1. Did you ever make a mistake that cost your company money?
I suppose that asking for name-brand vodka at the Christmas party, instead of the generic swill that they normally serve, doesn't count, right? No, really honestly, I'm delighted to report that I never made a mistake that cost my company money.
2. How many hours a week do you usually work, and why?
I work pretty long hours most of the time. With the extra time, I try to find ways to "add value" to each assignment, both my own and the firm's. When our clients read our reports, I want them to think that no one else could have possibly written them, except for our company.
3. Where do you see yourself in five years as Day Girl?
Depending on the role and the level of the job, you don't have to pretend that you want to still be in it in five years. Most people want to grow in their careers, and five years has become a long time to stay in one position.
Instead explain how the job is the right move for your career growth at this time - and how your excelling at it would make both you and the employer more successful. Show how what you can accomplish, demonstrate and learn in this job takes you closer to where you want to go.
Don't say: In your job - Or - Successfully running my own (insert unrelated field) start-up company.
4. If you knew that things at your company were rocky, why didn't you get out of the company sooner?
I was working so hard to keep my job while everyone around me was being cut that I didn't have any time left over to look for another job. With all of the mergers that have been happening in our field, layoffs are a way of life. At least I gave it my best shot!
5. Why did you take so much time off from work, and why do you wish to get a job now?
When I first had the twins, my husband was working 24/7, and I really needed to be there to raise the kids. But during that time, I really missed working.
Fortunately, I kept my hand in the business during those years by consulting for several of my ex-clients.
6. Tell us why did you leave your last job?
If you are currently employed, this question becomes, 'Why do you want to change jobs?' Explain that the job you're interviewing for is just the career move that you're looking for. It's not that you're moving away from a negative, but towards a positive. You're looking to grow your career in the direction this new position can take you.
If you were fired or let go from your previous job, be honest about what happened, but don't offer up any negative details. Most people lose jobs at some point in their careers. You pick yourself up, learn what you can from the experience, and move on.
Don't say: Because my jerk of an ex-boss had it in for me.
Why is that, exactly? It seems to me that I am probably more qualified to handle this position than anyone, man or woman.
My father's career as a diplomat took our family around the world seven times, and I even spent my junior year abroad in the Far East. I would need far less training than an American man who grew up here and has never worked outside our borders.
8. Do you consider yourself a leader?
Oh, yes, absolutely. I have all of the leadership qualities. I'm extroverted, but I also happen to be a terrific listener. I consider myself a "big idea" person, but I can also be hard-nosed and practical when necessary.
9. What makes you interested in this job?
Employers are always more impressed with candidates who are passionate about working for them specifically - over someone who is just looking for a new gig. Explain what you think is great about the company or the role, and how the job excites you.
Don't say: Because I need the money.
10. Tell me in a minute or less why I should hire you?
Match your relevant qualifications with the job description. For example, for a sales job, Jones suggests saying something like, "I've been preparing myself for a sales position through my courses, part-time job, an internship, and campus activities." You should then describe in detail what you learned from each one. Finally, Jones says to sum up everything with a statement such as "I feel confident that I would excel in this position, which is a perfect match with my background.
It's better not to answer this question. You can say something like this: "That's a difficult question." or"What is the range for this position?"
12. Tell us about a time when your morals were questioned?
Keep it to a simple example, about lying for someone else, about someone else being dishonest on the job and how you handled the situation
13. Why should we give the position to you?
This is the time when you can speak about your education, experience, skills and personal traits related to the desired position. But if you do not have much to say, be charismatic, show your enthusiasm and desire to work in this company.
I would search for new markets for the product while I spurred the engineers to change the product to make it more marketable to its original core audience.
15. Is it more important to be lucky or skillful?
I think that it's more important to be lucky, although being very skilled can help to create more opportunities. Certainly, [at my former job, my boss'] confidence in me inspired the decision makers at our firm to trust that I could do the job. But clearly, I also happened to be in the right place at the right time.
16. Explain what is your biggest weakness that's really a weakness, and not a secret strength?
I am extremely impatient. I expect my employees to prove themselves on the very first assignment. If they fail, my tendency is to stop delegating to them and start doing everything myself.
To compensate for my own weakness, however, I have started to really prep my people on exactly what will be expected of them.
I sincerely believe that being a great writer requires one major skill beyond being able to string sentences together, and that quality is empathy. I think that, rather than looking at my skin color, your company needs to consider whether or not I can empathize with our target market, and the answer is certainly yes.
18. Give me a specific example of a time when you used good judgment as Day Girl?
For each of these, tell a story about your leadership experience that follows the STAR format: situation, task, action, result. Before your interview, prepare at least five "short stories" that are around 60 to 90 seconds in length, says Miller. These stories should use the STAR format to expound on your past experience.
During my first week on the job, I would ask my boss how she would prefer me to handle projects. If she indicated that she wanted a take-charge person under her, I would take the ropes. If she told me she wanted me to run ideas by her first, I would comply. I think the real challenge is being able to adapt to your work environment, and I'm flexible.
Yes, I did very well at my internship, and I had originally assumed that I would come on staff once I graduated from college. However, BB&L drastically cut back the number of new hires they were planning. As fate would have it, they will not be hiring any of the interns they had last summer.
I love working at BB&L, and I brought some references with me today to show you that my job performance there was stellar. Still, in some ways, I consider this new turn of events to be a lucky break for me, believe it or not.
