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20 Common Interview Questions, What They Really Mean, and How to Smartly Answer Them
This is a sheet given to me by my college’s business department and I thought it was helpful so I’ve typed it up fr you guys. All credits to my college business department.
1. Tell me about yourself. What it means: What are your career goals for the next 1-3 years/5-10 years?
This question might come in different forms, but it is the most often asked question in interviews, especially at the start. Have a short statement prepared that describes a little about your past, a lot about your present, and a little about your future that essentially answers the question, “Why are we sitting across from each other and talking today?” Be careful that it does not sound rehearsed and be sure you sound excited about the opportunity and fully engaged. Limit your answer to relevance with the interview. Talk about things you have done that relate to the position you are interviewing for and show strategy in your thinking that led you to this interview. Start with the item farthest back, work up to the present and touch on the future. Let the recruiter know how this position ties into the career map you have planned. Set the footing to shift from a mundane interview into impactful dialogue.
2. How did you choose this line of work?
They are looking for people who are strategic and apply critical thinking to decisions. Have a good answer ready, showing passion for the field.
3. Why did you leave your last job? or Why do you want to leave your job? or What did you enjoy/not enjoy about your last job?
Stay positive regardless of the circumstances. Don’t refer to a major problem with management and never speak ill of supervisors, co-workers or the company. If you do, you will be sullied. Keep smiling and talk about leaving for a hopeful, forward-looking reason (i.e. chance to make an impact, use skills, etc.).
4. What experience do you have in this field? or Why should we hire you? or Give me an example from your experience or education that shows your readiness for this role.
Speak about specifics that relate to the position for which you are applying. If you do not have specific experience, get as close as you can (aka make it up). It is critical that you prepare by unpacking your brain, and know how to tie your experiences/skills to the position description. Give them your best pitch and smile!
5. What do co-workers/former employers say about you?
Be prepared with a quote or two. Either a specific statement or a paraphrase will work. “Jamal Clark, a colleague at Smith Company, always said I was the hardest worker he’d ever known.” It is as powerful as Jamal saying it at the interview himself. Trouble answering this? Ask former colleagues and professional friends for their opinions!
6. What do you know about our firm? or Why do you want to work for us? Or Why do you want the job?
These questions are the primary reason to do research on the organization before the interview. Find out where they have been and where they are going. What are the current issues? Who are the major players? Can you get behind their mission? Crucial research includes reviewing their “About Us” webpages, googling current events where they were involved, and looking on Glassdoor.com to get the scoop on positive things their employees are saying. This takes thought and should be based on the research you have done on the organization as a whole plus a mention of the specific position. Know that job description very well! Sincerity is extremely important. Relate response to long-term career goals. A flat answer here may end the interview, so be prepared.
7. What kind of salary do you need?
It’s a loaded question and a thorny game that you will probably lose if you answer first. So, try not to answer it. Instead, consider discussing how the experience this opportunity offers is the main compensation you are seeking. Or, if you want the conversation to unfold, try, “What is the pay range someone with my skill set and degree could expect for this position?” In some cases, the interviewer will tell you. If not, say that it can depend on the details of the job and ask if you can discuss at a later stage in the interviewing process so you more fully understand the responsibilities of the position. If the interviewer presses, be sure you have done your research on appropriate salaries and give a $7k pay range that makes sense for your lifestyle, your experience, your location, and the position. Use salary.com, Glassdoor.com and Bureau of Labor Statistics to do your research.
8. Provide an example of your ability to think quickly and clearly on your feet.
Companies are looking for innovative thinkers who do not need to be coddled and who truly are up to the challenges of business, most of which require timely, analytical, and creative people. Have a robust STAR** story ready to address this question.
9. Tell me about a time when you helped get a team focused and led them to success.
You are, of course, a team player, right? Be sure to have examples ready: specific stories that show you often perform for the good of the team rather than for personal success are good evidence of your team attitude. Do not brag; just say it in a matter-of-fact tone. This is a key point. Use the STAR** method to stay focused and provide a thorough reply.
