How to nail the first interview
Whether you’re pursuing your next C-suite role or gearing up to join a midterm field program, your first interview, the phone screen, is wicked important.
A phone screen is typically a 20–30 minute conversation with a recruiter or hiring manager. It may feel informal. It isn’t. This call determines whether you move forward.
If you’ve been reading this newsletter, you know that I take an organizing and networking approach to the job hunt. If I had to give just one piece of advice on this topic, it would be:
Practice, practice and practice your personal story. Wherever and whenever you can.
Beyond that, here are my top tips for nailing the phone screen.
Tell stories. Ditch the jargon.
Remember: the person interviewing you doesn’t know you at all, and you have a limited amount of time to make yourself and your experience stand out. Don’t get bogged down in hard-to-understand lingo. Instead, focus on telling specific, compelling stories in plain English of what you’ve accomplished. Imagine you’re giving your answer to a family member or friend with no connection to the work. Would they understand what you’re talking about?
Instead of:
“I led stakeholder engagement and cross-functional strategic alignment.”
Try:
“I organized a coalition of labor and environmental partners to pressure three swing legislators on a transportation bill. After six weeks of coordinated district meetings and earned media, two of them publicly shifted their position.”
Specific beats abstract every time. A good test: would someone outside your field understand what you just said? If not, simplify.
Prepare for the “usual” questions.
Recruiters are not trying to trick you. I usually ask a lot of the same questions in my phone screens because they help me get to know a candidate. Most phone screens include some version of:
Tell me about yourself.
Walk me through your resume and why you left each role.
What are you looking for next?
What are your strengths, or what’s your superpower?
Write your answers down. Practice them out loud. Time yourself. Refine them. Preparation doesn’t make you sound robotic, it helps you be confident.
Do your homework.
Read the org’s website. Google them to see what media coverage they’ve gotten recently, and check their social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.) to see what they’re talking about. Understand their tone and priorities.
Then reflect their language back thoughtfully. The key here is to incorporate their words and messaging into your answers, and if you can use an example of their recent work in an answer, that’s great too.
For example, “I was excited to see your recent campaign on X because…”
That signals genuine interest and understanding of the role you’re applying for.
Prepare your examples.
Go through the job description line by line. For each bullet point, have a specific example ready from your background that you can speak to.
If you haven’t done something, don’t fake it! Be up front and say you don’t have that certain experience. Then pivot to a story about when you learned a new skill quickly.
At the end of the day, the phone screen isn’t about luck or chemistry, it’s about being prepared. When you know your story, understand the role, and can connect the dots quickly, you make it easy for someone to say yes. Preparation can be the difference between “thanks for your time” and “let’s move you forward.”
Director of Research & Analysis @ Freedom Together Foundation | NYC | $240K-$260K
Executive Coordinator, Strategic Partnerships @ Freedom Together Foundation | NYC | $120K
Controller @ Eviction Defense Collaborative | San Francisco | $100K-$125K
Senior Counsel for Family Defense & Strategic Litigation @ Mother’s Outreach Network | DC | $120K-$125K
Healthcare Director @ Private Equity Stakeholder Project | Remote | $105K-$120K
Director of Institutional Giving @ Treehouse Foundation | Easthampton, MA | $100K-$110K
Mobilization Director @ Climate Action Campaign | DC | $100K-$110K
Strategic Communications Director @ Working Washington | Seattle | $100K-$110K
2026 Fellows @ Building Power Resource Center | Remote | 4K/mo, 20 hrs/wk
That’s not all! We’re hiring for additional jobs and you can see all of them on the NRG website.
Ask The Coach
Wednesday 3/25 | 1-2pm ET | Free
Join us for a Q&A session with our career coach, Kristin Saybe. This is for all levels, so whether you’re looking to break into the c-suite, or if you’re finding your first job out of college, this is for you! Deadline to sign up and submit your questions is Tuesday, March 24th at 9am ET.
Post Your Jobs With Us
Are you (or your organization) hiring this spring? We’d love to help spread the word.
On March 18th, NRG will be sending out our next Get Hired Newsletter, and that edition will be jobs from our network. We’d love to feature your open positions in this upcoming issue (free of charge). To be included, please submit your jobs by Monday, March 16th:
📢 Follow NRG on LinkedIn to stay up to date on the roles we’re hiring for.
📬 Not a member of the NRG Talent Network yet? Fill out a quick form and let us know you're thinking about your next role.
Let’s move,
Naomi
P.S. If you’d like a partner to help you with your job search strategy, learn how NRG’s coaching programs can help you.
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