Make sure you’ve got a response prepped and ready before you get to the interview.
Arguably, it’s the most important question you should be prepared to answer in an interview.
If you can’t make a case for why you’re the best person for the job, why should the company think you’re the best person?
Give an honest answer that shows you’ll get the job done and not be a buzzkill at happy hour.
Curtis Peterson was recently interviewing for a digital marketing manager position at SmartFile, an Indianapolis company that provides secure file sharing services, when his interviewer asked him what he knew was a make-or-break question: ‘Why do you want this job?”
You may think this question is all about you, but it’s not.
During a job interview, you may be caught off-guard if you’re asked, “Why do you want to work here?” After all, you’ve taken the time to apply and come in for an interview—isn’t your interest obvious? But it’s highly likely you’re going to come across this question at some point in your interview.
It’s not an invitation for you bash your current job. In fact, it’s just the opposite.
It’s always important to be honest in a job interview, but no question will cause you to stretch the truth as much as this one:
It’s not really about what you did or didn’t do
Your resume and cover letter have successfully outlined your qualifications. You’re selling all the reasons you’re the right person for the job in the interview. When the interviewer says, “Give me an example of a time you did something wrong, and how you handled it?”
Yes, this classic question still comes up in 21st-century job interviews—particularly those for sales roles.
You’re sitting in a job interview ready to answer any question the hiring manager has about your qualifications and why you’re a great fit for the job. Then he holds up his writing instrument and says, “Sell me this pencil.”
Hint: Give an answer that aligns your ideal workplace with the employer you’re talking to.
When a job interviewer asks, “What is your ideal company?” you may think to yourself, “Hmm, one that pays six figures, offers unlimited vacation and has a four-day workweek.”
But while that may be your fantasy, you need to remember that the hiring manager is looking for an answer that’s more grounded in reality.
Get this job interview question right, and maybe you’ll find yourself in a new job with less annoying coworkers.
It may sound like a question from an online dating profile, but when job interviewers ask what irritates you about others, they’re trying to assess how you will get along with your colleagues and clients, and how your personality will fit in with the company culture.
Despite what you may think, there is a right and a wrong way to answer this age-old question.
When an interviewer asks you, “Where would you like to be in your career five years from now?” he or she is testing your level of ambition. Joseph Wessner, assistant general manager of Coughlin Printing Group in Watertown, New York, says despite its ambiguity, this question, when asked, does have a definitive answer.
Questions on leadership may come up in a job interview. Use this formula to prove to the interviewer that you’re up to any management challenge.
It’s common to discuss your work history and experience in an interview, but some employers want more detail than others. In particular, some may ask you to dig into the last project you led.
Your answer could show you’re a team player—or a back stabber.
Whether your previous boss was your best friend or your worst enemy, talking about him or her to a prospective employer takes a little tact.
Remember, when this job interview question about secrets comes up: You’re not talking to a friend, you’re talking to a potential boss.
You thought your job interview was going very well—until your interviewer and dropped a bomb and asks: “What is one thing about yourself that you wouldn’t want me to know?”
Better fess up—with a SFW answer—when an interviewer asks you about your regrets
“What is your biggest regret and why?” is a common job interview question that can cause candidates to stumble. Don’t let it throw you off of your game if it comes up in your next interview—and don’t assume that you can get off the hook by saying, “I have no regrets.”
It’s a tricky interview question since you want to get the highest salary you can without killing your shot at the job.
There may not be a job interview question more sensitive than “What salary do you want?”
Not only is it hard for many people to talk about money, but the wrong answer can instantly knock you out of the running or lock you into earning less than you deserve.
The right way to answer questions about what makes you unique or special is not to badmouth the competition.
Answering the question, “What can you do for us that other candidates can’t?” can put you in a pickle in an interview. You want to sound impressive, but not conceited. And it’s not like you even know the other candidates!
Trying to answer the “Weakness” question is like trying to walk along a tight rope: a solid answer takes you ahead unhurt, while a misstep sends everything crashing down. Questions like these are the clinchers. By not admitting to any weakness you come across as phony and fake. And on the other hand admitting to them puts you at risk of losing the offer!
So, do you really reveal your biggest weakness to those who matter? Do they want to hire you still? What if you say you have no weakness? Then do you run the risk of not sounding genuine?
Read on to know solutions that can help you tame this dreaded monster: