A list of common questions asked in interviews and how to answer them.

From Interview Destroyer

Question: Tell me about yourself.

TRAPS: Beware, about 80% of all
interviews begin with this “innocent” question. Many candidates,
unprepared for the question, skewer themselves by rambling, recapping
their life story, delving into ancient work history or personal matters.

BEST ANSWER:
Start with the present and tell why you are well qualified for the
position. Remember that the key to all successful interviewing is to
match your qualifications to what the interviewer is looking for. In
other words you must sell what the buyer is buying. This is the single
most important strategy in job hunting.

So, before you answer
this or any question it's imperative that you try to uncover your
interviewer's greatest need, want, problem or goal.

To do so, make you take these two steps:
Do
all the homework you can before the interview to uncover this person's
wants and needs (not the generalized needs of the industry or company)

As
early as you can in the interview, ask for a more complete description
of what the position entails. You might say: “I have a number of
accomplishments I'd like to tell you about, but I want to make the best
use of our time together and talk directly to your needs. To help me do,
that, could you tell me more about the most important priorities of
this position? All I know is what I (heard from the recruiter, read in
the classified ad, etc.)”

Then, ALWAYS follow-up with a second
and possibly, third question, to draw out his needs even more.
Surprisingly, it's usually this second or third question that unearths
what the interviewer is most looking for.

You might ask simply,
"And in addition to that?..." or, "Is there anything else you see as
essential to success in this position?:

This process will not
feel easy or natural at first, because it is easier simply to answer
questions, but only if you uncover the employer's wants and needs will
your answers make the most sense. Practice asking these key questions
before giving your answers, the process will feel more natural and you
will be light years ahead of the other job candidates you're competing
with.

After uncovering what the employer is looking for, describe
why the needs of this job bear striking parallels to tasks you've
succeeded at before. Be sure to illustrate with specific examples of
your responsibilities and especially your achievements, all of which are
geared to present yourself as a perfect match for the needs he has just
described.

Question: What are your greatest strengths?

TRAPS: This question seems like a softball lob, but be prepared. You
don't want to come across as egotistical or arrogant. Neither is this a
time to be humble.

BEST ANSWER: You know that your key strategy
is to first uncover your interviewer's greatest wants and needs before
you answer questions. And from Question 1, you know how to do this.

Prior
to any interview, you should have a list mentally prepared of your
greatest strengths. You should also have, a specific example or two,
which illustrates each strength, an example chosen from your most recent
and most impressive achievements.

You should, have this list of
your greatest strengths and corresponding examples from your
achievements so well committed to memory that you can recite them cold
after being shaken awake at 2:30AM.

Then, once you uncover your
interviewer's greatest wants and needs, you can choose those
achievements from your list that best match up.

As a general guideline, the 10 most desirable traits that all employers love to see in their employees are:

A proven track record as an achiever...especially if your achievements match up with the employer's greatest wants and needs.

Intelligence...management "savvy".

Honesty...integrity...a decent human being.
Good fit with corporate culture...someone to feel comfortable with...a team player who meshes
well with interviewer's team.

Likeability...positive attitude...sense of humor.

Good communication skills.

Dedication...willingness to walk the extra mile to achieve excellence.
Definiteness of purpose...clear goals.

Enthusiasm...high level of motivation.

Confident...healthy...a leader.

Question: What are your greatest weaknesses?

TRAPS: Beware - this is an
eliminator question, designed to shorten the candidate list. Any
admission of a weakness or fault will earn you an “A” for honesty, but
an “F” for the interview.

PASSABLE ANSWER: Disguise a strength as a weakness.
Example:
“I sometimes push my people too hard. I like to work with a sense of
urgency and everyone is not always on the same wavelength.”
Drawback:
This strategy is better than admitting a flaw, but it's so widely
used, it is transparent to any experienced interviewer.

BEST ANSWER:
(and another reason it's so important to get a thorough description of
your interviewer's needs before you answer questions): Assure the
interviewer that you can think of nothing that would stand in the way of
your performing in this position with excellence. Then, quickly review
you strongest qualifications.

Example: “Nobody's perfect, but
based on what you've told me about this position, I believe I' d make an
outstanding match. I know that when I hire people, I look for two
things most of all. Do they have the qualifications to do the job well,
and the motivation to do it well? Everything in my background shows I
have both the qualifications and a strong desire to achieve excellence
in whatever I take on. So I can say in all honesty that I see nothing
that would cause you even a small concern about my ability or my strong
desire to perform this job with excellence.”

Alternate strategy
(if you don't yet know enough about the position to talk about such a
perfect fit): 
Instead of confessing a weakness, describe what you like
most and like least, making sure that what you like most matches up with
the most important qualification for success in the position, and what
you like least is not essential.

Example: Let's say you're
applying for a teaching position. “If given a choice, I like to spend as
much time as possible in front of my prospects selling, as opposed to
shuffling paperwork back at the office. Of course, I long ago learned
the importance of filing paperwork properly, and I do it
conscientiously. But what I really love to do is sell (if your
interviewer were a sales manager, this should be music to his ears.)

Question: Tell me about something you did – or failed to do – that you now feel a little ashamed of.

