Reading time: five minutes

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about how stories are told, how they can be told well and how you can use this to your advantage in a job interview.

A good story is engaging, enthralling and captivating, whether it’s a movie, television show, theatre production, novel or anything else.

Narrative fiction tends to follow a basic three-act structure. Syd Field popularised this in his 1979 book Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting and it’s served as a reference for many screenwriters including James Cameron and Tina Fey.

How does this look?

Act one – setup, establishing the characters and the world they inhabit.

Act two – confrontation, where the protagonist faces escalating challenges brought about by the antagonist, so there must be character development to overcome the obstacles.

Act three – resolution, where the story reaches the climax or ‘payoff’, the dramatic question is answered and the protagonist emerges victorious.

Usually when we talk about the ‘dramatic question’, that tends to be: “will the heroes win?” “will the detective catch the criminal?” or “will the world be saved?”. The entire story can be built around this one question. In applications and interviews, the dramatic question tends to be, “why law? Why you? And why this firm?”.

How might this look for legal job applications or interviews?

Act one – establish why you want to have a long-term career in law. Think about your skills, expertise, values and what attracted you to law in the first place.

Act two – what challenges did you encounter during your journey, at school, university, work or life? How did you develop yourself during this challenging period?

Act three – how did you overcome those challenges, and how have the skills you developed helped you better answer the question?

But is that the only structure you could use?

I’ve been thinking about whether an engaging story can be split into seven ‘acts’. Here’s what I'm thinking:

1. Setup – establish characters and the world they inhabit (ie, what attracted you to a career in law?).
2. Shine – showcase your skills and expertise and what makes you unique and interesting.
3. Cut-off – what happened to derail you? Why was it significant?
4. Confrontation – where your situation is bleak and you’re struggling.
5. Hope – belief that your situation is improving. What objectives did you set to reach your goals?
6. Rise – where your situation has improved because you’ve developed the skills, knowledge and processes needed to succeed.
7. Resolution – the climax of the story, where you achieve a greater sense of self through your development.

My theory is that, by telling a story this way, the listener becomes more invested and excited in the protagonist’s story – your story.

How might this look in applications or interviews?

Obviously, this will need to be personal to you, but below is one example of how this seven-act story could play out when talking about your undergraduate degree journey.

1. I was attracted to a career in law because it connects so many professional and social issues that interest me deeply. My goal in life is to be able to help as many people as possible, whether with their business or personal problems. So, this would be the most fulfilling and rewarding career path for me and would also allow me to develop a versatile skill set that can benefit anyone I work with or for.
2. Law is a great match for my personality and strengths. I have a great memory, great communication skills and I’m very approachable and sociable. I’m also a lifelong learner and I can use my intelligence to help as many people as possible who maybe don’t have the knowledge or awareness that I do. That’s incredibly fulfilling to me.
3. However, I encountered a very challenging time at university that involved bullying and abuse. It derailed me to the point where student support services intervened and referred me for specialist help for severe anxiety and depression. I almost left my degree during this time because I couldn’t see a way out of the situation.
4. During that time, my ability to study and look after myself plummeted. I fell behind in some classes, I wasn’t eating or sleeping well, and I found myself isolated from classmates and friends. I was very unwell during that time and my focus was on simply staying as well as I could.
5. My situation improved slightly when I moved into different accommodation. It felt like a good start but I still felt behind and I was struggling to get back into a healthy study pattern.
6. Happily, I successfully completed that year of university, even though the result was underwhelming. After a summer break to recover and recharge, I went into my final year, alongside classmates I’d formed good relations with, determined to do as well as I could. It was now or never!
7. By surrounding myself with good and supportive peers, and by being determined and focused to make the best of my final year after a disappointing second year, I achieved a first-class degree.

Breaking down a story into smaller chunks makes telling the story a bit easier for you because each ‘act’ is more manageable to present. Also, the listener can take it all in easier if the ‘acts’ are smaller and not bombarded with lots of information within a longer act.

You can always practise applications and interviews with approaches that suit you and present you in the best way possible. You’ll have so many interviews throughout your life that it never hurts to practise new approaches. Perhaps this method can work for you − it’s worth a shot!

Note from the LawCareers.Net content team: if you need support while at university, there are a number of places you can contact, including your university's support service, Nightline and Student Space. If you need support now, text SHOUT to 85258 to chat to a trained volunteer.