What Questions Are Asked In An Interview?
Ah Interview, the unmountable wall that blocks the path to a job. Much like the dragon that blocks the path to a treasure. Only if you slay the dragon may you reach the treasure. At least that is what it must feel like to a person who’s got their first job interview coming up. I know the feeling, I was just as nervous as you probably are right now. But after sitting for many interviews and making many mistakes I noticed something, something that opened my eyes. I realised that the dragon is not that hard to slay, in fact, it is quite easy if you know where to strike. Interviews are extremely important because not everyone’s as lucky, most people don’t even get called in for an interview.
So it makes sense that you put your best foot forward and have a clear idea and basic knowledge about a few things that will allow you to stand out from your competition. Let me elaborate, in almost every interview, there are some basic questions that are asked, the answers to these questions are extremely important, these questions allow the interviewer to get a general idea of your capabilities. You have to nail the answers to these questions. So what are these so important questions? Here they are-
Questions that are asked in an interview1. Tell me about yourself 2. What are your weaknesses? 3. What are your strengths? 4. Why did you apply for this position? 5. Why do you want to work for us? 6. Where would you like to be in 5 years time? 7. Why should we hire you?
8. What salary are you expecting? 9. Do you have any questions?
1. Tell me about yourself This will most likely be the very first question that you’ll be asked. Make sure you don’t fumble to answer this question. There’s a saying “ you can tell a lot about a person from the way he introduces himself” if you struggle to do something as simple as introducing yourself then it’ll significantly hurt your chances of getting the job. If you are not confident then here’s a tip, practice answering this question before going to the interview.
2. What are your weaknesses? This question is asked to judge whether you can self reflect, to see whether you are confident enough to accept your own shortcomings. Do not be overconfident and say that you have no weakness, that’ll just show that you are naive and ignorant. Everyone has weaknesses, just think about yourself and what you lack, then answer honestly.
3. What are your strengths? This question is a golden opportunity, it allows you to show off your skills, what you’re good at. Make sure you answer this question smartly, point out your strengths, what you’re good at and communicate them in an easy manner so that the interviewer can understand easily.
4. Why did you apply for this position? Answer this question in your own way, you obviously had a reason for applying for the position, so just tell them that reason. The reason doesn’t have to be something innovative or unique, it can be something as simple as I want to gain new experience, etc.
5. Why do you want to work for us? You obviously want to work for them, I mean that’s why you’re sitting there in the interview room. So what is the exact reason/s behind your desire to work for them particularly? If you have heard good things about the company, if their pay scale is what attracted you to them, it could be anything. Just tell them honestly why you want to work for them. What made you choose them over other companies.
6. Where would you like to be in 5 years time? What is your plan? What do you hope to achieve in 5 years? What is your vision? If you don’t have a plan, I recommend that you make a plan because a goal without a plan is just a wish. And wishful thinking will not get you success. You should have a mission and a vision, you should have an idea of where you’re headed in life.
7. Why should we hire you? You’re not the only one applying for the position, you’re among possibly tens or hundreds of other candidates. So what makes you special? Why should they hire you? Answer this question with confidence. Because if you are not convinced by your own answer then there’s no way that the interviewers will be convinced by it. If you have skills that you think will be helpful to them, if you have great passion for the job, if you have any experience, anything that you think might be helpful, tell them.
8. What salary are you expecting? Now we’re in the sensitive part. Many people feel shy or are not confident enough to say what they are thinking and struggle to answer this question. Just think, you want to work because you want to earn money right? Or are you a golden-hearted person who will work for 8 hours a day 5 days a week for free, if you are one of those people then kudos, but for the rest of us money is very important. So if they are asking you what you expect the compensation to be, then tell them what you expect. But don’t go and tell them an unreasonable amount, be reasonable and say what you expect in return of your services. Your answer to this question also
allows the interviewer to know the extent of your knowledge about the industry, if you have done your research then you probably know how much similar jobs are paying.
9. Do you have any questions? All’s well that ends well, if at the end they ask you if you have any questions, then don’t say no, if you ask them questions then it shows you are indeed interested for the job and want to learn more about it. Ask them about the job, for example, you could ask them about their dress code, about their policy for overtime, you can ask them about their health and wellness benefit package, a research shows more than 40% of millennials select employers based on their health and wellness benefit package, it could be anything, just ask whatever it is that you want to know about the company. These were the questions that are asked in almost every interview. These are the basics. So answer them correctly. If you are a fresher then I recommend you take an online course on job interview preparations, because these online courses provide you with answers to these basic questions, tells you how to prepare for job interviews and also gives you many other professional tips that can help you get your first job. You can also try online courses available to help you get prepared for the interview of your dream job. Now you know exactly where to strike to slay that dragon, so go ahead, fight that dragon and claim your treasure!!!!