I’m a Top 20 NCAA XC finisher. I graduated and now interviewing for Big 4. Should I talk about my Elite running on interview?

What are you talking about? This leads nothing to interesting thoughts or perspectives on College cross country. Why are you even posting? I am a fan of all distance running, wanting to know about training, individual athletes and training habits.

This is the right answer. The risk is bigger that it will be seen as a distraction from your work than that it will somehow reflect positively on you. I wouldn't talk about it unless you are directly asked about it and in that case you should make it clear that going forward work is now your priority and not running.

I really want to disagree with the above, but it’s true. The corporate world LOVES former athletes.

Congrats, OP. Go get that bag and keep the running talk to a minimum. If it is brought up, it’s all goal setting, teamwork, and tapping into that desire to win. No talk about continuing to train hard…. They don’t want to hear that.

Keep training, though. After a few years you’ll want to leave the firm and work somewhere else. Don’t sell your soul/health to one of these meat grinders. Anyone over the age of 35 that still works for a Big 4 is a loser or a narc. Keep your nose to the grindstone.

Narc? You're not referring to old skool slang, or does it now have a new meaning?

Have a photo of your supermodel wife ready to show them, too.

And if it was D2, never mention it. Just say you played intramural ultimate, instead.

If someone asks you about it, you can mention it taught you a lot about balancing priorities and planning. It’s not worth much more beyond that once you’ve already secured an interview. It’s more helpful for differentiating your resume / cover letter.

I was a scrub, only a 14:30 guy, did well on the conference level in my day. My running career has been useful in every job interview I've done, but it has to be brought in organically. Use your running career as the canvas on which to paint the picture of someone who is reslient, persistent, hard-working, etc.

Interviewer: "Tell me about a time when you overcame a challenge"

You: "Well, when I was injured my sophomore year..."

Interviewer: "Give me an example of your ability to take on a leadership position"

You: "Well, when I was a senior and a leader on the team and we needed to win conference XC..."

You get the idea

Put your mile PR on there. I put my 4:07 on mine and end up discussing it with interviewers every single time. And most of them think I was on the brink of a world record. You could say "all american" or whatever else too, but non-track people sort of know what a mile is, and they're shocked by how much faster you ran than what they ran in PE. Tell them you ran a 27:59 10K and they won't get it or care. And to your point, it easily lets you transition to conversations about how you're competitive, hardworking, goal oriented, etc and how that will make you a great addition to their team. 100% use your running background. It’s a thing they will remember about you, and that’s critical when you consider how many candidates you’ll be competing with for the job.

Tell them how you used PowerPoints to help develop your running technique.

Yes of course you should. Occasionally you’ll have an interviewer who’ll let you know he/she doesn’t care about that. That’s ok, laugh it off and move on.

Of course bring it up. An example of your discipline and strength and it’s entirely relevant to the work ethic all businesses should want.

Nah, go pro and live in your mama’s basement…work is a waste

Whats a big 4?

I’ll take this thread seriously.

talk about how sports taught you:

1. To be a good teammate.

2. resilience. Doing your long run even when you had a bad race. Fail and keep going.

3. persistence and work ethic

and oh my the way you ran fast

Do you have a heard beat and can you talk confidently about nothing?

That's all they require. 95% of the people I have worked with for the big 4 were dead weight that cost the company 4x my salary for me to babysit them.

If you love money and people calling you smart and important because they too are no smart or important enjoy. If you want a dose or reality go listen to Steve Jobs take on consultants:

I graduated in the 1980s and worked in a Big 8 firm. In interviews I talked about balancing school and running. Some firms did not care others did. in the end I took a job at firm I felt the most comfortable with and was able to run fairly well for years after graduating. 3 times a year would take the train in from CT along with another D1 runner working for the firm and ran in Corporate team events in Nyc. We always won the financial division and I got a half day off. Can’t hurt to mention your running success but stress you were able to handle the workload and enjoyed being part of a team. Good luck with the interviews.