TRAPS: There are some questions
your interviewer has no business asking, and this is one. But while
you may feel like answering, “none of your business,” naturally you
can’t. Some interviewers ask this question on the chance you admit to
something, but if not, at least they’ll see how you think on your feet.

Some
unprepared candidates, flustered by this question, unburden themselves
of guilt from their personal life or career, perhaps expressing regrets
regarding a parent, spouse, child, etc. All such answers can be
disastrous.

BEST ANSWER: As with faults and weaknesses, never confess a regret. But don’t seem as if you’re stonewalling either.

Best strategy: Say you harbor no regrets, then add a principle or habit you practice regularly for healthy human relations.

Example:
Pause for reflection, as if the question never occurred to you. Then
say, “You know, I really can’t think of anything.” (Pause again, then
add): “I would add that as a general management principle, I’ve found
that the best way to avoid regrets is to avoid causing them in the first
place. I practice one habit that helps me a great deal in this regard.
At the end of each day, I mentally review the day’s events and
conversations to take a second look at the people and developments I’m
involved with and do a doublecheck of what they’re likely to be feeling.


Sometimes I’ll see things that do need more follow-up, whether a
pat on the back, or maybe a five minute chat in someone’s office to
make sure we’re clear on things…whatever.”

“I also like to make
each person feel like a member of an elite team, like the Boston Celtics
or LA Lakers in their prime. I’ve found that if you let each team
member know you expect excellence in their performance…if you work hard
to set an example yourself…and if you let people know you appreciate and
respect their feelings, you wind up with a highly motivated group, a
team that’s having fun at work because they’re striving for excellence
rather than brooding over slights or regrets.”

Question: Why are you leaving (or did you leave) this position?

TRAPS: Never badmouth your
previous industry, company, board, boss, staff, employees or customers.
This rule is inviolable: never be negative. Any mud you hurl will
only soil your suit.
Especially avoid words like “personality clash”,
“didn’t get along”, or others which cast a shadow on your competence,
integrity, or temperament.

BEST ANSWER:
(If
you have a job presently)
If you’re not yet 100% committed to leaving
your present post, don’t be afraid to say so. Since you have a job, you
are in a stronger position than someone who does not. But don’t be coy
either. State honestly what you’d be hoping to find in a new spot. Of
course, as stated often before, you answer will all the stronger if you
have already uncovered what this position is all about and you match
your desires to it.

(If you do not presently have a job.)
Never
lie about having been fired. It’s unethical – and too easily checked.
But do try to deflect the reason from you personally. If your firing
was the result of a takeover, merger, division wide layoff, etc., so
much the better.

But you should also do something totally
unnatural that will demonstrate consummate professionalism. Even if it
hurts , describe your own firing – candidly, succinctly and without a
trace of bitterness – from the company’s point-of-view, indicating that
you could understand why it happened and you might have made the same
decision yourself.

Your stature will rise immensely and, most
important of all, you will show you are healed from the wounds inflicted
by the firing. You will enhance your image as first-class management
material and stand head and shoulders above the legions of firing
victims who, at the slightest provocation, zip open their shirts to
expose their battle scars and decry the unfairness of it all.

For
all prior positions:
Make sure you’ve prepared a brief reason for
leaving. Best reasons: more money, opportunity, responsibility or
growth.

Question: The “Silent Treatment”

TRAPS: Beware – if you are
unprepared for this question, you will probably not handle it right and
possibly blow the interview. Thank goodness most interviewers don’t
employ it. It’s normally used by those determined to see how you
respond under stress. Here’s how it works:
You answer an interviewer’s question and then, instead of asking another, he just stares at you in a deafening silence.

You
wait, growing a bit uneasy, and there he sits, silent as Mt. Rushmore,
as if he doesn’t believe what you’ve just said, or perhaps making you
feel that you’ve unwittingly violated some cardinal rule of interview
etiquette.

When you get this silent treatment after answering a
particularly difficult question , such as “tell me about your
weaknesses”, its intimidating effect can be most disquieting, even to
polished job hunters.

Most unprepared candidates rush in to fill
the void of silence, viewing prolonged, uncomfortable silences as an
invitation to clear up the previous answer which has obviously caused
some problem. And that’s what they do – ramble on, sputtering more and
more information, sometimes irrelevant and often damaging, because they
are suddenly playing the role of someone who’s goofed and is now trying
to recoup. But since the candidate doesn’t know where or how he goofed,
he just keeps talking, showing how flustered and confused he is by the
interviewer’s unmovable silence.

BEST ANSWER:
Like a primitive tribal mask, the Silent Treatment loses all it power
to frighten you once you refuse to be intimidated. If your interviewer
pulls it, keep quiet yourself for a while and then ask, with sincere
politeness and not a trace of sarcasm, “Is there anything else I can
fill in on that point?” That’s all there is to it.
Whatever you do,
don’t let the Silent Treatment intimidate you into talking a blue
streak, because you could easily talk yourself out of the position.

Question: Why should I hire you?

TRAPS: Believe it or not, this
is a killer question because so many candidates are unprepared for it.
If you stammer or adlib you’ve blown it.

