Job Interview Questions that You Hate to Answer

Interviewing for a job is a very stressful process. Invariably, during the course of a job interview, every candidate must meet with a representative from Human Resources (which is a misnomer because most of these folks are not resourceful and sometimes I wonder whether they are really human). This usually makes the interview even more stressful. That said, I decided to compile a list of common questions that HR professionals are likely to ask a job candidate during the interview process. The list is based on my own experiences as both a job seeker and a professional recruiter.

1. Where do you see yourself five years
from now?
2. What are your strengths?
3. What are your weaknesses?
4. Why this company and not our competitors?
5. May I contact your current employer?
6. Are you willing to relocate?
7. Why are you looking for a new job?
8. Tell me about your greatest achievements
9. Tell me about your most disappointing
experience
10. Describe how you overcame adversity in
your life
For a long time, I thought that the only reason that HR professionals ask these “boneheaded” questions is because they were told to in HR school. However, when you think about the real intent of some of the questions, the answers that a candidate offers can provide a great deal of insight into an individual’s motivations, character and abilities. I think that the two most revealing questions that are frequently asked are: “What are your strengths” which is almost always followed by “What are your weaknesses”. Typically, job candidates do not hesitate to talk freely and wax romantically about their strengths.
However it is a very different story when it comes to a candidate’s weaknesses. When HR representatives ask these questions, they are more interested in what a candidate has to say about his/her weakness as compared with his/her strengths. The job candidate who says “I have no weaknesses” signals to the HR professional that he/she is not very self critical and may lack the self awareness to work well with other employees. It also tells the HR representative that a person who believes that they have no weaknesses may not be able to see the need to improve while working for the company. On the other hand, the job candidate who can identify one or more weaknesses is a self aware individual who recognizes that he/she can always improve to become a better employee. That said, it is probably wise to cite a weakness that can actually be perceived as strength. For example, “I am a very detail oriented person and sometimes it takes me a little longer than others to complete a task. I recognize this and I frequently work longer hours to compensate for it”
As silly as some of these questions may sound, I have no doubt that some or all of them will be asked during your next job interview. I highly recommend that you spend some time crafting well thought out responses to these questions because your answers do count.
Source: bioinsights.com
This Blogswap article is courtesy of Recruiting.com and CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students and recent graduates who are searching for internships and entry level jobs.