21. What would you say your greatest strengths are?
This seems like an easy question - you know what you're good at right? But don't take this question strictly at face value. Read the job description carefully, and describe an ability of yours that would lend itself to being particularly successful on the job. Just make sure that they're true strengths. You don't want to claim to be good at something you don't actually know how to do. Think up a relatable anecdote in advance that demonstrates how you have used these strengths on the job.
Don't say: There's too many to count. Really, I'm great at everything.
22. What are a couple of the most courageous actions or unpopular stands that you have ever taken?
I used to work for a boss who managed four offices making his time ultra-limited ... he eventually called me one day, and begged me to review their work "unofficially." But there had been a long history in my office of people who would "act like the boss," sans any official title, only to be "beheaded" a few months later for overstepping their bounds.
I told my supervisor that if he wanted me to be "acting boss" in his absence, he needed to let people know officially, and that giving me a new title wouldn't hurt either.
I'd recommend that we perform an on-site "test," by hiring both candidates on a freelance basis for two weeks each.
CC&L is a great company, and thanks in part to my team's contributions, they are doing very well these days. But that wasn't always the case.
During the first two years that I worked there, people were being fired left and right, and just hanging onto my job was a feat.
Once the company began to turn around, [my boss] was offered a terrific job at a rival organization and it took CC&L six months to replace him, and when they did, the new boss was eager to bring in his own people. Once again, I tenaciously hung on to my job, and, even though I was long overdue for a promotion, I really didn't think that the timing was right for me to broach it. No one from the old staff was there to even vouch for my performance!
25. You have changed careers before. Why should I let you experiment on my nickel?
As a career-changer, I believe that I'm a better employee because I've gained a lot of diverse skills from moving around. These skills help me solve problems creatively.
26. Tell me about a challenging situation you encountered at work and how you handled it?
It's easy to seem positive and confident when everything is going well. With this question, the employer wants to know how you measure up when things get challenging. Talk about a conflict or setback at work, how you dealt with it professionally, and what you learned from it.
The key things to get across are that you can think on your feet to problem-solve, remain calm and good-natured in the face of a challenge, and that you can think strategically and act decisively.
Don't say: Someone got in my face, so I punched him, or my boss was a jerk, so I quit.
27. Please demonstrate how you would sell a particular product to a customer?
Employers ask this question when they aren't sure about someone's sales potential. We used this question as an interviewer; she would hold up a pen and say "Sell me this pen." Successful interviewees should pick up the pen and start, "So I understand that you are interested in buying a pen. What are you looking for?" Then get creative and talk about aspects of the pen like the strong, smooth line of the pen and the range of colors.
Sometimes you need to take a step backward to move your career forward. Starting in an entry-level role would allow me to learn your business from the ground up.
The career that I've been in is so different than yours that I would love the opportunity to start over again in your field. The salary cut will be well worth it.
I consider myself ambitious, but I'm also practical. As long as I am continuing to learn and grow within my position, I'll be a happy camper. Different companies promote people at different rates, and I'm pretty confident that working for you will keep me motivated and mentally stimulated for several years to come.
30. What are your weaknesses as Day Girl?
This question is tricky for everyone. If you've done your research, you know what weaknesses would be unacceptable in the job, and you probably haven't made it to the interview stage if you have those weaknesses.
Don't be dishonest and don't make up something that you think sounds good. Don't respond with a joke (that's just evading the question).
Don't discuss topics that are personal in nature (like having a messy kitchen at home).
Don't be surprised by or unprepared for this question. It may be asked in other ways, such as "What would your greatest challenge be if you were in this job?"
In the best circumstance, the employer is asking this question to discern your self-awareness. We all have strengths and weaknesses.
There are a few strategies you can use to prepare:
1. Identify a weakness that you are working to correct and talk about how you are doing this.
2. Identify a weaknesses that is not relevant to the job.
3. Show how you seek out and work well with others who have strengths in your areas of weakness.
4. Use your knowledge of your personality, showing both sides of the coin (pros and cons) making sure this is a match for the job. For example, if you have an introversion preference, AND the job requires solitary work, you can explain that you are energized by solitary work and have the stamina for it, while you may feel less energy from long periods of time working with customers (and obviously you would not say this if interviewing for a job that required long hours of customer contact). Balance that by explaining that you are always well-prepared for customer contacts, due to your workstyle and personality.
31. Can you describe your dream job?
This is my dream job and that's why I approached you about it in the first place. I am excited about the prospect of helping your promotion agency upgrade and fine tune your loyalty programs.
32. Why do you want to work for our company/organization?
Not having an answer is a good way to get crossed off the candidate list, and is a common pet peeve of interviewers. Research the employer before your interview; attempt to find out about the organization's products, locations, clients, philosophy, goals, previous growth record and growth plans, how they value employees and customers, etc.
33. How aware are you of internal politics that may affect your performance?
I'm sensitive to internal politics and respect authority figures. But I also do my best to never become embroiled in office politics. At my level, I consider this to be a wise course of action. I like people and can pretty much work with anyone. So I concentrate on doing my job, listening to directions, surpassing expectations, and leaving the internal political battles to the politicians.
34. What challenges do you expect in this position?
You can speak about your desire to have a challenging job, that you are motivated by challenges, that you are able to apply all your skills and knowledge to combat the challenges and bring profit to the company.
35. When do you think you'll peak in your career?
I come from a long line of healthy, hardy, mentally active types, and so I confess that I never even think about "peaking" in my career. That having been said, I do think it's important to have some self-knowledge, and to recognize when one is past one's prime.