BEST ANSWER: By
now you can see how critical it is to apply the overall strategy of
uncovering the employer’s needs before you answer questions. If you
know the employer’s greatest needs and desires, this question will give
you a big leg up over other candidates because you will give him better
reasons for hiring you than anyone else is likely to…reasons tied
directly to his needs.
Whether your interviewer asks you this
question explicitly or not, this is the most important question of your
interview because he must answer this question favorably in is own mind
before you will be hired. So help him out! Walk through each of the
position’s requirements as you understand them, and follow each with a
reason why you meet that requirement so well.

Example: “As I understand your needs, you are first and foremost looking for someone who can
manage
the sales and marketing of your book publishing division. As you’ve
said you need someone with a strong background in trade book sales.
This is where I’ve spent almost all of my career, so I’ve chalked up 18
years of experience exactly in this area. I believe that I know the
right contacts, methods, principles, and successful management
techniques as well as any person can in our industry.”

“You also
need someone who can expand your book distribution channels. In my prior
post, my innovative promotional ideas doubled, then tripled, the number
of outlets selling our books. I’m confident I can do the same for
you.”

“You need someone to give a new shot in the arm to your
mail order sales, someone who knows how to sell in space and direct mail
media. Here, too, I believe I have exactly the experience you need.
In the last five years, I’ve increased our mail order book sales from
$600,000 to $2,800,000, and now we’re the country’s second leading
marketer of scientific and medical books by mail.” Etc., etc., etc.,

Every
one of these selling “couplets” (his need matched by your
qualifications) is a touchdown that runs up your score. IT is your best
opportunity to outsell your competition.

Question: Aren’t you overqualified for this position?

TRAPS: The employer may be concerned that you’ll grow dissatisfied and leave.

BEST ANSWER: As
with any objection, don’t view this as a sign of imminent defeat. It’s
an invitation to teach the interviewer a new way to think about this
situation, seeing advantages instead of drawbacks.

Example: “I
recognize the job market for what it is – a marketplace. Like any
marketplace, it’s subject to the laws of supply and demand. So
‘overqualified’ can be a relative term, depending on how tight the job
market is. And right now, it’s very tight. I understand and accept
that.”

“I also believe that there could be very positive benefits for both of us in this match.”

“Because
of my unusually strong experience in ________________ , I could start
to contribute right away, perhaps much faster than someone who’d have to
be brought along more slowly.”

“There’s also the value of all
the training and years of experience that other companies have invested
tens of thousands of dollars to give me. You’d be getting all the value
of that without having to pay an extra dime for it. With someone who
has yet to acquire that experience, he’d have to gain it on your
nickel.”

“I could also help you in many things they don’t teach
at the Harvard Business School. For example…(how to hire, train,
motivate, etc.) When it comes to knowing how to work well with people
and getting the most out of them, there’s just no substitute for what
you learn over many years of front-line experience. You company would
gain all this, too.”

“From my side, there are strong benefits, as
well. Right now, I am unemployed. I want to work, very much, and the
position you have here is exactly what I love to do and am best at.
I’ll be happy doing this work and that’s what matters most to me, a lot
more that money or title.”

“Most important, I’m looking to make a
long term commitment in my career now. I’ve had enough of job-hunting
and want a permanent spot at this point in my career. I also know that
if I perform this job with excellence, other opportunities cannot help
but open up for me right here. In time, I’ll find many other ways to
help this company and in so doing, help myself. I really am looking to
make a long-term commitment.”

NOTE: The main concern behind the
“overqualified” question is that you will leave your new employer as
soon as something better comes your way. Anything you can say to
demonstrate the sincerity of your commitment to the employer and
reassure him that you’re looking to stay for the long-term will help you
overcome this objection.

Question: Where do you see yourself five years from now?

TRAPS:
One reason interviewers ask this question is to see if you’re settling
for this position, using it merely as a stopover until something better
comes along. Or they could be trying to gauge your level of ambition.

If
you’re too specific, i.e., naming the promotions you someday hope to
win, you’ll sound presumptuous. If you’re too vague, you’ll seem
rudderless.

BEST ANSWER:
Reassure your interviewer that you’re looking to make a long-term
commitment…that this position entails exactly what you’re looking to do
and what you do extremely well. As for your future, you believe that if
you perform each job at hand with excellence, future opportunities will
take care of themselves.

Example: “I am definitely interested
in making a long-term commitment to my next position. Judging by what
you’ve told me about this position, it’s exactly what I’m looking for
and what I am very well qualified to do. In terms of my future career
path, I’m confident that if I do my work with excellence, opportunities
will inevitable open up for me. It’s always been that way in my career,
and I’m confident I’ll have similar opportunities here.”

Question: Describe your ideal company, location and job.

TRAPS: This is often asked by
an experienced interviewer who thinks you may be overqualified, but
knows better than to show his hand by posing his objection directly. So
he’ll use this question instead, which often gets a candidate to reveal
that, indeed, he or she is looking for something other than the
position at hand.

BEST ANSWER:
The only right answer is to describe what this company is offering,
being sure to make your answer believable with specific reasons, stated
with sincerity, why each quality represented by this opportunity is
attractive to you.

Remember that if you’re coming from a company
that’s the leader in its field or from a glamorous or much admired
company, industry, city or position, your interviewer and his company
may well have an “Avis” complex. That is, they may feel a bit defensive
about being “second best” to the place you’re coming from, worried that
you may consider them bush league.

