Top 10 Interview Questions...

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How To Best Answer Them

The firm is laying off staff members, or you just want to get a new, better paying job. Either way, it’s time to sharpen the interviewing skills. You’ve dressed the best you can, your resume has gotten you into the door, you’ve reviewed information about the company, and you even know enough to send a post interview thank you note. Now for the interview; will you ace it? Preparation for the questions is the key, and knowing some of the questions will be extremely helpful.

Here are at least ten questions that you may have to tackle during the interview process and some ideas how to answer them.


1. What are your strengths? No doubt that you have heard again and again that interviewees need to sell themselves. This is the time to sell the greatest strength you have that is related to the work that you are applying to do. Provide an example from your previous work situations in which you have demonstrated this strength.
Here is an example. A man applying for a data entry position is asked about his greatest strength. He knows computers and is able to catch on quickly to various programs, plus troubleshoots situations as they arise. First he explains this skill by telling about the time he had to learn the new Peachtree accounting system when it was introduced at his last job. He should then skip into how he had to troubleshoot occasional computer malfunctions by calling the company and working out solutions to fit the needs of his employer. Beautiful move: he’s managed to get in several of his strengths by making it look as though he has answered for only one. Now his potential employer knows that he is computer savvy, is able to quickly learn programs, finds help on his own for problems when he has them, and knows how to deal with difficult computer issues in the future. What an asset to any company! Rather than having an employee sit around waiting for a supervisor to tell him what to do, he shows initiative. If this company values that, he’ll impress the interviewer.

2. What are your weaknesses? This is not confession hour, so don’t talk about chocolate, love affairs, or hobbies. This is the time to talk about irrelevant skills. For example, an auto body paint technician answered this question by stating that he was not very good at grammar. He countered that information by immediately stating that he could blend colors very well. Since he wasn’t being hired for his writing abilities, the HR person didn’t care.
What do you do if you are being hired to write and grammar isn’t your best subject? You can share that, but be prepared to explain how you compensate for your deficiency. One applicant might say that s/he always keeps a certain kind of stylebook nearby, or subscribes to a special computer program to help with those problems. A color blind auto body painter can admit that he is color blind, then explain how he works with paint salespeople to help get the proper match. Weaknesses are something all of us have. It’s not what they are, it’s how you handle them that will impress an interviewer.

3. When was time when you disagreed with your boss, and how did you deal with it? Now is the time to remember the boss that wanted you to do something unethical. Did your former supervisor ask you to swindle a customer, steal some inventory, or keep sexual harassment a secret? This is a great time to tell a bit of that story, not too much of it! Just tell a bit to explain that you were put into a moral dilemma. Then you explain how you handled it as long as you did a classy thing. If you hit your boss or walked off the job, pick another incident. Never, ever lie about such a thing, as some personnel directors are trained to recognize signs of lying. Just think back to something that happened to you in a job situation that made you uncomfortable.
Here’s a great example. One young man, Max, worked on a project with a younger colleague who was gossiping, and belittling Max to other coworkers, Max was a likeable sort, and the coworkers were irritated, so they told Max about the gossiping. He confronted the colleague and asked him to explain his motives for such underhandedness. The colleague denied the rumors, and when Max asked their supervisor for a transfer to a different project, the request was denied. Naturally Max was unhappy with his supervisor, but chose to accept the decision with as much grace as possible. The project got done and eventually the colleague was dismissed. This is the kind of example that can tell personnel directors an enormous amount about the integrity of the person in front of them.
Preparation for this question is critical. If nothing in your background comes to mind, then it is appropriate to pull incidents from school or volunteer projects. Your answer should not be rehearsed as much as sitting in the back of your mind, so at least take a few seconds and think about what you are going to say in front of the interviewer. No one likes memorized answers.

4. Who was your best/worst boss and why? What the interviewer is trying to find out is if you fit in the structure of the company as well as test to see if you berate someone behind their back. Knowing that should help you keep the answer to this in perspective. The point of this question is not to have you kiss up to the present supervisor. You want to look at the good qualities of your previous bosses and discuss them. Perhaps it was their honor, or how much they cared about their staff. Perhaps it was how organized they were and how that helped you become more organized. Maybe you admired their leadership skills and wanted to talk about them a little. Feel free to use one example, but make it brief. No one wants to feel as though they have big shoes to fill.
What are your former boss’ weakness? This is the trap question. It directly tests how you handle gossip and what you are likely to say about the interviewer’s company down the road. It’s okay to say, “I don’t feel comfortable every saying anything bad about my former boss,” or “His weaknesses were so minimal that they aren’t worth mentioning.” How you answer this show how much class you have, and everyone wants class.

