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Rejected lack of motivation

BCG McKinsey motivation
New answer on Apr 30, 2020
4 Answers
2.8 k Views
Anonymous A asked on Sep 05, 2018

Good morning,

I have been rejected by BCG because of "lack of motivation". For the rest of the interview, the feedback was positive.

Obviously, I didn't transmit my motivation to my interviewers... Since I have McK interview coming soon, what things should not be "said" in the "why consulting" questions? I fear my error might have been saying I only applied to BCG and McK... Making them think that maybe I wanted only the name of the company... Another option might have been not asking "bright questions" in the Q&A...

Unfortunately, I didn't ask for more precise feedback during the feedback session, so I don't have much to reason on.

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Anonymous replied on Sep 05, 2018

Hi there,

As an interviewer, if I made a comment that someone was "lacking motivation", there would be a few things that I would've liked to see which he/she didn't demonstrate:

  • Enthusiasm for problem solving and logical reasoning during cases
  • Interactions that are high in energy and excitement
  • Willingness to learn and ask questions of the interviewer
  • A CV which contains excellent and interesting achievements

While I don't know the exact specifics of your interview, my view is that your rejection is probably captured in the above points. If you use that framework to think about your interview, maybe you'll be able to diagnose what to work on for your next interview.

Best,

Edmond

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Anonymous replied on Apr 30, 2020

Dear A,

You need to focus on "Why?" . Why do you want to go for consulting? Why do you choose this company? These two questions are essential in the personal fit, and they really need to sound perfectly during you interview. So try to understand, what is your true motivation and be very convincing at your interview.

Good luck!

Best,
André

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Anonymous replied on Sep 06, 2018

Well if someone asks you "why consulting?" you should tell them why the hell you want to go into consulting. There is no right or wrong answer, there is only an honest and a made-up answer.

People that have been in the business for a while ask this question to sniff out whether you may be getting into the job with false expectations or for the wrong reasons. THAT is the purpose of this question! And believe me, most consultants are pretty good at bullshitting, but they are also pretty good at spotting when they are being bullshitted to. So if you tell them something you think they want to hear, but which is not what you really think, chances are they'll know that you're not being genuine. And that's a pretty big no-no.

So why do you want to get into consulting?

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Benjamin
Expert
replied on Sep 05, 2018
ex-Manager - Natural and challenging teacher - Taylor case solving, no framework

What position did you apply for ?

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