Hunting A Job and Passing An Interview
Hunting A Job and Passing An Interview
and Passing an
Interview
Be on time Rule 4
Participate Rule 3
RESPECT Rule 2
What to wear in
an interview?
Do a dress rehearsal
• Before attending the interview, inspect your outfit for
imperfections, such as wrinkles, pet hair, holes or dirt. A clean
appearance makes a good impression and shows your
professionalism.
Avoid:
• Open-toed sandals: Shoes that expose any part of your feet.
• Athletic shoes: Athletic shoes appear more casual.
• Shorts.
• Visible undergarments
• Skirts or dresses that are too short.
• Strong perfume or cologne: Some scents can irritate others and may distract the
interviewer.
What else????
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Common Interview Questions with Tips
• This is one of the most common interview questions, and it trips a lot of job seekers up because of
how open-ended it is.
• First, keep your answer work-related. While technically they’ve left it open to include personal
details, it’s not what the typical interviewer is looking for.
• Keep your answer clear and easy to understand, tell your story in chronological order.
• If you’re a recent graduate or entry-level candidate, you can discuss your academic work. Why did
you choose this field of study? What projects have you done and what have you worked on?
• If you have prior work experience, walk the interviewer through your key accomplishments, key
career moves you’ve made and why, and end by sharing what you’re looking to do next in your
career and why you’re hunting this job.
Do:
• Focus on sharing your professional story only
• Keep your answer under 2 minutes in length
• Walk them through how you got started in your career, key moves you’ve made.
Don’t:
• Share personal details
• Talk for more than 2 minutes
• This is one of the most common interview questions to practice for You’re very
likely to hear it in an early-stage interview. The goal is to show you’ve done your
research and didn’t apply to their company without knowing anything about them.
If you don’t answer this question in a professional way, you will be unattractive to
any good employers out there. So when they ask, “what do you know about our
company?”, your primary goal is to show you’ve done your research or knew about
their company before applying.
Do:
• Research the company before the interview (on their website, their LinkedIn page, Google News,
and more)
• The more creative you can be in your research, the better. Try to go above and beyond a basic scan
of the company website if you want to give the best answer possible
• Understand what industry they’re in, what they sell and how they make money
• Try to have some sense of their company size. Are they 100 employees? More than 10,000
employees? Etc.
• In your answer, explain what caught your interest or excited you about their firm and show that
you’re interested in their particular company, and why. The interviewer wants to know why you want
their specific job even if they don’t ask directly.
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2. What do you know about our company?
Don’t:
• Say you don’t know anything
• Say facts that are incorrect or you aren’t sure about (it’s better to know one or two
facts that you can say accurately, than five facts you’re not sure of)
• Do the bare minimum of research and only cite a couple of basic facts from the
company’s website
• It’s typically best to give an honest, direct answer. The interviewer is simply curious
how you came to know about them and the general idea behind why you applied.
They’re curious how you’re finding positions to apply to in general, too. If you
found the job through a colleague, through researching employers online, through a
job board or job posting, or any other common method, simply tell them the truth.
Do:
• Be clear, direct, and upfront
• Tell the truth unless it’s something very embarrassing (for example, when I was much younger, my
mother found me a job to apply for. That does *not* sound great, so I answered by saying that a
friend saw the job posting and mentioned it to me).
• Explain why the job interested you, if possible (e.g. “I was excited to apply because ___”)
Don’t:
• Say you don’t remember or don’t know
• Sound unsure of yourself
•
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4. Why did you apply for this position?
• Pick something specific that interested you. If you say you love their products, tell them
why. That’s the key to giving a convincing answer to this job interview question. Stay away
from sounding like you’re desperate, or that you want just any job.
• You need to sound like you want the RIGHT job and that you’re being picky. Employers
won’t hire you if you don’t demonstrate that you want to work for them in particular. So it’s
best to appear picky and selective in your job search. That means being clear about what
you want in your next role. Also, the best answers will stay away from negatives and
complaints. Don’t bad-mouth your current company or boss. Focus on the positives of the
job you’re applying for now.
Do:
• Make them feel like you’re interested in them for a specific reason
• Show you’ve done your research and understand what the job involves
• Phrase everything as a positive. Don’t badmouth your current situation, just talk about what you hope to
gain by coming to work for them (experiences, challenges, opportunities).