This anxiety could well be
there even though you’ve done nothing to inspire it. You must go out of
your way to assuage such anxiety, even if it’s not expressed, by putting
their virtues high on the list of exactly what you’re looking for,
providing credible reason for wanting these qualities.

If you do
not express genuine enthusiasm for the firm, its culture, location,
industry, etc., you may fail to answer this “Avis” complex objection
and, as a result, leave the interviewer suspecting that a hot shot like
you, coming from a Fortune 500 company in New York, just wouldn’t be
happy at an unknown manufacturer based in Topeka, Kansas.

Question: Why do you want to work at our company?

TRAPS: This question tests whether you’ve done any homework about the firm. If you haven’t, you lose. If you have, you win big.

BEST ANSWER:
This question is your opportunity to hit the ball out of the park,
thanks to the in-depth research you should do before any interview.

Best
sources for researching your target company: annual reports, the
corporate newsletter, contacts you know at the company or its suppliers,
advertisements, articles about the company in the trade press.

Question: What are your career options right now?

TRAPS: The interviewer is trying to find out, “How desperate are you?”

BEST ANSWER: Prepare
for this question by thinking of how you can position yourself as a
desired commodity. If you are still working, describe the possibilities
at your present firm and why, though you’re greatly appreciated there,
you’re looking for something more (challenge, money, responsibility,
etc.). Also mention that you’re seriously exploring opportunities with
one or two other firms.

If you’re not working, you can talk about
other employment possibilities you’re actually exploring. But do this
with a light touch, speaking only in general terms. You don’t want to
seem manipulative or coy.

Question: Why have you been out of work so long?

TRAPS: A tough question if you’ve been on the beach a long time. You don’t want to seem like damaged goods.

BEST ANSWER: You want to emphasize factors which have prolonged your job search by your own choice.

Example:
“After my job was terminated, I made a conscious decision not to jump
on the first opportunities to come along. In my life, I’ve found out
that you can always turn a negative into a positive IF you try hard
enough. This is what I determined to do. I decided to take whatever
time I needed to think through what I do best, what I most want to do,
where I’d like to do it…and then identify those companies that could
offer such an opportunity.”

“Also, in all honesty, you have to
factor in the recession (consolidation, stabilization, etc.) in the
(banking, financial services, manufacturing, advertising, etc.)
industry.”

“So between my being selective and the companies in
our industry downsizing, the process has taken time. But in the end,
I’m convinced that when I do find the right match, all that careful
evaluation from both sides of the desk will have been well worthwhile
for both the company that hires me and myself.

Question: Tell me honestly about the strong points and weak points of your boss (company, management team, etc.)…

TRAPS: Skillfull interviewers
sometimes make it almost irresistible to open up and air a little dirty
laundry from your previous position. DON’T

BEST ANSWER: Remember the rule: Never be negative. Stress only the good points, no matter how charmingly you’re invited to be critical.

Your
interviewer doesn’t care a whit about your previous boss. He wants to
find out how loyal and positive you are, and whether you’ll criticize
him behind his back if pressed to do so by someone in this own company.
This question is your opportunity to demonstrate your loyalty to those
you work with.

Question: What good books have you read lately?

TRAPS: As in all matters of
your interview, never fake familiarity you don’t have. Yet you don’t
want to seem like a dullard who hasn’t read a book since Tom Sawyer.

BEST ANSWER:
Unless you’re up for a position in academia or as book critic for The
New York Times, you’re not expected to be a literary lion. But it
wouldn’t hurt to have read a handful of the most recent and influential
books in your profession and on management.

Consider it part of
the work of your job search to read up on a few of these leading books.
But make sure they are quality books that reflect favorably upon you,
nothing that could even remotely be considered superficial. Finally,
add a recently published bestselling work of fiction by a world-class
author and you’ll pass this question with flying colors.

Question: Tell me about a situation when your work was criticized.

TRAPS: This is a tough question
because it’s a more clever and subtle way to get you to admit to a
weakness. You can’t dodge it by pretending you’ve never been
criticized. Everybody has been. Yet it can be quite damaging to start
admitting potential faults and failures that you’d just as soon leave
buried.

This question is also intended to probe how well you accept criticism and direction.

BEST ANSWERS:
Begin by emphasizing the extremely positive feedback you’ve gotten
throughout your career and (if it’s true) that your performance reviews
have been uniformly excellent.

Of course, no one is perfect and
you always welcome suggestions on how to improve your performance.
Then, give an example of a not-too-damaging learning experience from
early in your career and relate the ways this lesson has since helped
you. This demonstrates that you learned from the experience and the
lesson is now one of the strongest breastplates in your suit of armor.

If
you are pressed for a criticism from a recent position, choose
something fairly trivial that in no way is essential to your successful
performance. Add that you’ve learned from this, too, and over the past
several years/months, it’s no longer an area of concern because you now
make it a regular practice to…etc.

Another way to answer this
question would be to describe your intention to broaden your master of
an area of growing importance in your field. For example, this might be
a computer program you’ve been meaning to sit down and learn… a new
management technique you’ve read about…or perhaps attending a seminar on
some cutting-edge branch of your profession.

Again, the key is
to focus on something not essential to your brilliant performance but
which adds yet another dimension to your already impressive knowledge
base.

Question: What are your outside interests?

