Interview Question: What Would You Do if You Needed Help With a Task?

“I would throw my computer on the ground and beat it with a bat a la ‘Office Space’ before grinding it up and serving it to my boss in a smoothie.”

Most people fall under two categories when they need help:

• They become very stubborn and refuse to ask for help unless absolutely necessary.
• They don’t even bother trying to figure it out for themselves and ask for help immediately.

The latter has become a source of comedy. Websites like http://www.lmgtfy.com were designed specifically to trash talk people that don’t bother searching for information by themselves. You never want to be the kind of person that can’t solve problems on your own.

At the same time, you need to be the kind of person that asks for help when needed, because otherwise projects are going to be completed either late or incorrectly.

How to Answer

The best way to answer this interview question is to show that you do ask for help, but talk about it in a way that looks like you are confident and in control.

Bad Answer

“I ask my coworker if they know how to do the task. If not, I’ll send an email to my boss and see if they can help.”

This shows no communication skills, no thought, and very little effort. Also, what if your boss is not around and you need help right away?

Good Answer

“Under the assumption that I have already consulted any help guides and researched tips for completing the information online, I will first draft up the issue in its entirety so that the problems are clearly stated, that way little time is spent on miscommunication. I will then consult the individual most knowledgeable about the topic, whether it is tech staff, a customer service line, or a supervisor. I’ll take notes on the solution and thank the individual after the work has been completed.”

This answer shows thought and communication skills, in addition to being organized and good at planning. This is a much better answer.

Take Away Interview Tips

• Show that you are still in control.
• Show that you put thought into how you seek help.

Non-Profit Interview Question: How Do You Work With Volunteers?

“First I invite all of the volunteers into the meeting room. Then while they are waiting for me to arrive I quickly run to the bank and cash my paycheck into dollar bills. I take the bag back with me to the office, walk into the room, strip off all my clothes, throw the cash all over my body and yell ‘you don’t get none of this, suckas!’ until they cry.”

It may seem like an odd question, but many non-profits that work with volunteers ask their new hires how they effectively work with and communicate with those that volunteer their time to help the organization succeed. This question may seem odd, but the goal is to see if you recognize the value of volunteers and their service, and if you have any experience working with volunteers in the past.

How to Answer

Volunteers do work that you get paid to do, but they do it for free and during their own time. They are highly valued by the companies that use them, so you should indicate that value in your answer.

Bad Answer

“I work fine with them. I treat them like any other employee.”

In some ways this answer makes it sound like you like down on them, and even if it does not, it is somewhat boring. It does not really show the value of volunteers to the organization.

Good Answer

“Without volunteers, organizations like this one would struggle to move forward. I give volunteers my full attention and assistance so that they continue to feel supported and fulfilled within their organization.”

Volunteers are far too important to non-profits. They are arguably more important than your employment. Show them you value them in your answer.

Take Away Interview Tips

• Show that you value volunteers considerably.

Difficult Interview Question: Why Do You Want to Work in a Position in Which You Are Overqualified?

In today’s economy, a number of professionals have had to make sacrifices after getting laid off. Many candidates with years of work experience are either changing fields or applying for lesser positions in order to simply find employment. This makes them overqualified for these jobs. The problem is that many companies worry about hiring someone that is overqualified because:

• The person may want to leave for a better paying job in the future.
• The person may have problems taking orders from those with less experience.
• The person may try to move up in the company too quickly and aggressively.

They are not wrong. Many overqualified applicants come to new companies expecting better treatment than someone in their role deserves. That makes your answer to questions about being overqualified important to answer well. Focus on how you are a good fit for the role, and how you came to that opinion.

Bad Answer

“I know that your company has a lot of growth potential. I figured I would start here, and if you decided you like my skills and qualifications you could move me up when a position opens.”

You never want to admit to the company that you are there just to get your foot in the door. They need someone to fill the specific job you are applying for, not to use it as a stepping stone for other positions. It also makes you sound as though you will leave if you don’t get a better job soon.

Good Answer

“My experience working at CompanyName has thoroughly prepared me for the job and my experience has served to give me the skills I need to organize, plan, and execute my job effectively. I am confident that I am a good fit for the position and that my past work experience will only serve to help me thrive in the job.”

Focus your answer on simply restating why you are a good fit, while ignoring the idea that you might be overqualified. If they want to know any more about your ambitions, make them prompt you for it. Don’t give them anything they can use against you.

Take Away Interview Tips

• Ignore the idea that you are overqualified.
• Focus on how you are prepared to be a good fit for the job.

