If you answer "a lion," you will be seen as aggressive. What type of personality would it take to get the job done? What impression do you want to make? Yes, the job search is intimidating, but reviewing interview questions and answers in advance is one way to calm your nerves and boost your confidence. Are you looking for more ways to stand apart from the competition?
Set up a free profile with Monster and we can send you career advice, workplace insights, and more job interview tips directly to your inbox. It's a quick and easy way to stay one step ahead. Thank you! You are now a Monster member—and you'll receive more content in your inbox soon. By continuing, you agree to Monster's privacy policy , terms of use and use of cookies. Search Career Advice. Advice Interviews Interview Questions. Answers to 10 Most Common Job Interview Questions Here are the most commonly asked interview questions you can expect to be asked in your interview and advice on how you can craft effective responses.
Carole Martin, Monster contributor. Know these popular interview questions and answers. The reality is that Response 43 in your brain typically kicks in "I know the answer to that one! This type of question includes " Can you give me a specific example of how you did that? This type of question includes "Can you give me a specific example of your leadership skills? This type of question includes "What is divided by 73?
The purpose is to evaluate not only your mental math calculation skills, but also your creative ability in formulating the mathematical formula for providing an answer or estimate, as can often be the case.
This type of question includes problem-solving questions ranging from: "How many gas stations are there in Europe? This type of question includes "What kind of animal would you like to be? There is not necessarily a right or wrong answer, since it is used primarily to test your ability to think on your feet.
He was so grateful for the personal attention that he signed another six-month contract before my boss even returned from her trip. Here are three ways to approach this response:.
Research the typical compensation range for the role on Indeed Salaries and make the low end of your range your lowest acceptable salary. However, I am flexible and willing to discuss. There may be other benefits, perks or forms of compensation you find just as valuable as your salary.
That way, I can provide a more accurate expectation. Culture adds make the company stronger by diversifying the experiences and perspectives of its workforce.
I understand that you require a highly organized candidate with acute attention to detail. Remember that you are interviewing the company too.
Take time to ask the interviewer questions about their own experiences with the company, gain tips on how you can succeed if hired and address any lingering questions you have. Some examples include:. Do you have any hesitations about hiring me? Knowing what you enjoyed about your last position can offer employers insight to your motivations, personality and whether you will enjoy the position available.
To answer this question, focus on positives, speak to work rather than people, explain how it prepared you for this new position and reasons why moving to this role is the right choice.
Not only was I learning more about marketing, but management was also very transparent, teaching us a great deal about owning a business. It was a very collaborative atmosphere, and the team and I worked together on almost every project. Everyone's weak point was countered by another's strong point. I learned more working there than I ever did in college, and I'm excited to apply these skills to a new position. This question can tell employers about types of work you enjoy, your experience level with certain workplace scenarios and whether or not you would be a good culture add.
Avoid saying anything negative about your former employer, managers or colleagues. Make your answer about your career growth and enthusiasm for joining their organization. I deeply enjoy being challenged and getting better at what I do, which I understand is a top priority for managers at your organization. How you handle stressful situations is an indicator of your ability to solve problems.
Spend some time thinking about your response to stressful situations and provide an example that communicates your abilities around perseverance, resilience and stress management. Instead, think of a few achievements that showcase your work ethic and values. The STAR method is a great tool to ensure you highlight the parts of your story that employers want to hear. I noticed other brands were experimenting with videos and seeing great engagement from their customers, so I asked my boss if we could do a low-budget test.
She agreed, so I produced a video cheaply in-house that drove double the engagement we normally saw on our social channels. Employers may ask this of anyone who might be leading or teaching others.
Your response will allow employers to gauge your personal skills and if you would be a good culture add. A good answer will concisely identify what you think teaching should achieve and include concrete examples to illustrate your ideas.
This way, they feel ownership over the learning rather than feeling micromanaged. For example, in my last role, I was editing an article written by a copywriter I managed. In a one-on-one meeting, I asked her what she thought was the main point of the article if she had to sum it up in a sentence. From there, I asked if she thought the focus was clear in the article. As a result, the article improved and my direct report learned a valuable writing lesson that she carried into her future work.
Your answer can either come from the perspective of a customer or a customer service provider. Instead of simply stating the facts, the flight attendant apologized sincerely and offered me a free drink or premium snack. To me, this apology went a long way in smoothing things over. The freebie was a bonus that made me feel valued as a customer and choose the same airline for my next flight. An interviewer may or may not already be familiar with your background. Regardless, this question gives you the chance to detail your experiences that are most valuable to the prospective role.
