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Landing an interview with your dream company can be exciting, but don’t celebrate just yet. Your next step is to ace the interview, but that can be more challenging than it sounds. Preparation is the best thing you can bring to an interview, and can be a huge factor in landing the job. The better prepared you come in to the interview, the better chance you’ll have of walking away hired. To help you prepare, here are a few of the most common interview questions asked along with some great examples of how to answer them.
“Tell me about
yourself.”
This question is definitely the most popular one with interviewers. They love it so much because it sets the stage for the interview and it gets you talking. You should have a short statement prepared in your mind, but make sure it doesn’t sound rehearsed when answering. Also, make sure your answer is not too long. They’re not looking for your life story here, just any pertinent information related to the position you’re applying for. You could start a few years back and talk about how your career got to where it is now. You could also mention why you think you’re the perfect candidate for the job.
“Why do you want to work for
this company?”
Research is key here. Make sure you do your homework and read up about the company before your interview. Know what kind of business they are and what markets they serve. Read their mission statement, credo, and anything you can find on their company website. Try to relate your reasons to your long term goals with the company. It would help to come to the interview with one or two questions about their company. Asking the interviewer questions about their company shows that you are interested and have done your homework.
“Explain how you would be an
asset to this organization.”
You should be praying for this question because you can use it to highlight your best qualities. Have this question in mind and have an answer in your head before your interview. You can also relate these qualities to the position you’re interviewing for. Make sure your strengths are work related, however, because you won’t impress your interviewers by telling them you hold the school record for the longest kegstand.
“What was your biggest
mistake?”
You don’t want to be completely honest when answering this question. In fact, you would really be hurting your chances if you answer this one honestly. Give them a small work related flaw you had in the past. Make sure it’s pretty far in the past because your best strategy when answering this is to turn the question around and talk about what you learned from it and how you improved. Be sure to mention your mistake quickly, and then spend most of the time talking about how you improved from that mistake. That way you get the negativity out of the way and make the interviewer focus on how you have grown from the experience.
“Let’s talk salary. What are
you looking to make?”
This question is quite tricky. Lots of managers like to play this game while interviewing candidates for a position. They’re expecting you to say a number or a range you are willing to accept, but it is a trick. Your best option is to not answer their question. Instead, say something back like, “That’s a tough one to answer, what’s the range you’re willing to offer?” That way, you get him to give you a number first, and that’s key. If you answer the question first, he’s got you with your back against the wall. Get him to say a number first, and then work from there.