Don’t:
• Say you just need a job in general
• Explain that you’re unemployed and just need to find work
• Say you just need money or have bills to pay so you need to find work
• Sound desperate, or sound like you will take any job you can get and you don’t care what it ends up being
• If you’re job searching while employed, this is one of the most important interview questions and
answers to know. (And if you’re job hunting while unemployed, make sure you prepare to answer,
“Why did you leave your last position?” instead.) Otherwise, the most important thing to do when
they ask why you are looking to leave your current job is to stay positive and never badmouth your
current employer, boss, or even team members
• Rather than complaining or talking badly about your situation, say that you’re looking for more of
something positive. What are you hoping to gain from a job change? Say that you’re looking for an
environment with more leadership you can learn from.
• In my last job, we were facing a tough deadline and my boss was out for one week. Our client was
expecting a project to be delivered, but we were far behind schedule. I took the lead on the project
and delegated tasks to the four other team members in a way that I thought would utilize everyone’s
strengths best. And then I reorganized my own personal tasks so I could dedicate my entire day to
contributing to this project as well. The project was a success and we delivered the work on time. I
went on to lead more projects after that, and used what I learned to be a better project manager.
Do:
• Explain the situation, the task you needed to accomplish, and what method you chose (and why)
• Share the outcome. What was the result?
• Share what you learned from the experience. Did you take away knowledge that has helped you in
your career?
Don’t:
• Share any story that involves personal conflicts, arguments, or disagreements at work
• Talk about an argument you had
• Talk about a challenge that you didn’t overcome, or didn’t find a solution for
• This question is left off of many lists of common job interview questions, yet it’s
extremely important and the wrong answer can cost you thousands of dollars.
• The best answers to this question follow one rule: DON’T say a specific number or
even a narrow salary range that you’re targeting. Why?
Do:
• Tell them that you’re focused on finding the best-fitting role, and that you don’t have a specific
target salary in mind yet
• Repeat this multiple times if needed (if they pressure you or “push back” after your first
response)
• Share any research that you’ve done into broad salary ranges for your type of role, but only
provide a broad range (for example, a range of $50K – $75K)
Don’t:
• Tell them a specific salary you’re targeting
• Tell them a narrow range you’re targeting
• Employers ask, this question to see how well you understand the role, and to hear
your perspective on how your skills can help them. When you hear interview
questions like this, you should be thinking about their role, their needs, and how
you’ll help them. How will they benefit if they hire you? What will you improve for
them? What will become easier, more efficient, or more profitable? And show
you’ve done your research.
• Make it clear that you know what this position involves and that you’re ready to
perform those exact tasks in your next job.
Do:
• Be confident in your skills and abilities
• Talk about specific things you can help them do or achieve if they hire you
• Do your research before the interview and understand their needs, so you can “tailor” your answers
and target the specific things they’ll need if they hire you in this role
Don’t:
• Say “I don’t know”
• Give a generic answer that’d fit any company. You really need to “tailor” this to the specific duties
you’ll be performing in THIS specific job. Otherwise your answer will not impress them.
• If they ask “why do you want this job?” show you’ve done plenty of research
to learn about them before coming in to interview. You want to make them
feel like you chose them for a reason.
• Show them that you know what their job involves (at least as much as you
could learn from the job description and company website) and that you’re
excited to be interviewing for this position. The bottom line is: The typical
employer looks to hire someone who will want to work for them in particular,
not just someone who wants to work any job they can find.
Do:
• Mention specific, work-related reasons why their job and company interest you
• Talk about your own career path and goals, and how this job and company fits your future
aspirations
• Sound excited about the opportunity to work for them
• Show you’ve done your research
Don’t:
• Say, “I have bills to pay and need money”
• Say, “I just need a job”.
• Share any personal details like, “I live 5 minutes away so it would be a very short commute”
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10. Why did you leave your last job?
• There are a lot of good answers to this interview question. There isn’t
just one “right” answer. Here are some guidelines: If you chose to leave
on your own terms, stay positive and focus on what you wanted to gain
from the decision, rather than bad-mouthing or focusing on negatives
you wanted to avoid.
Do:
• Be clear and direct and address the question head-on
• Focus on the positive things you hoped to gain by moving to the next opportunity, rather than
badmouthing or talking about the negatives in your last role
Don’t:
• Don’t badmouth or complain
• Don’t Say you resigned because of a disagreement or argument with a coworker
• Don’t make it sound like money is your main priority
• Don’t try to hide facts or avoid the question; this will just lead to more questions and suspicion from
the interviewer
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11. What is your greatest strength?
