Three of my colleagues and I went out to have breakfast yesterday and we were talking about the interviews that happened last week.  We were looking for a number of people to fill slots for some openings in the program and building rapport was one of the requirements. I remember one of the questions that one of the interviewers asked me.  She asked me what if I’ll become the supervisor of a tenured team whose members have applied for the position but didn’t make it and one of these members will come up to me and asks me why should he/she follow my lead when they’ve been around longer than I did and they know more than what I know? How will I handle this person?  This, my friend is a question that will check on how a person can build rapport with other people.  It was like what Ryan Seacrest of American Idol did when he asked David Archuleta to go to the group whom he thinks is the group who are safe.  This was the episode when Christy Lee Cook was sent home.

I don’t know if it was scripted but I must admit I was surprised at what Daivd did.  He sat down in the middle of the stage.  Some people might think that he was playing safe but that is the most ethical thing to do.  Other people might have walked over to the group whom they think is the group who made it.  See this is a situation in which you can really know if a person does know how to build and maintain rapport with the other people.  If you will be in the same situation and you are caught in the middle of the people that you love, it is best to remain in the middle and not to take sides.  Let them take care of the problem.  Don’t meddle with things.  That way you will not hurt anybody’s feeling.