When you apply for a job and you’re called for an interview, there are various questions that are asked, and the better prepared you are, the more successful your interview would be. Well, you might have come across various videos online that talk about the most common interview questions and answers. This blog would be a little different, because it’s not just about the questions and answers; we are gonna talk. I’m also gonna explain what exactly the interviewer thinks when he’s asking certain questions, what exact answers he’s looking at, and what are the common mistakes that you usually do.
The First Question: Tell Me About Yourself
The first most common question that is asked by the interviewer is, “So tell me something about yourself,” or they might also ask, “Run me through your CV?” Now here, the interviewer is not really interested in your answer. What they are looking at is your confidence, your enthusiasm, and the passion that you answer with. So it’s the best time that you show off your communication skills. Now usually, I have observed that many people end up saying:
Ahh, I love watching movies. I think I love partying. I have so many friends, so I really enjoy partying.
No, that’s not the right way to answer this question. What you need to talk about is your education, where you grew up, or you can also talk about your past work experience, if you have any, and your personal interests. For example, you can say:
Ahh, well, I grew up in France and I studied accounting. I also worked for an accounting firm for about eight months, and I really enjoy numbers. Maybe that’s exactly the reason I love to solve them. Solving them is so much fun, and in my spare time, I really like reading and also going out jogging, only if the weather allows me to.
What Are Your Strengths?
The second most popular question that is asked by an interviewer is, “What are your strengths?” Now here, the interviewer is looking at how positive you think about yourself. It’s quite a general question; there’s no right or wrong answer to it. But if you give out one-liners such as:
Oh, I’m a very friendly person. I love being with people, and people love being with me.
That just doesn’t sound great for an interview, does it? So what you can say is:
My strongest trait is attention to detail. I totally believe in planning and execution. In fact, even when I was in college, I used to really organize my week. Because of my very outgoing nature, many people have said that I am quite approachable, so I believe these are my strengths.
What Are Your Weaknesses?
The third most common question that is asked is, “What are your weaknesses?” Here, for this question, you need not be really negative about yourself. I have heard people saying:
Well, I am a very impatient person, or I get angry easily.
Well, that’s not the right answer. Maybe that is your weakness, but you need not bring it out. The best answer to this, because what the interviewer is looking at is whether you can identify your weakness and how you can cover it up. So one of the examples that you can use to answer this question is:
I think my weakness is that I am way too detail-oriented. I try to accomplish everything, and I just want everything to be perfect. But then I realize that I’m losing out on time, so maybe that makes me submit projects pretty late. So I think that is one of the weaknesses.
Here, basically, what you are doing is displaying that maybe you run out of time, but you’re also giving a very positive aspect to it: that you are a perfectionist.
Where Do You See Yourself in Five Years?
The next common question that is asked is, “Where do you see yourself in five years from now?” or the interviewer might also ask, “What are your long-term or short-term goals?” Now here, I’ve seen people really struggle to answer this question. Well, maybe, because you yourself have no idea where you would like to be. So usually people end up saying:
Oh, I would like to be the CEO of this company, or I would like to own an airline.
That doesn’t sound right. So what a good answer to this question would be, because here the interviewer is looking at how committed you are gonna be to this company. A very clear path with commitment, because you know what’s the attrition rate these days. So one of the best answers that you can give would be:
Well, five years from now, I think I would like to be in a management position. Till then, I would like to gain practical experience and then eventually become a manager. Of course, I would like to share and also learn a lot of new things from my team members.
Tell Me About Our Company
The next most popular question that is asked is, “So tell me something about our company” or “What do you know about our company?” Now here, the interviewer, of course, has knowledge about his own company, right? What he’s looking at is whether you are serious about this job or not. So many people are usually let down because of the lack of research about the company. What you need to do is research. Go online and learn about the positive attributes of the company. Learn about their products, their history, and so on. One of the best ways that you can answer to this question is:
Oh, well, your company is very well known for customer service, and you also won an award for the best service provider in the country. Of course, you also have a great clientele.
Conclusion
So that brings me to the end of this lesson. I hope all of these questions and answers are helpful for your interview. If you are going for an interview, wish you all the very best. Do well, and I will see you soon in the next lesson. Take care. Thank you.
