One way to approach experience-oriented interview questions is to use the SOAR method to frame

your story. SOAR stands for Situation, Obstacle, Action, and Result.

Situation: First, set up your story and provide some basic context for your interviewer.

Obstacle: Next, explain the challenges you faced. What roadblocks did you encounter and
overcome?

Action: Detail the actions you took to resolve the issue. Discuss the specific steps you took to
address the problem.

Result: Be specific and showcase the measurable impact your actions had. Did the result
affect your professional development and growth? Be detail-oriented and use quantifiable
metrics when possible. 

Let’s bring SOAR all together. Here is an example:

“I had just started my new role as a production assistant at a small media

organization. When I started, I noticed that my predecessor had not been diligent about
tracking and  organizing creative assets. The database was a mess, and it was costing my
team a lot  of time and energy. Plus, I knew we were missing some key items we could use
to make our design process easier. I spoke with my manager and asked if I could take a day
or two to assess the database and create a new tracking system. It was a little hard to win
her over because it was definitely going to take significant time, but I managed to convince
her the time we would save on the back-end would be worth it. So I ended up spending two
days combing through the database and cleaning things up. In the end, I created a new
system that made us 15% faster throughout the review process. I also uncovered some assets
we were able to use for future content. My team was really pleased, and they still use the new
system to this day.”