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Timestamps
0:00 Week recap and intro
3:55 Why messaging matters
7:50 Practice interview focus
11:45 Get the ChatGPT app
15:40 Recording limitations
19:34 Tips for concise answers
23:30 Ask better questions
27:25 Don’t skip the paperwork
Back on the Interview Train (and Trying Not to Derail)
Happy Friday. Hope your week’s been less chaotic than mine, which included fumbling through my first interviews in half a year. Yes, I said six months. The last time I interviewed anyone, I was probably still pretending to enjoy spinach smoothies.
But I’m officially back. I’m heading to Miss Volunteer America in Tennessee next month, and I’ve been using the lead-up as an excuse to talk to some of the state titleholders and not feel like a total stranger when I get there. So far, I’ve chatted with Bayley Joy Martin (Miss Ohio Volunteer), Lydia Fisher (Miss Michigan Volunteer), Haleigh Ryan Hurst (Miss Virginia Volunteer), Christine Williamson (the National Contestant Liaison), and Berkley Bryant (the current Miss Volunteer America).
Turns out, remembering how to interview is like riding a bike — except the bike's on fire and I’m questioning my life choices, especially with some of the tech issues we’ve been having with the new software.
Why Interviews Still Make Me Sweat (and Maybe You Too)
Let me level with you: talking is not my issue. Shutting up? Slightly more of a problem. I tend to approach interviews like a TED Talk with a looming time limit. My thoughts show up in tangled, messy webs, and pageant interviews demand perfectly wrapped 30-second soundbites with a bow on top.
Whereas my longest interview so far has been 1 hour 47 minutes long.
And look, maybe you’re on the other side of the fence. Maybe you go full deer-in-headlights the moment someone asks you a question. Either way, interview is one of those deceptively simple things that can totally screw you. Or make you. Depending on how much work you’ve put in.
Your New Interview Coach is an AI and I’m Not Even Mad About It
Here’s where things get interesting. And maybe slightly controversial. I’ve started recommending ChatGPT to practice pageant interview. And not just any ChatGPT. I’m talking voice-activated, feedback-giving, can-you-just-shut-up-now ChatGPT.
This thing costs around $20 a month. You can talk to it like a coach. Practice your answers. Get instant feedback. Adjust. Repeat. Before this, you'd need someone like me (yes, I’m outing myself) to sit down for an hour and charge you a couple hundred bucks. Now? Your AI coach lives in your phone. And unlike me, it doesn’t need coffee.
Also? It can connect via Bluetooth. So you can practice while driving. Or walking. Or running away from your responsibilities. No extra time required - put that time on the treadmill to good use.
Cosplay Your Interview (It’s Not That Weird)
Here’s the tea: real practice needs to feel real. So wear your interview outfit. Sit the way you plan to sit. Video the whole thing from head to toe. Why? Because you’ll never know you shake your head like a bobblehead on a bumpy road unless you’ve seen it on screen.
And yes, ChatGPT has a camera feature now. It can see you, sort of. It’ll tell you if you’re smiling or slouching. But let’s not rely on robo-judge to catch all your nervous tics. Record it. Watch it. Learn. Rinse. Repeat.
Ask Better Questions, Get Better Feedback
I went all in and asked ChatGPT to help me with my biggest flaw: rambling. I needed to make my answers tighter, snappier, punchier. It whipped up a rapid-fire exercise. Asked me questions. Graded my answers. Suggested tweaks.
It’s like an interview gym. For your mouth.
You can ask it for anything: tips on confidence, sponsorship ideas, a pep talk. Hell, you could probably ask it to write your handover speech and it would do a semi-decent job if you gave it enough context.
Don’t Be Blockbuster When Netflix is Knocking
I say this with love: don’t be the person clinging to the old way of doing things. AI isn’t the future. It’s already here. And it’s already outpacing people who’ve been doing their jobs for decades.
I know, because I built a medical app with AI that was outdiagnosing actual doctors. So yes, it can help you answer "Why do you want to be Miss Whatever?" without sounding like a walking Hallmark card.
You still need a human coach for nuance, for strategy, for the deep stuff. But for daily reps? For building confidence? For saving time and money? ChatGPT is it.
So go. Download the app. Talk to the robot. Let it roast your answers and praise your progress. Use it like the secret weapon it is.
And come pageant time? You’ll be ready.
And please—try not to set your interview on fire.
See you next week.
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