Employers want to see how closely your strengths align with the requirements of the role.
Do:
Prepare by researching the job requirements in depth and choosing a single strength that’s especially relevant to the
role.
Then, back your claim up with a solid example of a time when you accomplished something on the back of this
strength.
Keep it brief and stick to one strength.
Don’t:
You can gloat a little but don’t brag.
The last thing you want is to seem like you’re not confident in your own strengths.
Don’t harp on about a strength that has no bearing on the role – be relevant!
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12. What is your greatest weakness?
• When they ask, “what’s your greatest weakness?” you want to name a real weakness.
• Pick a skill-based, not personality-based weakness. You never want to say you struggle to work with
others, or you’re bad at resolving disagreements, or taking direction from a manager, etc. Those
things will get you rejected in the interview. So pick a specific skill, but pick something that won’t
severely impact your ability to do this job.
• For example, if the job involves data entry with Excel spreadsheets all day, you do not want to say
Excel is your weakness. Or that you struggle to pay attention to details. Finally, end your answer by
explaining what you’re doing to overcome or improve your weakness.
• This is one of the most common interview questions in many fields, from retail to
corporate positions, and is intended to find out if you’re able to learn from mistakes
and bounce back when things don’t go your way. Employers want to see if you can
own up to your mistakes, be accountable, and also learn and improve from the
experience. That last piece is key if you want to give a good answer to this question.
• This is another one of the most common interview questions you’ll hear. You may also hear this
phrased as a behavioral interview question, like, “Tell me about a time you had to make a difficult
decision. How did you handle it and what did you decide?” With any of these decision-making job
interview questions, hiring managers want to know that you’ve made good decisions in the past and
are comfortable making a tough decision under pressure. Demonstrate this, and they’ll feel more
confident that you’ll be able to make good decisions in your next job, too… while working for them.
• So to show the hiring manager that you’re the right fit, prepare to explain how you organize and
structure your decisions. The best answers will show that you’re calm and follow a logical system
when you make important decisions.
•
• You shouldn’t brag about yourself in every interview question and answer, but sometimes it’s called
for. And this is one of those cases. Don’t be timid and don’t hold back. This is your chance to share
one accomplishment that you’re most proud of and why. I recommend choosing a professional
achievement, but if the biggest win that comes to mind is personal, that’s fine too. Ideally, share a
story that illustrates how you overcome a challenge, went through a transformation, or overcame
doubt or fear to accomplish something that you’re proud of. If you can show determination and
resiliency, that’s going to impress most employers. However, there are plenty of scenarios
where your biggest achievement might show other traits instead. That’s fine, too.
•
Even if you’re not directly interviewing for a management role, you may face some leadership
interview questions. Employers like a candidate who can take initiative and lead projects and tasks
even if it’s not their main role to lead. Plus, that shows you’ve got room to grow and can be
promoted in the future. So before any interview, think about one or two recent leadership
experiences, ideally from work situations. Did you lead any meetings or projects? Did you train or
mentor anyone? Did you spearhead a new initiative at work? If you have no examples from work,
then look to university experience, sports, or other clubs/activities where you led a project, task,
meeting, or event. Note that you may also be asked, “what is your leadership style?” but this is
typically reserved for positions where you’ll be leading as a core part of your role.
•
• When an interviewer asks “Why was there a gap in your employment?” there’s no hidden motive,
they’re simply looking for your best (and most honest) explanation of the truth.
Do:
• Most employment gaps (including self-inflicted ones) can be overlooked, but be prepared to show
you’ve learned from the issue and can address the future with positivity, motivation, and confidence.
• You may have been sick, caring for a loved one, traveling, or engaged in personal development but,
whatever your truth, try to be candid.
Don’t:
• Don’t lie to smooth over a difficult patch in your lifestyle, career, or family life, instead, show how
you have progressed as a result.
•
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19. What did you like least about your last job?
• When an interviewer asks he/she hopes to gather positive information about your personality,
drives, and skills by understanding what you saw as negative about your last role. Be careful
how you answer, because an answer like “I didn’t like deadlines or teamwork” has the potential
to reveal plenty of negatives about you too.
Do:
• Be positive, light-hearted, and non-critical.
• Answer in a way that highlights your work ethic or ability to overcome challenges.