10. Are you applying for other jobs?
Be honest but do not spend a lot of time in this area. Keep the focus on this job and what you can do for this organization. Anything else is a distraction.
11. Have you ever been asked to leave a position? I
f you have not, say no. If you have, be honest, be brief and avoid saying negative things about yourself, the people or organization involved. Find the positive spin.
12. What is your greatest strength? Follow Up: Tell me about a time when this professional strength made the difference between success and failure.
Numerous answers are good, just stay optimistic and truthful. A few good examples: ability to prioritize, work under pressure, solve problems or focus on projects, perhaps professional expertise, leadership skills, positive attitude, reporting skills… but be able to prove your reply with a STAR** story.
13. What kind of person would you refuse to work with?
Do not be trivial. It should take disloyalty to the organization, violence, or criminal behavior to get you to refuse to work with a colleague. Minor objections may label you as a whiner. If the version of this question is, “What type of person do you prefer not to work with?”, again don’t be trivial, lengthy, or negative. Focus on discussing your ability to work well with just about anyone.
14. Tell me about a time when you had an idea to improve a process.
They are looking to see that you can (a) take enough ownership to even think about improvements, (b) think creatively and challenge norms, © present enhancements to others with emotionally intelligence, and (d) consider risks of change. Have a great STAR** story!
15. Tell me about a problem you had with a supervisor.
This is a test - If you fall for it and start tearing up an old boss, you failed. Stay positive and either reply that you have not had any trouble with a supervisor if that’s the case, or provide a short STAR** story about how you constructively worked to solve the issue and how your relationship was strengthened as a result. Focus on the happy result!
16. What motivates you to do your best on the job? or What do you expect from your employer?
This is personal - be accurate and honest, yet relevant to the job - but examples for motivation are: Challenge, Achievement, Recognition, Positive Impact, Helping Others. For expectations, you can discuss motivation first and then add something like, “I expect that my employer will communicate her needs clearly so I can drive toward strong results.” Add anything you deem fitting here, but avoid coming off as entitled or high maintenance.
17. Do you have any blind spots or weaknesses?
Tricky question - Do not reveal personal areas of concern but focus on how you want to grow professionally. In discussing weakness, focus on the BUT, i.e. “In the past I have put a lot of pressure on myself, but I have been overcoming that as my skills sharpen and challenges lessen.”
18. Tell me about a time that you had to analyze several solutions to make a sound decision.
This question dives into the ability to create a framework for strategic thinking and proves you have a set process to make good decisions. Tell a STAR** story where the situation is not simple and you can give specifics on the pros and cons assessed, the sources of information tapped into, the info gathered, and insights made to come to a conclusion.
19. How do you stay organized?
Attending to details, planning, organizing, and prioritizing work takes skill. Talk about how you manage your life or work using specific methods, as well as tools you use. You can even provide a STAR** story that speaks to how these qualities led to a success at some point in your life, career, or education.
20. What questions do you have for me?
Interviews should go both ways. Have about 5 good questions ready to ask so you can gather the information you need to make a well-informed decision. These questions should be informational in nature and allow you to understand the position and company better while reinforcing your interest and enthusiasm. This is not a good time to talk about benefits, pay, etc. That info will come in time.
**The STAR Technique is a way to frame answers to behavioral questions in an organized manner that will give the interviewer the most information about your past experience. (This is the part where the paper says to have at least 10 of these ready but I think that’s insane. Have a couple and be prepared to tweak them based on the question. Don’t use the same few for the same interview. i’d say having about 3-5 ready is good enough.) As you prepare to answer each question, organize your response for clarity by answering each of the following components of the STAR technique:
What was the Situation in which you were involved?
What was the Task you needed to accomplish?
What Actions did you take?
What Results did you achieve?
IMPORTANT TIPS: Give a good amount of detail to paint a very clear picture at each step, focus on YOU versus the group, and if the Result wasn’t very positive or does not place you in a great light, that it is not interview material!
Me: oh yeah, if you think school photography is hard now, try imagining doing this with film.
The new girl: what's film?
Me: ... film. Like... film that goes in a film camera.
New girl: what's that mean?
Me: ... before cameras were digital.
