I think that anytime an interviewer is trying to remain impartial and stoic, then that's almost covering up the fact that they really do have a bias. I mean, the most successful attorneys typically do not act that impartial and stoic. But I think if they're acting impartial and stoic, then I would be a little suspicious. A lot of times, the interviewers are acting partially because there's someone else they may want to hire, or that person may be a little bit insecure themselves.
It was funny. I remember once I was interviewing with a big firm in New York, and I was interviewing with a tax attorney. When I saw the guy, I thought he was completely impartial. He had installed cameras. I could see that it was going to be very difficult to interview. There was a way he had positioned his chair, and I was supposed to sit down in a way on my chair. It was sort of a power thing where I was turned, so I had to kind of look at him in a specific way in order to answer his questions.
The first thing I realized when I walked into his office was it was so well ordered. He was going to be so stoic that if I sat and looked at him the way he wanted me, I had to just act very serious. And I did. Back then, I thought he'd probably like me, and I don't know how it occurred to me. But I sat there, and instead of moving the chair, I sat the way he had set up the chair. Due to that, I think I got the job. But if an interviewer is acting very impartial and stoic, you should be as direct as possible. I would hope that you would want to work in a place where you can connect with the interviewers and where they would want to connect with you. In general, I don't think they're acting impartial and still have to not bias your decisions. I think they're acting impartially for other reasons. But that's just my opinion.