Behavioral Interview Question: Describe a Time You Had to Present Complex Information in a Simplified Way

Behavioral interview questions do not always have exciting answers. Sometimes you simply need to tell a story that shows you have some idea what the interviewer is talking about. The goal is to impress the employer, but when you draw upon specific experiences, sometimes there are no interesting experiences to share. How you presented complex information is often one of these stories.

How to Answer

The story itself is not necessarily the way employers will learn about your simplification skills. The way you describe the story is. Start by sharing the complex information – and try to make it sound complex. Then, start explaining how you simplified it or presented it, and make it sound simple.

Bad Answer

“I gave a presentation once to a bunch of business professionals on our products, and they all appeared to understand the content of what I was sharing.”

Good Answer

“My company put me in charge of detailing the version 1.65 interface improvements and changes to the ICSMBSE server to a group of visiting project managers with little experience dealing with IMTU databases. I provided packets with charts and graphs to complement my presentation, and focus mostly on the how the product would be a beneficial solution to their needs while breaking down how the components worked at their more basic level rather than the intricate changes in technology”

You start by focusing on what was difficult, and end with the basics of how you simplified and presented the information. This shows the interviewer that you understand when something is technical, and you have an idea of how to simplify information for non-technical audiences.

Take Away Interview Tips

• Start by explaining how it was complicated.
• End by explaining how you simplified it and presented it.

Common Interview Question: What Do You Know About Our Products?

In case you were not aware, company research is important. Lots and lots and lots of it. Know more about the company than some of the staff do, because you will be tested on that knowledge in your interview, and you need to be able to answer accordingly.

How to Answer

If you are asked what you know about the products, it is not an opportunity to list off the products that they offer. They know what products they offer. They don’t want to hear you simply recite a list or give a brief explanation of what it does. They want to know that you actually have knowledge. So what you should talk about are at least one of the following:

• The products/changes currently under development.
• The effects of their products on the market or on the consumer.
• Awards and figures about products.
• How current, past, and future products represent the values of the company.

Make sure you talk about things that other applicants are less likely to discuss, focusing your answer on more than just a list of the products or a brief explanation of what they do.

Bad Answer

“Your current products are the SurverySoft App and the SurveySoft Messenger. Both are designed to make research easier.”

Boring.

Good Answer

“Forbes called the SurveySoft App the “next generation enterprise market research software,” beating out the QuestionAir app in both functionality and ease of use. Also, the SurveySoft Messenger is currently being upgraded to include Apple products, so that researchers across the globe can utilize instant market research surveying and analytics. I also read that you are in the process of developing a comprehensive analysis tool to complement your data collection products. Is that still in development?”

Here you show a lot more knowledge, and even insight into the future of the company. Asking a question at the end is a good way to finish the answer if you cannot come up with a more powerful ending.

Take Away Interview Tips

• Research the company.
• Provide more information than simply a list of products and their basic purpose.

Interview Question: Are You Willing to Put the Interests of the Company Ahead of Your Own?

The interview is not a contract. You do not have to do everything you claim you are going to do. For example, if the company asks you if you are willing to stay at least three years, and you say yes, you do not have to stay for the full three years. Unless you are on contract, you can skip out at any time.

The same holds true for the interview questions about whether or not you are willing to sacrifice your own interests for the sake of the company. Your answer is not a binding contract. If you don’t want to put the interests of the company ahead of your own, you don’t have to.

How to Answer

The best answer for this interview question is to claim that they are one in the same. Remember, you don’t need to qualify it with something like “as long as they don’t ask me to do anything illegal or cause me any financial stress…” because the answer doesn’t really matter. You don’t have to do what you say you will do.

Bad Answer

“I am willing to put the company’s interests ahead of my own as long as it is still fun to work here and it doesn’t affect the livelihood that I hope to give my family.”

Again, that is qualifying your answer. It’s unnecessary. Obviously in life, you are not going to put your work ahead of your family, but when you answer the question, you are.

Good Answer

“My interest is the short and long term success of the company, so if the company needs something done, it is in my best interests to complete it.”

In other words, the interests of the company and your own interests are one in the same, so one can never be ahead of the other. That’s a good answer that shows commitment to the workplace.

Take Away Interview Tips

• Yes, you are supposed to put the interests of the company ahead of your own.
• No, you don’t necessarily have to do it when the time comes.

Difficult Interview Question: What Would Your Previous Supervisor Say You Need to Work On?

“He would probably tell me to stop checking Facebook and start actually doing my work for once.”

Your supervisor may or may not have liked you. It is not important. When you are asked to put yourself in your supervisor’s shoes and critique your work, you should answer this question in the same manner you would answer a “greatest weakness” question.

How to Answer

“Perfectionist” is not going to work here. Your supervisor will never say you need to work on being too much of a perfectionist. That’s stupid. Instead, pick something extremely minor that doesn’t make you sound like a bad employee. Again, one of the best critiques you can give of yourself is that you “don’t speak up enough in meetings.”