Don’t:
• Don’t launch into a tirade of insults and complaints about your former employer, coworkers,
and role.
This is one of many methods potential employers use to set you apart from the crowd. They are looking for
a glimpse of the real you, not just the scripted version everybody shows in job interviews.
Do:
• Talk about your pastimes, passions, and secret talents.
• Be yourself!
• Be brave enough to open up about interesting pastimes.
• Include hobbies that highlight special skills and interests that paint you apart from the crowd, but only if
they’re true.
Don’t:
• Don’t overdo it or make it seem like you have far too much time on your hands.
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22. What makes you unique?
• Another way to try to set you apart from the crowd. Only, this is less about your secret personality
and pastimes and more about what you can bring to the team that no one else can.
Do:
• Study all aspects of the job description to identify qualities that employers would see as a ‘cherry on
top’.
• Use your understanding of the role requirements to highlight a hard or soft skill that sets you apart
from others.
• Keep your answer clear and concise.
Don’t:
• Don’t be dishonest, as your lack of confidence will give you away.
Don’t:
• If the job you’re interviewing for serves as a stepping-stone to greater career goals,
don’t draw attention to it unless your intentions for future career growth align perfectly
with the role’s expectations and requirements.
Do’s:
• When employers ask interview questions about what motivates you to work, you need to show them
that you’re not just coming to work for the paycheck. But do some self-reflection and come up with
a clear, good answer for what drives you at work each day aside from the money.
• You can say you’re motivated by solving complex technical challenges (if you’re a software
engineer, etc.) You can say you love collaborating and accomplishing big things as a part of a team.
You can say you enjoy work that has a meaningful impact, such as creating products that improve
people’s lives. You can also talk about personal interests that tie in with the job.
Don’ts:
• Don’t just talk about money. Everyone comes to work for a paycheck. The
interviewer knows. If they’re asking you “what motivates you?” in an interview,
they want to hear something besides money. If you seem only money-focused in
your interviews, it can cost you job offers. The only exception is when interviewing
for jobs that pay commission, like sales jobs.
• Also, don’t feel like you need to make up some impressive story. Tell the truth. It
can be a simple, straightforward answer. Being dishonest is not a good idea with
this interview question.
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25. When can you start?
• Employers want to see that you’ll honor any existing contracts by providing sufficient notice, but they
likely already know when they’d prefer you to start. Savvy interviewers may be on the lookout for how
desperate you really are, so be prepared and try to maintain your composure.
Do:
• If you’re employed, express your imperative to honor your existing contracts, providing notice where
notice is due.
• If you must consider options, say so.
• If you’re unemployed, it’s best to allow some time and say you’ll start in a week or a few days, otherwise,
you’ll seem too desperate, and tricky employers might take advantage.
Don’t:
• Don’t say you’ll start immediately if you need to provide notice at your current job, as potential employers
will frown on how easily you dishonor your contracts.
• Don’t provide a start date if you’re still considering options.
• Don’t show your desperation by offering to start the next day, as this may lose you the power to negotiate
higher rates, benefits, and more, down the line.
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26. Do you have any questions for us?
• If you don’t ask good questions in each interview, you might be costing yourself job offers.
• Asking questions shows interest in the position and shows employers that you’re looking for the
right fit, not just any job.
• This will make them trust you more and want you more.
• You can ask about the work, the training, the challenges you’d face, the overall direction of the
company.
• Don’t ask about salary too early. You may ask about benefits, time off, or anything else. Wait for
them to bring the salary up, or until you know they want to offer you the position.
• 1. What’s one thing you’re hoping a new person can bring to the role?
• 2. What do the most successful people here do differently than everyone else?
• 3. What does it take to be successful here?
• 4. What about my resume caught your attention for this position?
• 5. What are the top skills and traits you’re targeting for this position?
• 6. What would success look like in the first 90 days?
• 7. What’s the most challenging aspect of the role?
• 8. How would you describe your management style?
• 9. What are your biggest concerns about the department/team right now?
• 10. How often do you promote people internally?
• 11. What’s the first problem or challenge the person you hire will need to tackle?
• 12. Have other people failed in this position, and why?
• 12. After I master the basics here, what opportunities are provided for continued learning and career
growth?
• 14. What soft skills are most important in this role?
• 15. What Does a Typical Day or Week Look Like in This Role?
• 16. What Types of Skills Is the Team Missing that You Are Looking for in a New Hire?