TRAPS: You want to be a
well-rounded, not a drone. But your potential employer would be even
more turned off if he suspects that your heavy extracurricular load will
interfere with your commitment to your work duties.

BEST ANSWERS: Try to gauge how this company’s culture would look upon your favorite outside activities and be guided accordingly.

You
can also use this question to shatter any stereotypes that could limit
your chances. If you’re over 50, for example, describe your activities
that demonstrate physical stamina. If you’re young, mention an activity
that connotes wisdom and institutional trust, such as serving on the
board of a popular charity.

But above all, remember that your
employer is hiring your for what you can do for him, not your family,
yourself or outside organizations, no matter how admirable those
activities may be.

Question: The “Fatal Flaw” question

TRAPS: If an interviewer has
read your resume carefully, he may try to zero in on a “fatal flaw” of
your candidacy, perhaps that you don’t have a college degree…you’ve been
out of the job market for some time…you never earned your CPA, etc.

A fatal flaw question can be deadly, but usually only if you respond by being overly defensive.
BEST ANSWERS:
As every master salesperson knows, you will encounter objections
(whether stated or merely thought) in every sale. They’re part and
parcel of the buyer’s anxiety.

The key is not to exacerbate the buyer’s anxiety but diminish it. Here’s how…

Whenever you come up against a fatal flaw question:

Be
completely honest, open and straightforward about admitting the
shortcoming. (Showing you have nothing to hide diminishes the buyer’s
anxiety.)
Do not apologize or try to explain it away. You know that
this supposed flaw is nothing to be concerned about, and this is the
attitude you want your interviewer to adopt as well.

Add that as
desirable as such a qualification might be, its lack has made you work
all the harder throughout your career and has not prevented you from
compiling an outstanding tack record of achievements. You might even
give examples of how, through a relentless commitment to excellence, you
have consistently outperformed those who do have this qualification.

Of
course, the ultimate way to handle “fatal flaw” questions is to prevent
them from arising in the first place. You will do that by following
the master strategy described in Question 1, i.e., uncovering the
employers needs and them matching your qualifications to those needs.

Once
you’ve gotten the employer to start talking about his most
urgently-felt wants and goals for the position, and then help him see in
step-by-step fashion how perfectly your background and achievements
match up with those needs, you’re going to have one very enthusiastic
interviewer on your hands, one who is no longer looking for “fatal
flaws”.

Question: How do you feel about reporting to a younger person (minority, woman, etc)?

TRAPS: It’s a shame that some
interviewers feel the need to ask this question, but many understand the
reality that prejudices still exist among some job candidates, and it’s
better to try to flush them out beforehand.

The trap here is
that in today’s politically sensitized environment, even a
well-intentioned answer can result in planting your foot neatly in your
mouth. Avoid anything which smacks of a patronizing or an insensitive
attitude, such as “I think they make terrific bosses” or “Hey, some of
my best friends are…”

Of course, since almost anyone with an IQ
above room temperature will at least try to steadfastly affirm the right
answer here, your interviewer will be judging your sincerity most of
all. “Do you really feel that way?” is what he or she will be
wondering.

So you must make your answer believable and not just
automatic. If the firm is wise enough to have promoted peopled on the
basis of ability alone, they’re likely quite proud of it, and prefer to
hire others who will wholeheartedly share their strong sense of fair
play.

BEST ANSWER: You
greatly admire a company that hires and promotes on merit alone and you
couldn’t agree more with that philosophy. The age (gender, race, etc.)
of the person you report to would certainly make no difference to you.

Whoever
has that position has obviously earned it and knows their job well.
Both the person and the position are fully deserving of respect. You
believe that all people in a company, from the receptionist to the
Chairman, work best when their abilities, efforts and feelings are
respected and rewarded fairly, and that includes you. That’s the best
type of work environment you can hope to find.

Question: On confidential matters…

TRAPS: When an interviewer
presses you to reveal confidential information about a present or former
employer, you may feel it’s a no-win situation. If you cooperate, you
could be judged untrustworthy. If you don’t, you may irritate the
interviewer and seem obstinate, uncooperative or overly suspicious.

BEST ANSWER: Your interviewer may press you for this information for two reasons.
First,
many companies use interviews to research the competition. It’s a
perfect set-up. Here in their own lair, is an insider from the enemy
camp who can reveal prized information on the competition’s plans,
research, financial condition, etc.

Second, the company may be testing your integrity to see if you can be cajoled or bullied into revealing confidential data.

What
to do? The answer here is easy. Never reveal anything truly
confidential about a present or former employer. By all means, explain
your reticence diplomatically. For example, “I certainly want to be as
open as I can about that. But I also wish to respect the rights of
those who have trusted me with their most sensitive information, just as
you would hope to be able to trust any of your key people when talking
with a competitor…”

And certainly you can allude to your finest achievements in specific ways that don’t reveal the combination to the company safe.

But
be guided by the golden rule. If you were the owner of your present
company, would you feel it ethically wrong for the information to be
given to your competitors? If so, steadfastly refuse to reveal it.

Remember
that this question pits your desire to be cooperative against your
integrity. Faced with any such choice, always choose integrity. It is a
far more valuable commodity than whatever information the company may
pry from you. Moreover, once you surrender the information, your stock
goes down. They will surely lose respect for you.