Bad Answer

“My supervisor would say I am too much of a perfectionist. That I work too hard. He would tell me to slow down and not experience so much stress from the project.”

No he wouldn’t.

Good Answer

“My supervisor once told me he’d like me to speak up more often at meetings. I tended to keep my thoughts to myself until prompted, but in the interests of open discussion, he would have liked me to be more open with my ideas, so I have been working sharing more easily.”

You picked something that actually could be seen as a flaw, but unless you are applying for a job as lead meetings manager, you are going to be fine. In fact, this type of answer makes it look like you have good ideas. It’s one of the safest answers you can give.

Take Away Interview Tips

• Give them a real answer.
• Make sure the answer isn’t bad.

Interview Tips: How Well Do You Handle Repetitive Tasks?

Most of the time, when you answer an interview question, it is a good idea to justify it with an example of a time you were a great employee. For example, if you are asked about your ability to communicate, you talk about how you planned some large event and coordinated with multiple contractors – giving the employer an example of you using the skills that you are about to claim you have.

This is not one of those times. Nothing about describing the repetitive tasks you have had to do in the past is exciting. In fact, if you start to describe the repetitive tasks you used to do at your old job, it may accidentally sound like you are complaining. Rather than describe your experience doing boring, repetitive things, keep your answer brief.

Bad Answer

“I handle repetitive tasks quite well. At my last job, I had to enter data over and over again for four months, and it was not much of a problem.”

Good Answer

“Every day is new and interesting, even if the tasks are not. Repetition is not a problem.”

There isn’t really a way to expand on this that will make you sound like a great employee. More likely, the more you talk, the more it sounds like you are complaining about your work. Keep the answer brief and move on, and you should do fine with this interview question.

Take Away Interview Tips

• Don’t expand too much.
• Don’t say anything that makes it sound like you are complaining.

Difficult Interview Question: How Did You And Your Last Supervisor Get Along?

Every interview question is an opportunity to sell yourself. Questions as simple as “What do you think of the weather today?” have potential to become bigger questions than they appear at first glance. Part of that is because all questions and answers have subtext. Yet another reason is because you, as the applicant, can make sure that you seize every question as an opportunity to make yourself look great. When the company asks you about your relationships with people in your past, you can give them a simple answer, or you can give them an amazing answer. Go for amazing every time.

How to Answer

Instead of simply saying the two of you got along well, why not use this as an opportunity to discuss things relevant to the job? Discuss how you communicated or how the two of you worked on a project. These are good opportunities to add accomplishments and details to your answer. As always, never complain about the supervisor or your relationship.

Bad Answer

“We got along okay. She and I respected each other and we often made jokes and scheduled useful meetings.”

Good Answer

“We got along quite well. She and I developed several different methods of communication so that we could more easily manage my projects, and we had open communication that allowed us to speak freely about our ideas before we came to an agreed upon conclusion…”

This is an answer that does more than just talk about your personal relationship. In fact, it does more than just talk about your professional relationship. Here, you discuss some of the activities you did that make you a great employee in addition to mentioning how you and your supervisor interacted.

Take Away Interview Tips

• Use every question as an opportunity.
• Never say bad things about your bosses.

Interview Question: Are You a Leader or a Follower?

One of the things you learn when you get older is that high school doesn’t matter. It seems like a huge deal at the time – and certainly you learn a lot about life – but in the end, most people completely forget high school, completely change their personality, and completely could not give a damn if they were a jock, a nerd, a goth, etc.

So whether or not you were a leader or a follower in high school is not applicable here. Your answer should not be about what you were.  Your answer shouldn’t even be about what you are. Your answer should be about what you will be.

How to Answer

Both options have negative connotations:

• Follower – Someone that can’t think for themselves or take charge when needed.
• Leader – Someone that can’t take orders.

So, as usual when both options sound negative, you need to combine a little of both. Lean your answer towards what the position expects. If it is an entry level job, don’t focus too heavily on being a leader. If it is a management job, focus less on being a follower.

Bad Answer

“I am a leader. I take charge of whatever room I am in, and I command attention and do a great job delegating tasks.”

Good Answer

“I adapt my style to the position I am in. When a group needs a leader, I gladly take on that role, but at the entry level, I know that there is a lot I need to learn, and I am happy to take direction from those with more knowledge and a better sense of the overall picture.”

You can see how that answer is better, especially for entry level jobs. Anyone can say they are a leader or a follower, and both have their benefits and weaknesses. The best answers are going to combine a little bit of both, with a logical justification.

Take Away Interview Tips

• You are a leader.
• You are a follower.
• You are more of whichever one is necessary for the job.