The interviewer wants to know why you left your job and why you want to work for their company. When asked about why you are moving on from your current position, stick with the facts, be direct, and focus your answer on the future, especially if your departure wasn't under the best circumstances.
What Is Your Greatest Strength? This is one of the questions that employers almost always ask to determine how well you are qualified for the position. When you are asked about your greatest strengths, it's important to discuss the attributes that qualify you for that specific job, and that will set you apart from other candidates. What Is Your Greatest Weakness? Another typical question that interviewers will ask is about your weaknesses. This question is an opportunity to show the hiring manager that you're well qualified for the job.
In addition to learning whether you've got the right credentials, the hiring manager wants to know whether you can take on challenges and learn new tasks. You can share examples of skills you have improved, providing specific instances of how you have recognized a weakness and taken steps to correct it. How do you deal with difficult situations?
The employer wants to know how you handle workplace stress. Do you work well in high-stress situations? Do you thrive on pressure, or would you prefer a more low-key job?
What do you do when something goes wrong? The best way to respond to this question is to share an example of how you have successfully handled stress in a previous position.
Avoid claiming that you never, or rarely, experience stress. What Are Your Salary Expectations? What are you looking for in terms of salary? Questions about money are always tricky to answer.
You don't want to sell yourself short or price yourself out of a job offer. In some locations, employers are legally prohibited from asking you about salary history —but they can ask how much you expect to get paid. There are several free online salary calculators that can provide you with a reasonable range based on your job title, employer, experience, skills, and location. What Are Your Career Goals?
Are you a job hopper? Or do you plan on staying with the company, at least for a while? Where do you envision your career going? Do your plans for the future match the career path for someone typically hired for this position?
Keep your answer focused on the job and the company, and reiterate to the interviewer that the position aligns with your long-term goals. Here are some related questions you might be asked during a job interview that will require some thought to answer. Need more help? For a comprehensive list of over of the most common interview questions, review the most frequently asked interview questions , tips for responding, and sample answers you can use to practice for a job interview.
You can also expect to be asked about how you would respond to a specific work-related situation. Here's a list of examples of these behavioral interview questions you may be asked. At the close of the interview, most interviewers ask whether you have any questions about the job or company. It's always a good idea to have a list of questions ready, and to be prepared to discuss them. There are some questions that hiring managers should not ask during a job interview for legal reasons.
Here are questions that shouldn't be asked , with advice on how to respond diplomatically. The more time you spend preparing for a job interview , the better your chances will be of acing it.
Research the company. Before your interview, take the time to learn as much as possible about the job and your prospective employer. There are many different resources you can use to find information and news about the organization, its mission, and its plans. Don't talk about how you can't get along with other employees. Don't bad-mouth your company. Instead, focus on the positives a move will bring. Talk about what you want to achieve. Talk about what you want to learn. Talk about ways you want to grow, about things you want to accomplish; explain how a move will be great for you and for your new company.
Complaining about your current employer is a little like people who gossip: If you're willing to speak badly of someone else, you'll probably do the same to me.
Maybe you love working alone, but if the job you're interviewing for is in a call center, that answer will do you no good.
So take a step back and think about the job you're applying for and the company's culture because every company has one, whether intentional or unintentional.
If a flexible schedule is important to you, but the company doesn't offer one, focus on something else. If you like constant direction and support and the company expects employees to self-manage, focus on something else. Find ways to highlight how the company's environment will work well for you -- and if you can't find ways, don't take the job, because you'll be miserable.
The goal of this question is to evaluate the candidate's reasoning ability, problem-solving skills, judgment, and possibly even willingness to take intelligent risks. Having no answer is a definite warning sign. Everyone makes tough decisions, regardless of their position. My daughter worked part-time as a server at a local restaurant and made difficult decisions all the time -- like the best way to deal with a regular customer whose behavior constituted borderline harassment.
A good answer proves you can make a difficult analytical or reasoning-based decision -- for example, wading through reams of data to determine the best solution to a problem. A great answer proves you can make a difficult interpersonal decision, or better yet a difficult data-driven decision that includes interpersonal considerations and ramifications.
Making decisions based on data is important, but almost every decision has an impact on people as well. The best candidates naturally weigh all sides of an issue, not just the business or human side exclusively. This is a tough question to answer without dipping into platitudes. Try sharing leadership examples instead. Say, "The best way for me to answer that is to give you a few examples of leadership challenges I've faced," and then share situations where you dealt with a problem, motivated a team, worked through a crisis.
Explain what you did and that will give the interviewer a great sense of how you lead. No one agrees with every decision.
Disagreements are fine; it's what you do when you disagree that matters. We all know people who love to have the "meeting after the meeting," where they've supported a decision in the meeting but they then go out and undermine it.
