Difficult Interview Question: If We Don’t Offer You the Job, Why Do You Think That Would Be?

It’s not fun when someone forces you to say bad things about yourself. It is as though they are asking you to harm your own self esteem. They are saying “hey, I know you like most things about yourself, but I’m going to need you to point out to me where you suck.”

Luckily, despite how difficult the question works at first glance, this is one question that is not that hard to answer. Rather than point out a weakness in your skills, experiences, etc., you should give a confident answer like the one you will see below.

Bad Answer

“I think if you don’t hire me, it will probably because I don’t have much experience working with program X, which I know is a considerable part of the role. I also do not have as much work experience as the other candidates.”

Good Answer

“I would not have applied for this job if I was not confident I was a great fit, so I suppose if you choose to go another route it was because I did not adequately communicate why I am the right person for the position.”

Here, you confidently state that you are perfect for the job, so that the only reason they do not hire you is because you didn’t do a great job explaining those qualifications at the interview. This is a much better answer that should score you some good points with the interviewer and will not point out your “flaws.”

Take Away Interview Tips

• Be confident.
• State that you must not have explained your abilities well enough.

Interview Question: How Can Your Strengths Help Our Company?

This question is very similar to when companies ask “why should we hire you?” The company is looking for you to show them several things:

• Confidence – They want to know that you believe you can help the company.
• Knowledge – They want to hear what you have to say about your abilities.
• Research – They want to know that you have some idea what their company does.

This is also the type of question that you can potentially take full advantage of in order to put yourself in a far better position. It is one of the best questions for laying out your best points and showing the interviewer why you are right for the job. As always, make sure you stay away from clichés. Try to take advantage of this opportunity to make yourself unique. Also, remember to focus on the company even more than the job.

Bad Answer

“My strengths are that I am a hard worker. I have knowledge in PowerPoint and Access. I have worked in the marketing field for over 10 years. I have always been a fast worker and reliable. I believe that my skills and expertise will allow me to do the job well and to help your company grow.”

Too many clichés, and it focuses too much on the job without discussing the strengths of the company.

Good Answer

“Your company has long been a leader in strategic marketing, due primarily to your usage of modern marketing technologies and current techniques for reaching your target markets. When I worked at MarketTech, I worked directly with those same strategies include the integration of social media marketing. I also have a passion for new technologies that will allow me to adapt to the ever-changing marketplace. I have a history of working directly with marketing companies that focus on integration, using such products as Software Name 1, Software Name 2, and Software Name 3, I am I am positive that these experiences will help your company achieve its goals.”

Fewer clichés, and a focus on how your experiences will help the company. You can also integrate information about the corporate culture, or anything else that shows that you understand how that company operates.

Take Away Interview Tips

• Focus on the company, not the job description.
• Relate your experiences to the company.
• Be confident with your answer.
• Avoid all clichés.

Difficult Interview Question: Why Shouldn’t We Hire You?

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Yesterday we discussed one of the worst interview questions – “What is Your Fatal Flaw?” That’s just a bad interview question. Today’s interview question is not quite as bad, but still can land even great candidates in a lot of trouble. “Why shouldn’t we hire you” is a good question for asking applicants to think on their feet, but there are way too many ways you can answer this question poorly.

Bad Answer #1

“I am perfect.”

No, you are not. You are flawed. Everyone is flawed. Don’t be conceited.

Bad Answer #2

“Well, you might not want to hire me because I don’t have experience with Program XYZ, and it’s important to the role…”

You don’t actually want to give them a reason to not to hire you. That’s just silly.

How to Answer

Once again, there really isn’t a “Great” answer. There is are two acceptable ways to answer, where one is more risky but could bring greater rewards, and the other is similar to the “greatest weakness” answer where the weakness isn’t really that much of a weakness to begin with. Let’s look at them here.

Good Answer #1 – Risky

“There are always aspects of company culture that you do not learn until you have had time to adjust to the new setting. So if your company doesn’t like tasks being completed before deadline, or if your company doesn’t enjoy building revenue through outstanding usage of its resources, then you probably shouldn’t hire me.”

