Smart Answers to Interview Questions walk
Many interview questions are open-ended, and to give the employer a good idea of your professional skills and abilities, you need to give answers that are personal and detailed. There are professional and smart ways to give answers with two or even three parts. This article talks about what smart answers are, how to answer common interview questions in a smart way, and other useful information.
How should you answer interview questions?
STAR is a good way to answer interview questions most of the time. This method is a structured way to answer questions about your behavior that are often asked in interviews. For each answer, talk about the situation, the task, what you did, and the result. The answers should be clear and specific, but they shouldn’t go on and on about things that aren’t important.
You should avoid giving examples that show your flaws when you give smart answers to interview questions. But you can talk about bad results and how you handled them to show the interviewer that you are strong when things don’t go as planned.
How to answer the most common questions at an interview
Here is a list of smart answers to interview questions to help you answer them better:
- Why should someone hire you?
- What do you do really well?
- Tell me about the thing you’re most proud of doing in the past.
- Why are you leaving your current job?
- Tell me about yourself.
- How do you get going?
- Why should someone hire you?
The best way to answer this question is to focus on the interviewer and what you can bring to their company. You can do this by telling them how you meet the requirements they set and by pointing out two or three qualities you have that they might not know they need. It’s also important to think about what you may have learned in the past that applies to what the company is going through now.
Example: “I’ve been a bank manager for more than four years, and I’ve had more than 300 hours of leadership training that focused on emotional intelligence at work. I know that motivating and encouraging employees with emotional intelligence helps them reach company goals and makes them happier at work in general. As a leader, I think I can help the team members at your bank reach their full potential and reduce turnover by making the workplace more open and honest. I can do this by taking the time to talk about goals, train well, and think ahead about problems that might stop work from getting done.”
What do you do really well?
Most people who are being interviewed think that their answer to this question is their biggest strength overall. But your answer should focus on your best strength and how it will help the employer the most. Think about what the employer wants and what would make them want to hire you now instead of later. This should be a three-part answer in which you list the strength, give evidence of the strength, and then explain how the strength is related to the job you are interviewing for.
Example: “Being a mediator is one of my best skills. I’ve worked in human resources for six years, and I’ve learned that the best way to help managers and employees get along is to use sociological and psychological techniques that make people feel heard, understood, and acknowledged. Because he was too controlling, a lot of people left my old boss’s company. I helped several managers and employees talk to each other and figure out how they could work best together. This caused 30 percent more employees to leave their jobs.
Tell me about the thing you’re most proud of doing in the past.
When a potential employer asks what you’ve done well in your career, you can brag about some of the best things you’ve done. The best way to answer this question is to talk about a recent achievement that shows you can do well in the job they are trying to fill.
Example: “I’ve done a lot of things in my career, but the most recent thing that applies to this job is that at my last company, I was named the best sales consultant in the state. Last year, it was hard for our branch to meet its sales goals because so many new branches were opening in our area. I thought of a new way to promote our business that would help us get more qualified leads. The method was put in place, and I started to better manage my time so I could handle the influx of leads. I was able to close 45% of the leads I “hed to.”
Why are you leaving your current job?
The tone of your answer should be neutral or positive. Never say bad things about your old boss or company. The best way to answer this question smartly is to say something that the hiring manager doesn’t care about. For instance, an employer is less likely to worry about opportunities for growth, switching careers, or moving.
Example: “My current job has been a great way for me to learn, and in the three years I’ve been there, I’ve picked up a lot of new skills. I want to work for your company because it seems like a good fit for where I want my career to go. I’ve heard good things about this group, and I’m excited to use this chance to improve my skills.”
Tell me about yourself.
This question might give you reason to worry. But it’s easy to answer if you think of it as an opportunity to talk about yourself in a way that will help the hiring manager decide whether or not to hire you. Your answer to this question should have two parts: how qualified you are and why you want to work for this company.
Example: “I am in charge of social media marketing for TLR Marketing Firm right now. I worked full time and went to graduate school at the same time for the last five years. I’ve worked as a marketing assistant, a social media marketing specialist, and now as the director of social media marketing.
With the help of my great team of marketing executives, I have learned a number of ways to improve social media marketing campaigns. I like having control over my marketing team and letting them do their best work. I was named “best in marketing” last year because I did a great job of converting customers and getting people to interact with me on social media. I think that my past work has prepared me to take on a role at this company, and I hope to learn more at this well-known institution.”
How do you get going?
Most of the time, this question is asked to see how motivated you are to get things done. They want to know if you can get yourself to do things or if you need a lot of help from others. Think about it and tell the truth. That’s the best way to answer this question.
Example: “I get a lot done when I have to. When I know when something needs to be done, I’m more productive, and I usually finish the work before the deadline. Last year, I worked on a big project and gave myself several deadlines for small tasks that would help me finish it. This helps me keep going and finish the project on time.”