Show that you were professional. Show that you raised your concerns in a productive way. If you have an example that proves you can effect change, great -- and if you don't, show that you can support a decision even though you think it's wrong as long as it's not unethical, immoral, etc. Every company wants employees willing to be honest and forthright, to share concerns and issues, but to also get behind a decision and support it as if they agreed, even if they didn't.
I hate this question. It's a total throwaway. But I did ask it once, and got an answer I really liked. If I say I will help, I help. I'm not sure that everyone likes me, but they all know they can count on what I say and how hard I work. Ideally the answer to this should come from the employer: They should have plans and expectations for you.
Many companies feel cultural fit is extremely important, and they use outside interests as a way to determine how you will fit into a team. Even so, don't be tempted to fib and claim to enjoy hobbies you don't.
Focus on activities that indicate some sort of growth: skills you're trying to learn, goals you're trying to accomplish. Weave those in with personal details. For example, "I'm raising a family, so a lot of my time is focused on that, but I'm using my commute time to learn Spanish. This is a tough one. You want to be open and honest, but frankly, some companies ask the question as the opening move in salary negotiations.
Try an approach recommended by Liz Ryan. Is this position in that range? Maybe the interviewer will answer; maybe she won't. If she presses you for an answer, you'll have to decide whether you want to share or demur.
Ultimately your answer won't matter too much, because you'll either accept the salary offered or you won't, depending on what you think is fair. Questions like these have become a lot more popular thanks, Google in recent years.
The interviewer isn't necessarily looking for the right answer but instead a little insight into your reasoning abilities. All you can do is talk through your logic as you try to solve the problem. Don't be afraid to laugh at yourself if you get it wrong -- sometimes the interviewer is merely trying to assess how you deal with failure.
Don't waste this opportunity. Ask smart questions, not just as a way to show you're a great candidate but also to see if the company is a good fit for you -- after all, you're being interviewed, but you're also interviewing the company. If you weren't asked this question, ask it yourself.
Great candidates want to hit the ground running. They don't want to spend weeks or months "getting to know the organization. Great candidates also want to be great employees. There are many acceptable reasons for leaving a job. Instead of focusing on the negative aspects of your current or previous role, focus on the future and what you hope to gain in your next position. Consider the following when crafting your response:.
Keep it positive: " In your answer to this question, share your most relevant technical and soft skills. While it may feel uncomfortable to talk highly of yourself, remember that this is your opportunity to tell your interviewers what makes you a great candidate—and they want to hear it. To answer, follow the formula below:. Back them up with examples: " However, when answered correctly, sharing your weaknesses shows that you are self-aware with an interest in continued growth and learning—traits that are extremely attractive to many employers.
Consider using this formula for your response:. Add context: " From high school and into my early professional interactions, it sometimes prevented me from speaking up Provide a specific example: " Explain how you overcame or are working to overcome it: " I joined an improv acting class. I learned practical skills around leading discussions and sharing diverse perspectives. Now, in group settings, I always start conversations with the quieter folks.
I know exactly how they feel, and people can be amazing once they start talking. Additionally, this question is used to gauge your ambition, expectations for your career and ability to plan ahead. The best way to handle this question is to examine your current career trajectory and how this role helps you reach your long-term goals.
I believe this experience will serve me well in achieving my ultimate goal of someday leading a marketing department. Understanding how you imagine your life in the future can help employers understand whether the trajectory of the role and company fits in with your personal development goals. To answer this question you can:. I would also like to gain specialized expertise in user experience to be a well-rounded contributor working with design and marketing teams on large-scale projects that make a difference both in the company and the global community.
Provide specific career goals including any dream roles or projects:. This question is often used to assess how well you perform under pressure as well as your problem-solving abilities. For this question, consider sticking to the STAR method :. I spent my lunch hour on the phone with him talking through his concerns. We even brainstormed ideas for his next campaign. He was so grateful for the personal attention that he signed another six-month contract before my boss even returned from her trip.
Here are three ways to approach this response:. Research the typical compensation range for the role on Indeed Salaries and make the low end of your range your lowest acceptable salary. However, I am flexible and willing to discuss. There may be other benefits, perks or forms of compensation you find just as valuable as your salary. That way, I can provide a more accurate expectation. Culture adds make the company stronger by diversifying the experiences and perspectives of its workforce.
I understand that you require a highly organized candidate with acute attention to detail. Remember that you are interviewing the company too. Take time to ask the interviewer questions about their own experiences with the company, gain tips on how you can succeed if hired and address any lingering questions you have. Some examples include:. Do you have any hesitations about hiring me? Knowing what you enjoyed about your last position can offer employers insight to your motivations, personality and whether you will enjoy the position available.