Consider these tips for answering:. When I became a senior financial analyst, I supervised other analysts and trained them in providing the most helpful experience to our customers. End with a goal statement: "As your senior financial consultant, I aim to integrate my individualized approach to helping clients build the retirement fund they will depend on.
Employers ask this to help them understand how your definition of success influences your goals and how you measure them. I work toward completing my individual duties as effectively as possible, balancing that with professional growth and contributing to larger organizational goals. Many jobs involve moments when, for varied reasons, there are unexpected situations that require swift action.
The ability to stay calm, think logically and act correctly in such a scenario is a major asset. This is another good instance of when to use the STAR method to talk about a specific time you were faced with a challenge, might have succumbed to stress but managed to calmly find a solution.
I find that routine can make us complacent, so I try to look for challenges that push me to grow. One time, I was supposed to deliver a project to a client in five days. A colleague who was working with another client had the same deadline, but he had to take a leave of absence due to personal reasons. I was forced to take up both projects at the same time.
While I felt an initial sense of panic, I tried to reframe it as an opportunity to see what I might be capable of. Instead of letting the stress get to me, I came up with a very detailed time management plan and found new ways to boost my efficiency that enabled me to deliver both projects on time.
Employers typically ask this question because they want to ensure that your interests and passion align with their job. Describe a job in general: " My dream job would be a leadership position where the other team members are active participants and communication happens daily Discuss your values: " Tailor to the job for which you are interviewing: " Research the company in-depth to understand its culture and business needs. Explain why your skills, experience and characteristics uniquely position you to advance organizational objectives.
Use an example from your work experience that speaks to your skill set. In a previous position as the purchasing lead, I had to decide which supplies to order to stay within the budget, but I had a limited amount of time to make a decision.
I will bring the same interest and motivation for making an impact here at ABC Company. Employers ask this question to gauge how you interact with various stakeholders or colleagues of differing opinions. Often, being the right person for the job involves more than just hard skills, hiring managers also value candidates who can collaborate with others and approach conflict in a productive way.
A good answer will discuss a time you encountered a conflict with a colleague, client or manager and maintained the patience to resolve it.
Use the STAR method to construct your response. When I approached him about it, he reacted defensively. I kept calm and acknowledged that the deadlines were challenging and asked how I could assist him in improving his performance. He calmed down and told me that he was involved in another project where he had to do tasks that were not in his job description. For the remainder of the project, the technician delivered great work. Avoid voicing concerns about your current position or company—negative comments about your employer are often interpreted as unprofessional.
Research the role and company ahead of time to understand how it relates to your background. An impactful answer will discuss your hard and soft skills and use the STAR method to illustrate how your unique skills might benefit the team or organization.
What do you do? For more information on how to handle questions that could involve you talking about mistakes, read this earlier blog on the subject. A useful piece of advice here is to reflect on a general oversight or error of judgement, as opposed to a mistake that led to more serious consequences. Competency-based questions are used by interviewers to assess specific attributes, knowledge and behaviours.
For example a hiring manager looking to understand more about your behaviours that lead you to be successful in a job may ask about different ways in which you used your analytical ability in a previous role to solve a problem.
Alternatively, if it is your decision making that they are looking to assess, they may ask you to provide information about how you built strong professional rapport with colleagues to make informed decisions. While these questions may often seem to be situational, competency-based questions are far less likely to be hypothetical, enable you to draw directly on real-life examples and be focused on specific competencies than a general approach to situations.
Again, as with situational job interview questions, before answering, you should take a moment to think about what the interviewer is really asking or looking for. Having examples to hand will enable you to answer these questions with great ease and allow you to really showcase your expertise. Behavioural questions are asked to elicit information from you on how you would be likely to handle any of a range of real-world challenges based on your previous behaviour facing a similar circumstance.
Whereas situational questions decipher how you would approach certain scenarios, and competency-based questions prove you have the skills required for the role, behavioural questions ascertain if you have the character traits the interviewer is looking for. How did you learn from it? By familiarising yourself with these common types of interview questions, you will be able to better position yourself as a candidate who can be depended on to deliver an instant impact and make the right decisions.
Nick Deligiannis began working at Hays in and since then has held a variety of consulting and management roles across the business, including the role of Director responsible for the operation of Hays in Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory. Prior to joining Hays, he had a background in human resource management and marketing, and has formal qualifications in Psychology.
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