New girl: how did you do it before digital?
Me:... with film? I haven't had enough coffee for this conversation
i know hearing people on this website love to pass around those posts with links to free sign language lessons but you know you need to actually put effort into learning about Deaf culture, too, right?
Aight y'all. Here's a lesson I learned from my wife, and I wish I'd learned it years ago:
Before you buy anything, take 5 minutes to search (preferably with a non-Google search engine like DuckDuckGo) "best [whatever] for [specific purpose if necessary]."
Make sure you look at who the reviews are from; there are a lot of bad spam sites out there, but you can find good lists on reputable sites. However, you'll get some of the best lists on Reddit.
Most of what you'll find at the top of the lists on Amazon (and Walmart) are people who have paid for that spot. You'll still have to use discernment to make sure you're picking a good review site, but I'm not kidding when i say that the last time we had to buy a plunger, I ended up on a thread on a plumber's forum where they were discussing which plunger they keep in their own bathroom. (The overwhelming winner was something called a Toilet Saber, and... it's much easier to use than the usual style of plunger, actually.)
She searches "best potato peeler" and "best pastry blender" and "best standing desk" and it seems so obvious, right, but she does it for literally everything and the average quality of things I own has gone way, way up since I started taking 5 minutes to search "best yoga socks" and "best cuticle trimmers" and then going to buy whatever it is.
Her research skills go into overdrive when it comes to big purchases; she's the one who researched our sublimation printer and found the desk I currently use. If there's an extremely passionate subreddit out there about the thing she wants to buy, she'll find it and then read half a dozen reviews.
I cannot stress enough how much she does this. About. Everything. And how much everything we own is better as a result.
It's amazing, honestly.
muffin tins gotta be one of the top five worst dishes to wash by hand. right up there with them fuckass blender blades. all those nooks and crannies like… don’t piss me off
oh wow! hey if you take pills check this out. new medicine taking meta just dropped.
according to these models, out of the 4 tested postures, the best position to digest pills is laying on your right side. standing upright has a similar time to laying in your back at twice as much as laying on the right side, and laying on the left side is the slowest by far.
laying on right side: pill dissolves in around 10 minutes.
standing: pill dissolves in 23 minutes. laying on the back has a similar time.
laying on left side: pill dissolves in up to 100 minutes.
https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0096877
definitely worth a lot more research.
if you want your medicine to kick in fast, try laying on your right side! if you want your medicine to kick in slower, try laying on your left side.
tiktok has me STRESSED with their “cleaning aesthetic” vids, so here’s some things you should NOT mix when cleaning, and keep in mind that these can be components in cleaners that should not be mixed (for example, windex usually has ammonia in it and thus should be treated the same way):
bleach and vinegar: creates chlorine gas
bleach and ammonia: creates chloramine gas
bleach and rubbing alcohol: creates chloroform, hydrochloric acid, and chloroacetone
bleach and toilet bowl cleaner: if you’re using an acid-based toilet bowl cleaner, combining it with bleach will create chlorine gas
bleach and mold or mildew stain removers: acid-based stain remover=same as above
bleach and oven cleaners: many oven cleaners contain sodium hydroxide, which creates chlorine gas when combined with bleach
bleach and lysol: chlorine gas once again
(really just never mix bleach with anything other than water) (please stop fucking around with bleach)
drain cleaners: if you use one drain cleaner, do NOT follow it up with another. follow package directions on the one you’re using. you could cause an explosion that could also blind you if it gets in your eyes.
hydrogen peroxide and vinegar: you can spray these on the same surface and wipe down in between and make sure it’s dry before applying the other, but don’t combine them in one container bc you’re going to make peracetic acid.
surface cleaning powders: products based on oxalic acid-based cleaners (Bar Keepers Friend) and products based on trichloroisocyanuric acid (Ajax/Comet powders) create chlorine gas
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good rule of thumb: always stick to one cleaner per surface/item that you’re cleaning to avoid interactions
Okay I’m currently furious that migraines are often so blindly easy to treat and I had to find this out myself at the age of 26 when I’ve been to a neurologist since I was 11 lol so I’m about to teach you two neat and fast little tricks to deal with pain!