5. What do you want to be doing in five years? This is not the time to say you want the boss’ job! Most applicants feel that “deer in the headlights” moment when asked this job. What do interviewers want? Why do they ask this question? Easy! They want to know if you are planning to stay with their company and if they have an upward track for you. The best answer is that you are looking to learn and hopefully take on more responsibilities. You want to contribute to the betterment of the company. You can be flexible, but you want to know you are helping fill the needs of the business.
Does it matter if that’s what you really want? No. You need the job, right? What the future holds is not written in stone, and interviewers know that. If this is a dead end job, they might tell you that now, and you at least know if that’s a job you want. If there is limited growth, you might find that out now. But most good companies want ambitious people who want to grow and learn.

6. Why should we hire you? This question can intimidate interviewees so much that they actually can feel like saying, “You shouldn’t!” No one knows your weaknesses like you do, and that is almost always the first thing that pops into your head when asked why they should put you on staff. What interviewees hear when asked this question is, "Why shouldn't we hire that other person?" It's a tough question because you want to "toot your horn" without appearing arrogant. That’s why it is essential to list four or five good reasons on a piece of paper and review them before going into the interview.
Interviewers want to hear positive traits such as being a hard worker, honest, punctual, and well educated. Another excellent reason is that you have similar experience to the job opening. Be careful of traits that may be taken as both a positive and negative: ambitious, highly motivated, energetic, type A personality, dedicated (think doormat), or picky. Think carefully about the reasons and try them out on your spouse or good friend first for honest feedback. That way you can sell yourself honestly without saying the wrong thing.

7. Tell me about a project you have done that has been very successful or that you have been very proud of. Your answer should either directly relate to the position you are being hired for or can involve a “feel good” project. No one can deny the value of raising money for a cancer victim, for example, or helping organize the Cub Scouts. There is nothing wrong with being proud of volunteer work. New graduates can talk about special projects they have done in school either as volunteer work or in a related course or internship. This is not time to discuss baking cookies for church or a cleaning out your garage, no matter how bad it looked! It is time to either bring up your skills or show your dedication for the society around you.
If you have never done anything like that, then perhaps you should start to take stock of your time. Companies like people who contribute to the community, not just someone who works for a paycheck and goes home to watch TV all night. Even students can find time to volunteer. Resumes look much better with a section listing several of your volunteer activities.

8. What are your hobbies? Job coaches love the look on their client’s face when this question is presented. Why would an interviewer care how you spend your fun time? Because it says a lot about you! “Cool” hobbies include racquetball, handball, rock climbing, traveling, golf, gardening, film, musical instruments. Something you should avoid confessing? Never say you love to sleep or sit around listening to music. You may enjoy those activities, but like it or not, people judge you as being lazy or a couch potato if you admit it.
What if you feel you have no hobbies? You probably have interests that you just haven’t thought bout. Spending time with your children or a special family member is fine to say. Most folks in business love to spend time with their family, too. It’s fine to mention unusual hobbies such as collecting agates, or amateur archeology, but this is not time to confess more questionable activities such as collecting pornography, hanging out at the bars, or using drugs. Don't laugh! People say very unusual things in interviews.

9. Are you a person who needs a lot of breaks? Companies want to know if you are a smoker, but they aren't allowed to ask. If you must smoke during the day, ask yourself if you can refrain unless it is your break. Better yet, find out beforehand if they have a smoke free environment. If so, and you are a smoker, consider whether you can not smoke during the workday. Why all of the fuss? Smokers cost companies money. There’s lost productivity time and people sometimes feel smokers are ill more often.
Another thing an interviewer will find out when asking this question is whether or not you have a medical problem that may interfere with doing your job. If you do, this is the time to admit it, but then explain how you plan to compensate for the time off your duties. For example, bladder problems can pose a serious, but embarrassing issue for older workers. Discussing that can make all parties uncomfortable. How you handle the answer will either put them at ease or make them unsure of you. An answer like, “I need to use the restroom a bit, but I try not to have too many fluids during the workday,” makes sense. You identified the problem, but showed how you try to offset it.

10. Why do you want to leave your current job? Never say anything bad about your current employer or any of your colleagues. The best answer is that you have no upward mobility. You want to grow but there are no further opportunities for you to better yourself. What if you are trading a dead end job for another dead end job, but want out of the one company for coworker reasons? Try to put the best light on the situation by saying you desire to learn new things from a new company; that you have been at the old one for a while, and just want to expand your horizons.
It can not be stressed enough here that employers never want to hear anything negative about your former employers. One small business woman put it best when she said, "If I’m doing an interview and that person says anything negative about their boss, I always thank them for coming in, and the interview is over. I would never want them to say anything bad about me."
The last piece of advice is never to confess anything to an interviewer who ends up his list of questions with, "Is there anything you would like to add?" Human Resource personnel are always amazed at the interesting information that job candidates will suddenly reveal to them. This is the time to ask questions about the position, such as hours, duties, expectations of their candidates, and so on. This is not the time to discuss salary issues. Save that for the follow up interview or the actual job offer.

There are always other questions that will come up in a job interview, but hopefully preparing for some of these will give you an edge. Be sure to use the time asking solid questions to see if the job will be a good fit for you, too. And remember each interview is a learning process. Use the time afterward to go back over the questions you were asked and prepare better answers for the future.