Tell me about yourself.

Walk me through your resume.

How did you hear about this position?

Why do you want to work at this company?

Why do you want this job?

Why should we hire you?

What can you bring to the company?

What are your greatest strengths?

What do you consider to be your weaknesses?

What is your greatest professional achievement?

Tell me about a challenge or conflict you’ve faced at work, and how you dealt with it.

Tell me about a time you demonstrated leadership skills.

What’s a time you disagreed with a decision that was made at work?

Tell me about a time you made a mistake.

Tell me about a time you failed.

Why are you leaving your current job?

Why were you fired?

Why was there a gap in your employment?

Can you explain why you changed career paths?

What’s your current salary?

What do you like least about your job?

What are you looking for in a new position?

What type of work environment do you prefer?

What’s your work style?

What’s your management style?

How would your boss and coworkers describe you?

How do you deal with pressure or stressful situations?

What do you like to do outside of work?

Are you planning on having children?

How do you stay organized?

How do you prioritize your work?

What motivates you?

What are your pet peeves?

How do you like to be managed?

Do you consider yourself successful?

Where do you see yourself in five years?

How do you plan to achieve your career goals?

What are your career aspirations?

What’s your dream job?

What other companies are you interviewing with?

What makes you unique?

What should I know that’s not on your resume?

What would your first few months look like in this role?

What are your salary expectations?

What do you think we could do better or differently?

When can you start?

Are you willing to relocate?

If you were an animal, which one would you want to be?

Sell me this pen.

Is there anything else you’d like us to know?

Do you have any questions for us?

30 Common Behavioral Interview Questions

As much as I wish I could tell you exactly which behavioral questions you’ll get, I sadly cannot. But
this list will give you an idea of the types of questions you might be asked. As you read through,
think of stories you can share in response to each subset of questions—they can often be tweaked
on the spot to answer any variation an interviewer might throw at you.

Tell me about a time when you had to work closely with someone whose personality was very
different from yours.

Give me an example of a time you faced a conflict with a coworker. How did you handle that?

Describe a time when you had to step up and demonstrate leadership skills.
Tell me about a time you made a mistake and wish you’d handled a situation with a colleague
differently.

Tell me about a time you needed to get information from someone who wasn’t very responsive.
What did you do?

Customer service questions

If you’d be working with clients, customers, or other external stakeholders in this role, definitely be
ready for one or more of these. Be prepared with at least one story about a time you successfully
represented your company or team and delivered exceptional customer service.

Describe a time when it was especially important to make a good impression on a client. How did
you go about doing so?

Give me an example of a time when you didn’t meet a client’s expectation. What happened, and
how did you attempt to rectify the situation?

Tell me about a time when you made sure a customer was pleased with your service.

Describe a time when you had to interact with a difficult client or customer. What was the situation,
and how did you handle it?

When you’re working with a large number of customers, it’s tricky to deliver excellent service to
them all. How do you go about prioritizing your customers’ needs?

Adaptability questions

Times of turmoil are finally good for something! Think of a recent work crisis you successfully
navigated. Even if the outcome didn’t ideal, find a lesson or silver lining you took from the situation.

Tell me about a time you were under a lot of pressure at work or at school. What was going on, and
how did you get through it?

Describe a time when your team or company was undergoing some change. How did that impact
you, and how did you adapt?

Tell me about settling into your last job. What did you do to learn the ropes?

Give me an example of a time when you had to think on your feet.

Tell me about a time you failed. How did you deal with the situation?

Time management questions

When an interviewer asks about time management, get ready to talk about a specific instance when
you had a few things in the air, prioritized, scheduled, organized, and completed everything—
preferably before the deadline.

Give me an example of a time you managed numerous responsibilities. How did you handle that?

Describe a long-term project that you kept on track. How did you keep everything moving?
Tell me about a time your responsibilities got a little overwhelming. What did you do?

Tell me about a time you set a goal for yourself. How did you go about ensuring that you would meet
your objective?

Tell me about a time an unexpected problem derailed your planning. How did you recover?

Communication questions

You use communication skills so regularly you’ll probably have plenty of stories to choose from. Just
remember to talk about your thought process or preparation.

Tell me about a time when you had to rely on written communication to get your ideas across.

Give me an example of a time when you were able to successfully persuade someone at work to see
things your way.

Describe a time when you were the resident technical expert. What did you do to make sure
everyone was able to understand you?

Give me an example of a time when you had to have a difficult conversation with a frustrated client
or colleague. How did you handle the situation?

Tell me about a successful presentation you gave and why you think it was a hit.

Tell me about your proudest professional accomplishment.

Describe a time when you saw a problem and took the initiative to correct it.

Tell me about a time when you worked under either extremely close supervision or extremely loose
supervision. How did you handle that?

Give me an example of a time you were able to be creative with your work. What was exciting or
difficult about it?

Tell me about a time you were dissatisfied in your role. What could have been done to make it
better?