The first is the sternocleidomastoid muscle, or the SCM muscle.
This big red section is responsible for pain around the eye, cheekbone, and jaw, as well as some temple pain. Literally all you have to do is angle your head down a little, angle it away from the side that hurts, and then you can gently pinch and rub that muscle. I find it best to start at the bottom and travel upwards. The relief is so immediate! You can increase pressure as you feel comfortable doing so.
Here is a short and easy video showing this in action
The second is a fast and easy stretch that soothes your vagus nerve, which is the nerve responsible for calming you down. The vagus nerve, for those unfamiliar, is stimulated by deep breathing such as yawning, sighing, singing, or taking a deep breath to calm your anger in a tense situation.
You can stretch this out by sitting up as straight as possible (this does not have to be perfect to work) and interlacing your fingers. Put your hands on the back of your head with your thumbs going down the sides of your neck and, while keeping your face forward, look all the way to one side with just your eyes. Hold that until you feel the urge to breathe deeply or yawn, or until you can tell there’s a change. Then do the same thing on the other side. When you put your arms down, you should clearly be able to turn your head farther in both directions. If the first session doesn’t get rid of your migraine, rest and repeat as many times as necessary. I even get a little fancy with it and roll my eyes up and down along the outer edge sometimes to stretch as much as I can.
If you need a visual here’s a good video on it. I know some of the language they use seems questionable but this is real and simple science and should not be discarded because it’s been adopted by the trendy wellness crowd!
I seriously cannot believe I didn’t hear a word of this from any doctor in my life. Additionally, if you get frequent recurring migraines, you may want to see a dietician. Migraines can be caused by foods containing histamines, lectin, etc. and can also be caused by high blood pressure in specific situations such as exercise, stress, and even sex.
If any of this information helps you I’d love to hear it btw! It’s so so fast and easy to do. Good luck!
Hey don't cry. .one half pounds of asparagus, placed on a baking sheet, drizzled with olive oil, and then add a third of a bulb of garlic finely chopped, paprika, salt, pepper, lemon juice, fresh rosemary, toss and broil in the oven OK?
y'all need to stop legally hatewatching too like a hatewatch is still a view is still a membership to disney+ or whatever…..execs have realized that hatewatching gets as much if not more money to them just pirate please
On leaving home for the first time:
Leaving Home before 18: A Practical Guide for Cast-Offs, Runaways, and Everybody in Between
Ask the Bitches: “I Just Turned 18 and My Parents Are Kicking Me Out. How Do I Brace Myself?”
Ask the Bitches: I Want to Move Out, but I Can’t Afford It. How Bad Would It Be to Take out Student Loans to Cover It?
How To Start at Rock Bottom: Welfare Programs and the Social Safety Net
Advice I Wish My Parents Gave Me When I Was 16
Ask the Bitches: How Can I Make Myself Financially Secure Before Age 30?
You Won’t Regret Your Frugal 20s
Master the Logistics and Etiquette of Moving Out
Season 2, Episode 5: “What Do I Need to Know about Moving into My First Apartment?”
On basic finance:
How the Hell Does One Open a Bank Account? Asking for a Friend.
How Do You Write and Cash Checks? Asking for a Friend.
Budgets Don’t Work for Everyone—Try the Spending Tracker System Instead
You Must Be This Big to Be an Emergency Fund
A Hand-Holding Guide to Getting Your First Credit Card
How to File Your Taxes FOR FREE: Simple Instructions for the Stressed-Out Taxpayer
Dafuq Is Credit and How Do You Bend It to Your Will?
How to Save for Retirement When You Make Less Than $30,000 a Year
Dafuq Is Interest and How Does It Work for the Forces of Darkness?
What’s the Difference Between Savings and Checking Accounts, and How Should I Be Using Them?
Dafuq Is a Down Payment? And Why Do You Need One to Buy Stuff?
Dafuq Is Insurance and Why Do You Even Need It?
Investing Deathmatch: Investing in the Stock Market vs. Just… Not
Dafuq Is a Retirement Plan and Why Do You Need One?
