints Louisiana-themed crafts at Brushed by BouDreaux.

When I asked Melanie why she puts so much “on her plate,” she said it’s because she loves to learn and help people. Plus, being an HR Director enables her to bring practical knowledge from the corporate world to her students. I love that.

In this episode, after a brief story Melanie tells about declining her mom’s calls so she could get a much-needed break from kids, we discuss a Youtube video where a grandmother, Melanie’s mom Ms. Mary, lectures college students on “texting etiquette.”

A few examples in the video were LOL funny. One instance was when Ms. Mary encouraged students to be mindful of how a text is going to be received. To illustrate her point, she told a story of receiving a text from her sister, “T,” that said, “I’m in the hospital.”

Immediately, Ms. Mary called T’s workplace to find out when she left [for the hospital], because she presumed her sister wouldn’t answer the cell phone she just texted her from [if she’s in the hospital].

But when Ms. Mary called T’s workplace, her sister answered the phone. So Ms. Mary said to her, “Hey T, I thought you were in the hospital.”

That’s when T told Ms. Mary to have a closer look at the text—what she’d actually sent was a screenshot [of someone else’s text to her]. She was simply sharing news that someone they knew was in the hospital.

The texting etiquette lesson was this. Be careful sending texts, because you don’t know how your text is going to be received. Meanwhile, I’m rolling on the laughing floor.

I said to Melanie, “That’s something my mom would do.”

That’s how this episode begins. We get into advice for sending emails in a professional setting—great examples are shared in the video (and on this episode). Additionally, Melanie & Ms. Mary provide a helpful list of words not to be used in the workplace.

Melanie & I also chat about how she prepares her students for the “real world.” She says they do face-to-face and Zoom mock interviews, which she records so the class can watch.

Students hate mock interviews, at least at-first. But later Melanie gets so many “Thank You” emails because her students say role-playing in class helped them to land their dream job.

Come to think of it. My favorite professor when I was in school had us role-play as part of the final exam. Dr. Chris Cox, former Department Head (Management & Marketing) would setup a tripod mounted with one of those old-school giant video recorders in the corner for a mock “sales call”—he was the Buyer.

What I remember most from the role-play was him docking points for my rapport-building; otherwise, I’d have had a perfect score. Consequently, throughout my sales career I thought about my former professor saying I was awkward. I’d go into meetings lacking in confidence. Just kidding. I may be an awkward bastard, but fortunately confidence has never been in short supply.

Likewise, today’s guest possesses a self-assuredness that makes for a fun & insightful discussion—hope you learn as much as I did!

Questions asked:

How do you handle twins?
How long did your husband take off work [after birth of twins]?
Why are some people “turned off” by “no problem” [instead of “you’re welcome”]?
Is sipping coffee okay on a Zoom meeting?
Do you know anybody that uses software other than Zoom?
Are interpersonal skills diminishing?
Do you do mock interviews with your students?
Is interviewing a skill set?
How do you make yourself stand out in an interview?
Should you always have a cover letter?
Do young people struggle with written communication?
Do you talk about leverage in class? Do you go that far into it, like, negotiating?
Is intellectual curiosity something you’ve always had?
Have you researched about how the sex drive urges some people so strongly that they would throw away everything?
Have you encountered people on a college campus who lack intellectual curiosity?
Do you think people’s lack of courage stems from them being coddled when they’re young?
Any tips for me if I was someone who had trouble walking up to people & introducing myself?
Why do you put so much “on your plate?”
Why is it that parents who have success in business often want their kids to be doctors, lawyers, or academics?
Are you researching “entrepreneurial personality?”
What is a dissertation?
Did you hear about the research that James Lindsay and Peter Boghossian did?
Do you think people are much more likely to pursue advanced degrees when they do well in school?
What is a human resource competition?
How do you feel about the corporate world getting disgruntled because they feel HR has too much power?
Has your company changed their diversity hiring in recent years?
Have you ever encountered students with names that are hard to pronounce [trying to get jobs]?
What is your lineage?
Do you feel pretentious when you refer to your “undergrad?”
How do you feel about the rise in tuition costs that Americans are experiencing?
Is that something you talk to students about – the fact that the outlay of cash for this Nicholls State experience is going to have a return of some amount of dollars when they get out?
What class is it that you teach where kids are getting all this prep for the real world?
Do you have any suggestions for how to make [your social media profiles] authentically you?
Is there anything cooler than having a sleepover with friends?
Do you feel like you’re gonna miss out on quality thoughts because you’re always listening to something when you walk?
[Question to me] Where’s your favorite place that you’ve visited?

Fun questions:

Social media – net negative or net positive for society?
Who’s on their phone more – you or your husband?
George Clooney or Brad Pitt?
Who’s funnier – Trevor Noah or getting a papercut?
Which is funnier – former SNL cast member Leslie Jones or stubbing your toe in the dark?
If you could go anywhere in the world for a week, where would you go?
If you were stuck in Key West by yourself and could only bring one band’s album, which one would you bring?
If someone were to give you $100,000 worth of stocks in one of these 3 companies – Spotify, Airbnb, or Pinterest, which one would you take?
You’re hosting a dinner party at your house and cost is not an issue. Are you having four, six or twelve guests?
At this dinner party, you clink your glass, you stand up because you want to thank everybody. What do you say next?
Is not wanting something just as good as having it?