One President
we know always presses candidates unmercifully for confidential
information. If he doesn’t get it, he grows visibly annoyed,
relentlessly inquisitive, It’s all an act. He couldn’t care less about
the information. This is his way of testing the candidate’s moral
fiber. Only those who hold fast are hired.

Question: Would you lie for the company?

TRAPS: This another question that pits two values against one another, in this case loyalty against integrity.

BEST ANSWER: Try to avoid choosing between two values, giving a positive statement which covers all bases instead.

Example: “I would never do anything to hurt the company..”

If
aggressively pressed to choose between two competing values, always
choose personal integrity. It is the most prized of all values.

Question 22 Looking back, what would you do differently in your life?

TRAPS: This question is usually
asked to uncover any life-influencing mistakes, regrets,
disappointments or problems that may continue to affect your personality
and performance.

You do not want to give the interviewer
anything negative to remember you by, such as some great personal or
career disappointment, even long ago, that you wish could have been
avoided.

Nor do you wish to give any answer which may hint that your whole heart and soul will not be in your work.

BEST ANSWER: Indicate that you are a happy, fulfilled, optimistic person and that, in general, you wouldn’t change a thing.

Example:
“It’s been a good life, rich in learning and experience, and the best
it yet to come. Every experience in life is a lesson it its own way. I
wouldn’t change a thing.”

Question: Could you have done better in your last job?

TRAPS: This is no time for true confessions of major or even minor problems.

BEST ANSWER: Again never be negative.

Example:
“I suppose with the benefit of hindsight you can always find things to
do better, of course, but off the top of my head, I can’t think of
anything of major consequence.”

(If more explanation seems
necessary) 
Describer a situation that didn’t suffer because of you but
from external conditions beyond your control.

For example,
describe the disappointment you felt with a test campaign, new product
launch, merger, etc., which looked promising at first, but led to
underwhelming results. “I wish we could have known at the start what we
later found out (about the economy turning, the marketplace changing,
etc.), but since we couldn’t, we just had to go for it. And we did
learn from it…”

Question: Can you work under pressure?

TRAPS: An easy question, but you want to make your answer believable.

BEST ANSWER: Absolutely…(then prove it with a vivid example or two of a goal or project accomplished under severe pressure.)

Question: What makes you angry?

TRAPS: You don’t want to come across either as a hothead or a wimp.

BEST ANSWER:
Give an answer that’s suited to both your personality and the
management style of the firm. Here, the homework you’ve done about the
company and its style can help in your choice of words.

Examples: If you are a reserved person and/or the corporate culture is coolly professional:
“I’m
an even-tempered and positive person by nature, and I believe this
helps me a great deal in keeping my department running smoothly,
harmoniously and with a genuine esprit de corps. I believe in
communicating clearly what’s expected, getting people’s commitment to
those goals, and then following up continuously to check progress.”

“If
anyone or anything is going off track, I want to know about it early.
If, after that kind of open communication and follow up, someone isn’t
getting the job done, I’ll want to know why. If there’s no good reason,
then I’ll get impatient and angry…and take appropriate steps from
there. But if you hire good people, motivate them to strive for
excellence and then follow up constantly, it almost never gets to that
state.”

If you are feisty by nature and/or the position calls for a tough straw boss.
“You
know what makes me angry? People who (the fill in the blanks with the
most objectionable traits for this type of position)…people who don’t
pull their own weight, who are negative, people who lie…etc.”

Question 26 Why aren’t you earning more money at this stage of your career?

TRAPS: You don’t want to give
the impression that money is not important to you, yet you want to
explain why your salary may be a little below industry standards.

BEST ANSWER: You like to make money, but other factors are even more important.

Example:
“Making money is very important to me, and one reason I’m here is
because I’m looking to make more. Throughout my career, what’s been
even more important to me is doing work I really like to do at the kind
of company I like and respect.

(Then be prepared to be specific
about what your ideal position and company would be like, matching them
as closely as possible to the opportunity at hand.

Question: Who has inspired you in your life and why?

TRAPS: The two traps here are
unpreparedness and irrelevance. If you grope for an answer, it seems
you’ve never been inspired. If you ramble about your high school
basketball coach, you’ve wasted an opportunity to present qualities of
great value to the company.

BEST ANSWER:
Have a few heroes in mind, from your mental “Board of Directors” –
Leaders in your industry, from history or anyone else who has been your
mentor.

Be prepared to give examples of how their words, actions
or teachings have helped inspire your achievements. As always, prepare
an answer which highlights qualities that would be highly valuable in
the position you are seeking.

Question: What was the toughest decision you ever had to make?

TRAPS: Giving an unprepared or irrelevant answer.

BEST ANSWER:
Be prepared with a good example, explaining why the decision was
difficult…the process you followed in reaching it…the courageous or
effective way you carried it out…and the beneficial results.

Question: Tell me about the most boring job you’ve ever had.

TRAPS: You give a very
memorable description of a very boring job. Result? You become
associated with this boring job in the interviewer’s mind.

BEST ANSWER:
You have never allowed yourself to grow bored with a job and you can’t
understand it when others let themselves fall into that rut.