This answer takes some guts, but it’s pretty good. You are essentially turning the answer into a joke, like “If your company wants to hire someone awful, then you definitely shouldn’t hire me.” If the interviewer has no sense of humor and you haven’t been doing well in your interview, this answer may not fly, though.

Good Answer #2 – Less Risky

“It’s very important to me that I complete tasks before deadline without errors. What this means, however, is that sometimes I need to call meetings to ensure that it is on the right path in order to do the work efficiently and error free. If your company frowns on impromptu meetings or the culture is such that it does not appreciate open communication, I may not be the person for you.”

This answer is actually pretty good. It focuses on a “flaw” (perfectionism, sort of) and expands to make it actually sound like it might be a flaw, but it isn’t really, and you are left with a successful and real answer to the question using a weakness that isn’t really a weakness.

Take Away Interview Tips

• Consider giving a risky answer by implying the company may want to hire bad employees on purpose.
• Otherwise go with a twist on the biggest weakness answers, using a weakness that isn’t really a weakness.
• Don’t give them a real reason not to hire you.
• Don’t claim that there is no reason.

Tough Interview Question – Why Should We Hire You?

For every open position, employers receive something like 100 to 500 applicants at minimum. Jobs get a lot of resumes. Can you confidently say that you are more qualified than all of those applicants? Probably not. Chances are you have nothing more than the minimum qualifications, maybe a bit more, and that someone else applying for the job as had a greater amount of experience in the field. Still, you need to come up with a good reason that you deserve a job more than other people, and you need to deliver that answer confidently.

How to Answer

There are two things that employers are looking for with your answer:

• Real Reasons – The employer wants to hear that you have real reasons that you deserve to be hired.
• Confidence – You must deliver your answer with confidence, which involves planning your answer to this question about beforehand so that you can recite it proudly.

Bad Answer

“I… uh… I guess you should hire me because I am a really hard worker, and I have experience in the field, and I’m smart, and I have intelligence, and I am a good fit for your company.”

Good Answer

“I have a history of success in the field. I improved revenue by 150% in just six months with company X. I was team leader for several projects, and I have always shown the ability to learn and adapt to any new situation, so you can be sure that I will seamlessly fit into your department’s dynamic.”

Your most important tool will be to focus on real accomplishments and use those to establish yourself as a great employee. Don’t simply state random things that anyone can say, like “I have great communication skills.” Show them with confident answers that display why you are a great communicator, such as in the above team leader example.

Take Away Interview Tips

• State real examples of your abilities.
• Practice your answer.
• Answer confidently and without doubt.

Difficult Interview Question – Why Hire From Outside the Company Rather Than Promote from Within?

Lots of job interview questions are designed to challenge your confidence. Why hire you? Why not hire someone better? These questions are not asked because your qualifications are slim. These questions are planned to see how well you can handle questions that challenge your abilities. They are hard to answer, but a good answer can go a long way.

General Answer Method

Obviously you need to be confident with your answer. If you cannot come up with reasons or you do not sound confident with your answer, you will fail. Answers should simply describe your strong points. However, there are good and bad ways to do this.

Bad Answer

“I am a great worker, with strong communication skills and the ability to do my job above and beyond expectations.”

This answer is too simple. It’s too boring. You don’t show any real examples of why the employer should look to you over internal candidates.

Good Answer

“It does not matter where the qualified applicant comes from. What matters is that they are going to do their job. My history of working with HTML, PHP and XML coding as well as my knowledge of Web 2.0 systems make me supremely qualified for the position, and my personality fits seamlessly with the company. I have the worth ethnic, knowledge and skills that make me a better candidate for the position than applicants both within and outside of your organization.”

This answer is a little long, but it is much better. You acknowledge what the question is asking and confidently state why you are best for the job in a manner that shows you as both confident and personable.

Take Away Interview Tips

• Describe your strong points.
• Speak with confidence.