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Difficult Interview Questions Answered

This document provides guidance on answering difficult interview questions by highlighting common questions and suggesting strategies. It discusses evaluating candidates based on their ability to do the job, willingness to work hard, and manageability. Specific tough questions are covered like "Why do you want to work here?" and "What are your biggest accomplishments?" along with recommended answers. The document concludes with additional questions candidates can ask at the end of an interview to leave a good final impression.

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Mangala Guli
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92 views3 pages

Difficult Interview Questions Answered

This document provides guidance on answering difficult interview questions by highlighting common questions and suggesting strategies. It discusses evaluating candidates based on their ability to do the job, willingness to work hard, and manageability. Specific tough questions are covered like "Why do you want to work here?" and "What are your biggest accomplishments?" along with recommended answers. The document concludes with additional questions candidates can ask at the end of an interview to leave a good final impression.

Uploaded by

Mangala Guli
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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DIFFICULT INTERVIEW QUESTIONS… ANSWERED

Maybe you are trying to land your first job. Perhaps you are returning to the
workplace. Or maybe you are seasoned executive taking another step up the ladder.
Whatever your situation, making a success of the job interview is vital.

This brief guide highlights some of the tough questions you might be faced with – and
suggests strategies to answer them persuasively as possible. Always bear in mind that
every interviewer is trying to evaluate you on three criteria:
1) Are you able to do the job?
2) Are you willing to put in the effort to make the job a success?
3) Are you manageable?

HOW TO IMPRESS AT THE START?

Why do you want to work here?


To answer the question you must have researched the company. Reply with the
company’s attributes as you see them. Cap your answer with reference to your belief
that the company can provide you with a stable and happy work environment- and
that such an atmosphere would encourage your best work.

How do you feel about your progress to date?


This question is not geared solely to rate your progress; it also rates your self-esteem.
Be positive, yet do not give the impression you have already done your best work.
Make the interviewer believe you see each day as an opportunity to learn and
contribute as conducive to your best efforts.

What would you like to be doing five years from now?


The safest answer contains a desire to be regarded as a true professional and team
player. As far as promotion, that depends on finding a manager with whom you can
grow. Of course, you will ask what opportunities exist within the company before
being any more specific.

What are your biggest accomplishments?


Keep your answers job-related. If you exaggerate contributions to major projects, you
will be accused of ‘coffee- machine syndrome’; the affliction of a junior clerk who
claimed success for an Apollo space mission based on his relationships with certain
scientists, at the coffee machine. You might begin your reply with: ‘Although I feel
my biggest achievements are still ahead of me, I am proud of my involvement with…
I made a contribution as part of that team and learned a lot in the process.’

THE REAL YOU…

Tell me about yourself?


This is not an invitation to ramble on. If the context isn’t clear, you need to know
more about the question before giving an answer. Whichever direction your answer
ultimately takes be sure that it has some relevance to your professional endeavours.
You should also refer to one or more of your key personal qualities, such as honesty,

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integrity, being a team player, or determination. For example, if you choose ‘team
player’, you can tell a story about yourself outside work – perhaps as much of a sports
team- that also speaks volumes about you at work.

How well do you feel other people rated your job performance?
This is one very sound reason to ask for written evaluations of your work before
leaving a company. You should also ask for a letter of recommendation whenever you
leave a job. Don’t thrust these under your interview’s nose, but when you are asked
the question, you can produce them with a flourish. If you don’t have written
evaluations, try to quote verbal appraisals, such as ‘My boss said only a month ago
that I was the most valuable engineer in the work group, because…’

What is your greatest strength?


Isolate high points from your background and build in a couple of your key personal
qualities, such as pride in your work, reliability and the ability to stick with a difficult
task, yet change course rapidly when required.

What is your greatest weakness?


This is a direct invitation to put your head in a noose. Decline the invitation. If there is
a minor part of the job at hand where you lack knowledge – but knowledge you will
obviously pick up quickly – use that.
For instance ‘I haven’t worked with this type of spreadsheet before but, given my
experience with six other types, I should be able to pick it up in a few days.’ Another
option is to design the answer so your weakness is ultimately a positive characteristic.
For example: ‘I always give each project my best shot, so if I sometimes feel others
aren’t pulling their weight, I find it a little frustrating. I try to overcome it with a
positive attitude that I hope will catch on.’ Also consider the technique of putting a
problem in the past and showing how you overcame it.

What are you looking for in your next job?


You want a company where your talents and experience will allow you to contribute
to their business. Avoid saying what you want the company to give you; you must say
what you want in terms of what you can give to your employer. The key word is
‘contribution’.

UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT

Why do you want to leave your current job? Or Why did you leave your last
job?
You should have an acceptable reason for leaving every job you have held but if you
don’t, pick one of the six acceptable reasons from this employment industry
CLAMPS formula:

Challenge: You weren’t able to grow professionally.


Location: The journey to work was unreasonably long.
Advancement: There was nowhere for you to go.
Money: You were underpaid for your skills and contribution.
Pride or prestige: You wanted to be with a better company.
Security: The company was not stable.
What kind of salary are you worth?

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This question is asking you to name a desired figure but the twist is that it also asks
you to justify that figure. It requires that you demonstrate careful analysis of your
worth, industry norms, and job requirements. You are recommended to try for a
higher figure rather than a lower one. If their immediate response is to say that’s too
much, accept it as no more than a negotiating gambit, and come back with your own
clam rebuttal: ‘What did you have in mind?’

DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS?

Almost always, this is a sign the interview is drawing to a close, and that you have
one more chance to make an impression. Remember the adage: people respect what
you inspect, not what you expect. Create questions from any of the following:

 Find out why the job is open, who had it last and what happened to him or her?
How many people have help this position in the last couple of years>
 To whom would you report? Will you get the opportunity to meet that person?
 Where is the job located? What are the travel requirements, if any?
 What type of training is required and how long is it?
 What would your first assignment be?
 What are the realistic chances for growth in the job? Where are the opportunities
for greatest growth within the company?
 What are the skills and attributes most needed to get ahead in the company?
 Who will be the company’s main competitor over the next few years? How does
the interviewer feel the company stacks up against them?
 What has been the growth pattern of the company in the last five years? Is it
profitable? How profitable?
 If there is a written job description, can you see it?
 How regularly do performance evaluations occur? What model do they follow?

Reed has created this career sheet from information taken from ‘Great answers to
tough interview questions’ by Martin John Yate, the best- selling job-hunting book of
all time that no serious job seeker should be without. The book is published by
kogan Page and is available from all good bookshops for £8.99

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