Example:
“Perhaps I’ve been fortunate, but that I’ve never found myself bored
with any job I have ever held. I’ve always enjoyed hard work. As with
actors who feel there are no small parts, I also believe that in every
company or department there are exciting challenges and intriguing
problems crying out for energetic and enthusiastic solutions. If you’re
bored, it’s probably because you’re not challenging yourself to tackle
those problems right under your nose.”

Question: Have you been absent from work more than a few days in any previous position?

TRAPS: If you’ve had a problem,
you can’t lie. You could easily be found out. Yet admitting an
attendance problem could raise many flags.

BEST ANSWER: If you have had no problem, emphasize your excellent and consistent attendance record throughout your career.

Also
describe how important you believe such consistent attendance is for a
key executive…why it’s up to you to set an example of dedication…and why
there’s just no substitute for being there with your people to keep the
operation running smoothly, answer questions and handle problems and
crises as they arise.

If you do have a past attendance problem,
you want to minimize it, making it clear that it was an exceptional
circumstance and that it’s cause has been corrected.

To do this,
give the same answer as above but preface it with something like, “Other
that being out last year (or whenever) because of (your reason, which
is now in the past), I have never had a problem and have enjoyed an
excellent attendance record throughout my career. Furthermore, I
believe, consistent attendance is important because…” (Pick up the rest
of the answer as outlined above.).

Question: What changes would you make if you came on board?

TRAPS: Watch out! This question can derail your candidacy faster than a bomb on the tracks – and just as you are about to be hired.

Reason:
No matter how bright you are, you cannot know the right actions to
take in a position before you settle in and get to know the operation’s
strengths, weaknesses key people, financial condition, methods of
operation, etc. If you lunge at this temptingly baited question, you
will probably be seen as someone who shoots from the hip.

Moreover,
no matter how comfortable you may feel with your interviewer, you are
still an outsider. No one, including your interviewer, likes to think
that a know-it-all outsider is going to come in, turn the place upside
down and with sweeping, grand gestures, promptly demonstrate what jerks
everybody’s been for years.

BEST ANSWER: You, of course, will want to take a good hard look at everything the company is doing before making any recommendations.

Example:
“Well, I wouldn’t be a very good doctor if I gave my diagnosis before
the examination. Should you hire me, as I hope you will, I’d want to
take a good hard look at everything you’re doing and understand why it’s
being done that way. I’d like to have in-depth meetings with you and
the other key people to get a deeper grasp of what you feel you’re doing
right and what could be improved.

“From what you’ve told me so
far, the areas of greatest concern to you are…” (name them. Then do two
things. First, ask if these are in fact his major concerns. If so
then reaffirm how your experience in meeting similar needs elsewhere
might prove very helpful).

Question: I’m concerned that you don’t have as much experience as we’d like in…

TRAPS: This could be a
make-or-break question. The interviewer mostly likes what he sees, but
has doubts over one key area. If you can assure him on this point, the
job may be yours.

BEST ANSWER:
This question is related to “The Fatal Flaw” (Question 18), but here
the concern is not that you are totally missing some qualifications,
such as CPA certification, but rather that your experience is light in
one area.

Before going into any interview, try to identify the
weakest aspects of your candidacy from this company’s point of view.
Then prepare the best answer you possible can to shore up your defenses.

To
get past this question with flying colors, you are going to rely on
your master strategy of uncovering the employer’s greatest wants and
needs and then matching them with your strengths. Since you already
know how to do this from Question 1, you are in a much stronger
position.

More specifically, when the interviewer poses as objection like this, you should…

Agree on the importance of this qualification.

Explain that your strength may be indeed be greater than your resume indicates because…
When this strength is added to your other strengths, it’s really your combination of qualifications that’s most important.

Then
review the areas of your greatest strengths that match up most
favorably with the company’s most urgently-felt wants and needs.

This
is powerful way to handle this question for two reasons. First, you’re
giving your interviewer more ammunition in the area of his concern.
But more importantly, you’re shifting his focus away from this one,
isolated area and putting it on the unique combination of strengths you
offer, strengths which tie in perfectly with his greatest wants.

Question: How do you feel about working nights and weekends?

TRAPS: Blurt out “no way, Jose”
and you can kiss the job offer goodbye. But what if you have a family
and want to work a reasonably normal schedule? Is there a way to get
both the job and the schedule you want?

BEST ANSWER:
First, if you’re a confirmed workaholic, this question is a softball
lob. Whack it out of the park on the first swing by saying this kind of
schedule is just your style. Add that your family understands it.
Indeed, they’re happy for you, as they know you get your greatest
satisfaction from your work.

If however, you prefer a more
balanced lifestyle, answer this question with another: “What’s the norm
for your best people here?”

If the hours still sound unrealistic
for you, ask, “Do you have any top people who perform exceptionally for
you, but who also have families and like to get home in time to see
them at night?” Chances are this company does, and this associates you
with this other “top-performers-who-leave-not-later-than-six” group.

Depending
on the answer, be honest about how you would fit into the picture. If
all those extra hours make you uncomfortable, say so, but phrase your
response positively.

Example: “I love my work and do it
exceptionally well. I think the results speak for themselves,
especially in …(mention your two or three qualifications of greater
interest to the employer. Remember, this is what he wants most, not a
workaholic with weak credentials). Not only would I bring these
qualities, but I’ve built my whole career on working not just hard, but
smart. I think you’ll find me one of the most productive people here.