Do NOT Make This Disastrous Beginner Mistake With Your Retirement Funds
On managing your household:
How the Hell Does One Laundry? Asking for a Friend.
How the Hell Does One Wash Dishes? Asking for a Friend.
Ask the Bitches: Why Are Painted Mason Jars the Internet’s Only Solution to My Tiny Apartment Woes?
9 Essential Tools for Apartment-Dwellers (and 6 That Are Kinda Useless)
Ask the Bitches: How Can I Survive in an Apartment with No Heat?
How to Save Money on Your Beloved Pets
Bullshit Reasons Not to Buy a House: Refuted
How To Maintain Your Car When You’re Barely Driving It
25 Tricks to Stay Cool WITHOUT Air Conditioning
On feeding and caring for yourself:
You Should Learn To Cook. Here’s Why.
How to Shop for Groceries like a Boss
If You Don’t Eat Leftovers I Don’t Even Want to Know You
I Think I Need to Go the Emergency Room?
Ask the Bitches: Ugh, How Do I Build the Habit of Taking Meds?
On maintaining relationships:
Season 1, Episode 8: “My Mother Demands Information About My One-Night Stands.”
Season 1, Episode 3: “My Parents Have Bad Credit. Should I Help by Co-signing Their Mortgage?”
Ask the Bitches: How Do I Say “No” When a Loved One Asks for Money… Again?
Ask the Bitches: My Dad Sucks with Money. How Do I Make Him Change?
You Need to Talk to Your Parents About Their Retirement Plan
Season 2, Episode 1: “I’m Financially Stable, but My Friends Aren’t. The Guilt Is Crushing!”
On starting your career:
22-Year-Olds Don’t Belong in Grad School
High School Students Have No Way of Knowing What Career to Choose. Why Do We Make Them Do It Anyway?
The Actually Helpful, Nuanced, Non-Bullshit Way to Choose a Future Career
Your College Major May Not Prepare You for Your Job—but It Can Prepare You for Life
The Ugly Truth About Unpaid Internships
Your School or Workplace Benefits Might Include Cool Free Stuff
hey! if you struggle with chores and other tasks for executive dysfunction reasons, i just found out about a tool that may be very helpful for you:
goblin.tools is an AI tool that takes nearly any task (laundry, excercising, making dinner, almost anything) and breaks it down into smaller, less overwhelming steps for you.
my therapist just showed it to me and my relief was so immediate and immense that all my anxiety just Left my body. i highly reccomend trying it if you struggle with breaking down tasks into smaller steps like i do
Streaming companies are the landlords of media. You will rent in perpetuity, and never actually own anything.
This website is full of free sewing patterns that will automatically alter to ur measurements
https://freesewing.org
I recently discovered laundry stripping and y’all, no matter how much of a crock of shit you think fast fashion is, you’re underestimating.
People with low spoons, someone just recommended this cookbook to me, so I thought I'd pass it on.
I always look at cookbooks for people who have no energy/time to do elaborate meal preparations, and roll my eyes. Like, you want me to stay on my feet for long enough to prepare 15 different ingredients from scratch, and use 5 different pots and pans, when I have chronic fatigue and no dishwasher?
These people seem to get it, though. It's very simple in places. It's basically the cookbook for people who think, 'I'm really bored of those same five low-spoons meals I eat, but I can't think of anything else to cook that won't exhaust me'. And it's free!
I turn 30 next month so here’s what I learned in my 20s:
—don’t work for startups, they’re always one ‘innovative idea’ away adding ‘sell your kidneys on the black market’ to your job description.
—keeping a collection of basic OTC medicine on you will save your life one day. I recommend Advil, Imodium, and TUMS.
—those little single-use glasses cleaning wipes are 1000% worth the money
—overly self-depreciating jokes just make people uncomfortable, wean yourself off of them
—you can buy dehydrated mini marshmallows in bulk online and they’re a godsend for hot cocoa
—people don’t care if you have fidget toys on your desk they just want to play with them
—try to go to bed BEFORE the existential ennui kicks in