To answer this question, focus on positives, speak to work rather than people, explain how it prepared you for this new position and reasons why moving to this role is the right choice. Not only was I learning more about marketing, but management was also very transparent, teaching us a great deal about owning a business. It was a very collaborative atmosphere, and the team and I worked together on almost every project. Everyone's weak point was countered by another's strong point.
I learned more working there than I ever did in college, and I'm excited to apply these skills to a new position. This question can tell employers about types of work you enjoy, your experience level with certain workplace scenarios and whether or not you would be a good culture add.
Avoid saying anything negative about your former employer, managers or colleagues. Make your answer about your career growth and enthusiasm for joining their organization. I deeply enjoy being challenged and getting better at what I do, which I understand is a top priority for managers at your organization. How you handle stressful situations is an indicator of your ability to solve problems.
Spend some time thinking about your response to stressful situations and provide an example that communicates your abilities around perseverance, resilience and stress management. Instead, think of a few achievements that showcase your work ethic and values. The STAR method is a great tool to ensure you highlight the parts of your story that employers want to hear.
I noticed other brands were experimenting with videos and seeing great engagement from their customers, so I asked my boss if we could do a low-budget test. She agreed, so I produced a video cheaply in-house that drove double the engagement we normally saw on our social channels. Employers may ask this of anyone who might be leading or teaching others.
Your response will allow employers to gauge your personal skills and if you would be a good culture add. A good answer will concisely identify what you think teaching should achieve and include concrete examples to illustrate your ideas.
This way, they feel ownership over the learning rather than feeling micromanaged. For example, in my last role, I was editing an article written by a copywriter I managed. In a one-on-one meeting, I asked her what she thought was the main point of the article if she had to sum it up in a sentence. From there, I asked if she thought the focus was clear in the article. As a result, the article improved and my direct report learned a valuable writing lesson that she carried into her future work.
Your answer can either come from the perspective of a customer or a customer service provider. Instead of simply stating the facts, the flight attendant apologized sincerely and offered me a free drink or premium snack.
To me, this apology went a long way in smoothing things over. The freebie was a bonus that made me feel valued as a customer and choose the same airline for my next flight. An interviewer may or may not already be familiar with your background. Regardless, this question gives you the chance to detail your experiences that are most valuable to the prospective role.
Consider these tips for answering:. When I became a senior financial analyst, I supervised other analysts and trained them in providing the most helpful experience to our customers. End with a goal statement: "As your senior financial consultant, I aim to integrate my individualized approach to helping clients build the retirement fund they will depend on.
Employers ask this to help them understand how your definition of success influences your goals and how you measure them. I work toward completing my individual duties as effectively as possible, balancing that with professional growth and contributing to larger organizational goals. Many jobs involve moments when, for varied reasons, there are unexpected situations that require swift action.
The ability to stay calm, think logically and act correctly in such a scenario is a major asset. This is another good instance of when to use the STAR method to talk about a specific time you were faced with a challenge, might have succumbed to stress but managed to calmly find a solution.
I find that routine can make us complacent, so I try to look for challenges that push me to grow. One time, I was supposed to deliver a project to a client in five days.
A colleague who was working with another client had the same deadline, but he had to take a leave of absence due to personal reasons. I was forced to take up both projects at the same time. While I felt an initial sense of panic, I tried to reframe it as an opportunity to see what I might be capable of.
Instead of letting the stress get to me, I came up with a very detailed time management plan and found new ways to boost my efficiency that enabled me to deliver both projects on time. Employers typically ask this question because they want to ensure that your interests and passion align with their job. Describe a job in general: " My dream job would be a leadership position where the other team members are active participants and communication happens daily Discuss your values: " Tailor to the job for which you are interviewing: " Research the company in-depth to understand its culture and business needs.
Explain why your skills, experience and characteristics uniquely position you to advance organizational objectives. Use an example from your work experience that speaks to your skill set. In a previous position as the purchasing lead, I had to decide which supplies to order to stay within the budget, but I had a limited amount of time to make a decision.
I will bring the same interest and motivation for making an impact here at ABC Company. Employers ask this question to gauge how you interact with various stakeholders or colleagues of differing opinions. Often, being the right person for the job involves more than just hard skills, hiring managers also value candidates who can collaborate with others and approach conflict in a productive way.
A good answer will discuss a time you encountered a conflict with a colleague, client or manager and maintained the patience to resolve it. Use the STAR method to construct your response. When I approached him about it, he reacted defensively. I kept calm and acknowledged that the deadlines were challenging and asked how I could assist him in improving his performance. He calmed down and told me that he was involved in another project where he had to do tasks that were not in his job description.
For the remainder of the project, the technician delivered great work.
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