I
do have a family who likes to see me after work and on weekends. They
add balance and richness to my life, which in turn helps me be happy and
productive at work. If I could handle some of the extra work at home
in the evenings or on weekends, that would be ideal. You’d be getting a
person of exceptional productivity who meets your needs with strong
credentials. And I’d be able to handle some of the heavy workload at
home where I can be under the same roof as my family. Everybody would
win.”

Question: Are you willing to relocate or travel?

TRAPS: Answer with a flat “no”
and you may slam the door shut on this opportunity. But what if you’d
really prefer not to relocate or travel, yet wouldn’t want to lose the
job offer over it?

BEST ANSWER: First find out where you may have to relocate and how much travel may be involved. Then respond to the question.

If there’s no problem, say so enthusiastically.

If you do have a reservation, there are two schools of thought on how to handle it.
One
advises you to keep your options open and your reservations to yourself
in the early going, by saying, “no problem”. You strategy here is to
get the best offer you can, then make a judgment whether it’s worth it
to you to relocate or travel.

Also, by the time the offer comes
through, you may have other offers and can make a more informed
decision. Why kill of this opportunity before it has chance to blossom
into something really special? And if you’re a little more desperate
three months from now, you might wish you hadn’t slammed the door on
relocating or traveling.

The second way to handle this question
is to voice a reservation, but assert that you’d be open to relocating
(or traveling) for the right opportunity.

The answering strategy
you choose depends on how eager you are for the job. If you want to
take no chances, choose the first approach.

If you want to play a little harder-to-get in hopes of generating a more enticing offer, choose the second.

Question: Do you have the stomach to fire people? Have you had experience firing many people?

TRAPS: This “innocent” question
could be a trap door which sends you down a chute and lands you in a
heap of dust outside the front door. Why? Because its real intent is
not just to see if you’ve got the stomach to fire, but also to uncover
poor judgment in hiring which has caused you to fire so many. Also, if
you fire so often, you could be a tyrant.

So don’t rise to the
bait by boasting how many you’ve fired, unless you’ve prepared to
explain why it was beyond your control, and not the result of your poor
hiring procedures or foul temperament.

BEST ANSWER: Describe the rational and sensible management process you follow in both hiring and firing.

Example:
“My whole management approach is to hire the best people I can find,
train them thoroughly and well, get them excited and proud to be part of
our team, and then work with them to achieve our goals together. If
you do all of that right, especially hiring the right people, I’ve found
you don’t have to fire very often.

“So with me, firing is a last
resort. But when it’s got to be done, it’s got to be done, and the
faster and cleaner, the better. A poor employee can wreak terrible
damage in undermining the morale of an entire team of good people. When
there’s no other way, I’ve found it’s better for all concerned to act
decisively in getting rid of offenders who won’t change their ways.”

Question: Why have you had so many jobs?

TRAPS: Your interviewer fears you may leave this position quickly, as
you have others. He’s concerned you may be unstable, or a “problem
person” who can’t get along with others.

BEST ANSWER: First,
before you even get to the interview stage, you should try to minimize
your image as job hopper. If there are several entries on your resume
of less than one year, consider eliminating the less important ones.
Perhaps you can specify the time you spent at previous positions in
rounded years not in months and years.

Example: Instead of showing three positions this way:

6/1982 – 3/1983, Position A;

4/1983 – 12/1983, Position B;

1/1984 – 8/1987, Position C;

…it would be better to show simply:

1982 – 1983, Position A;

1984 – 1987 Position C.

In
other words, you would drop Position B altogether. Notice what a
difference this makes in reducing your image as a job hopper.

Once
in front of the interviewer and this question comes up, you must try to
reassure him. Describe each position as part of an overall pattern of
growth and career destination.
Be careful not to blame other people
for your frequent changes. But you can and should attribute certain
changes to conditions beyond your control.

Example: Thanks to
an upcoming merger, you wanted to avoid an ensuing bloodbath, so you
made a good, upward career move before your department came under the
axe of the new owners.

If possible, also show that your job
changes were more frequent in your younger days, while you were
establishing yourself, rounding out your skills and looking for the
right career path. At this stage in your career, you’re certainly much
more interested in the best long-term opportunity.

You might also
cite the job(s) where you stayed the longest and describe that this
type of situation is what you’re looking for now.

Question: What do you see as the proper role/mission of…

What do you see as the proper role/mission of…

…a good (job title you’re seeking);

…a good manager;

…an executive in serving the community;

…a leading company in our industry; etc.

TRAPS:
These and other “proper role” questions are designed to test your
understanding of your place in the bigger picture of your department,
company, community and profession….as well as the proper role each of
these entities should play in its bigger picture.

The question is
most frequently asked by the most thoughtful individuals and
companies…or by those concerned that you’re coming from a place with a
radically different corporate culture (such as from a big government
bureaucracy to an aggressive small company).

The most frequent
mistake executives make in answering is simply not being prepared
(seeming as if they’ve never giving any of this a though.)…or in
phrasing an answer best suited to their prior organization’s culture
instead of the hiring company’s.

BEST ANSWER:
Think of the most essential ingredients of success for each category
above – your job title, your role as manager, yo