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How to Answer The Most Difficult Interview Questions
The following 'difficult' questions are common to most tricky or adversarial interviews. In order to convince the interviewer that you are the best person for the job, you must prepare and rehearse your answers meticulously. Study the job description and the candidate profile; research the company; and match your skills and accomplishments to the employer's requirements. When preparing your answers, consider what each question is designed to find out about the candidate's suitability for the position on offer. 1. Why are you leaving your current job? The employer is seeking to identify problems you have had in the past that you may carry over into your new job. Always cite positive reasons for joining and leaving a company. Never criticize your previous employer or work colleagues. Avoid statements that may convey a negative impression of yourself or your ability to get on with others. State that you are looking for a new challenge and briefly explain why you see the advertised position as an important step forward in your career. 2. Why should we employ you rather than one of the other candidates? The interviewer wants to know what unique quality makes you the best person for the job. To differentiate yourself from the other candidates, you must show that you have researched the company thoroughly and studied the job description. You should be prepared to demonstrate clearly how your skills, qualifications, and accomplishments match the employer's specific needs. It is important to convey genuine enthusiasm for the post. 3. What are your strengths and weaknesses? This particularly tricky question requires painstaking preparation and rehearsal. The interviewer is looking for evidence of critical self-assessment and a commitment to continuous self-development. Stress specific job-related strengths and accomplishments. Select one weakness that could be viewed both as positive and negative, e.g. you are a perfectionist who tends to work too long hours. Show, by particular example, how you have successfully addressed this tendency. Make sure to portray yourself in a positive light. Never mention a weakness that is directly related to job for which you are being interviewed. 4. Tell me about yourself. The interviewer wants to know how well suited you are to the job and how you can benefit the company. Spend no longer than two minutes answering this question. By analysing the job description and carrying out detailed company research in advance, you will have a clear idea of the ideal candidate. Focus on your skills, qualifications, and accomplishments that relate to the advertised position. Remember that the company has a problem and they are looking for the best solution. Prove to them that you can solve their problem better than anyone else. 5. Where do you see yourself in five years' time? This question is designed to determine your career plan. Have you well planned short-term and long-term career goals? Is the advertised position consistent with these? If hired, are you likely to commit yourself fully to the company or will you seize the first opportunity to move on? Show that you have a structured way of establishing goals. Demonstrate the importance of the job on offer as part of your career progression. Stress that you are ambitious, but realistic. Let them know that you plan to develop professionally within the company and to work energetically to obtain promotion. 6. Why do you want to work for our company? The interviewer is trying to discover how much you know about the company. Once again, detailed company research will pay handsome dividends when it comes to answering this question. The candidate who displays a knowledge of the company and an awareness of the challenges it faces is more likely to be selected than the tongue-tied interviewee who looks perplexed when asked why he or she wants to work for that particular company. You should find out as much as you can about the company's organisational structure; its financial history; its range of products, goods or services; its aims and objectives; its philosophy and culture; its trading methods; its history, current position, and future developments; its competitors; its training programmes; its attitude towards its customers; its achievements; and any problems it may have. Tailor your answer in terms of their needs not yours. Be positive. Say that you like what you've heard about the company and the way they treat their staff and customers. Stress that you are confident that you can make a meaningful contribution. Gerard McLoughlin, author of 'Four Minutes To Interview Success', has contributed career-related articles to hundreds of recruitment companies, websites and publications throughout the world, including: USA Today, JobBankUSA.com, US-Recruiters.com, etc. To receive FREE career tips on a regular basis, sign up today for The Assignments Plus Newsletter.
MORE RESOURCES: Careers at Prairie View A&M University Prairie View A&M University National Park Service restores some jobs of fired employees, pledges to hire 7,700 seasonal workers WVTM13 Birmingham Corporate Lowe's 2025 Job Hunting: The Skills That Will Make or Break Your Career and the Fastest Growing Fields Investopedia Careers Baxter Commonwealth Job Fair Governor Tom Wolf Careers at USCIS USCIS Charted: Which Jobs Are Using AI the Most? Visual Capitalist Investigation: Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources lawyer worked second job on state's dime The Columbus Dispatch Careers ontarioca.gov Careers | Home USDA.gov Thousands of federal employees fired from US regulatory and science funding agencies Chemical & Engineering News Employment opportunities Department of Taxation and Finance Jobs City of Rochester (.gov) Store Hourly Job Areas Target Corporate Careers at TWU Texas Woman's University Work at Butler Butler University Jobs and Training at FDA FDA.gov Jobs at Liberty University Liberty News Work at the U.S. Department of Energy Energy.gov Employment | Department of Corrections Governor Tom Wolf Careers at University of Missouri Health Care | University of Missouri Health Care jobs University of Missouri Health Care Careers and Jobs at CRS Catholic Relief Services Work With Us National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Work for the City of St. Louis City of St. Louis Career Opportunities UMHB Work for Us (U.S. National Park Service) National Park Service Careers BASF Career Opportunities Gilead Sciences Healthcare Jobs at Novant Health | Novant Health Novant Health Job Seekers University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Careers Washington State University IOM career gateways International Organization for Migration (IOM) Careers West Virginia Department of Education Careers at FEMA FEMA Jobs and careers | Veterans Affairs Veterans Affairs MTA is hiring for jobs with no education requirements or experience PIX11 New York News Meta slashes 3,600 jobs worldwide, including in the Bay Area KTVU FOX 2 San Francisco Future of Jobs Report 2025: The jobs of the future – and the skills you need to get them World Economic Forum UF Health Careers UF Health - University of Florida Health Student Employment St John's University News Careers CrowdStrike MBA applications bounce back in tougher job market Financial Times Texas Job Openings and Labor Turnover — October 2024 Bureau of Labor Statistics Current opportunities Turner & Townsend Job Opportunities Bellevue School District Careers KPMG Corporate Job Areas - Global Supply Chain & Logistics Target Corporate Work with us | Veterans Affairs Veterans Affairs Careers S&P Global Recorded Video Interviews Target Corporate The Hot Labor Market Has Melted Away. Just Ask New College Grads. The New York Times Explore BCG locations around the world Boston Consulting Group WORK AT LVMH LVMH Careers at Jacobs Jacobs Surging job market could prove costly for households, businesses as odds of quick rate cuts fade The Associated Press Early careers NHS staff increasingly unhappy at work Personnel Today Work with us JPMorgan Chase Department of Public Health City and County of San Francisco Internship Opportunities | BCG Boston Consulting Group Highest-Paying Engineering Careers in 2024 University of North Dakota Careers in A&O Shearman Students and graduates JPMorgan Chase Careers at Discovery Education Discovery Education Careers Turner & Townsend Careers at Sinai Health Sinai Health Employment Opportunities Unity Health Toronto |
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