Tricky interview questions - help please?

[Begonia]

I have an interview for a job on Tuesday and I would sure appreciate some advice on how to navigate those tricky interview questions, from those who have more experience in these matters than I do.

This is for a corporation and will be for a seasonal on-call position. If I can be at their beck and call this year, it could turn into something permanent part or full time. The company is also Union, and pays much better than I am currently earning. It would significantly help my family if I were offered the job.

I am being considered because I have a have a fairly advanced First Aid certificate, as they are required to have X-number on staff having such a certificate.

So, what are some of the more tricky questions you think I might encounter? I have been asked what my strengths are, which seems fairly straight forward, but the next one always gets me: what is one of my weaknesses? That one has danger signs written all over it, and yet I will be obligated to answer. What would be the safest route to take with that one?

Interpersonal scenarios will likely be brought up I would imagine, being a Union organization. First Aid scenarios could be on the table as well.

Any tips and advice on what might help and what potholes to watch out for would be much appreciated!

Begonia

 

[VRBeauty]

Question to you -

What do you think your major weakness is (or rather, a major weakness)... AND

what do you do to mitigate it in the work arena?

 

[LAJennifer]

My weakness is that my interests are vast and varied. If something catches my interest, then I've got my hands in it. This happens often. Therefore, I am excellent at nothing. However, I am very, very good at everything.

 

[armywife13]

WY

 

[zoebartlett]

I'd try to turn a weakness into a positive. For example, state one thing you really want to learn and then mention the steps that you will take to learn it. That way, you're not stating what you're bad at doing, but it shows that there are things you are excited to learn. I've sat in on interviews where the person being interviewed takes the question at face value and thinks he/she needs to come up with something that he/she is not good at doing. It's really meant to gauge how someone takes initiative to do something new or take opportunities to learn something.

 

[lknvrb4]

I just had an interview last Tuesday and I looked up the most common interview questions and did my research on the company and when I sat down with the four interviewers, they did not ask any of the questions I thought they would ask. My advice, be prepared for the unexpected.

 

[Begonia]

Off to work here, so I have to be brief.

Some of my weaknesses have been technology, so I have taken courses to help with that and push myself to explore and learn on my own time. My 16 year old son helps a lot on that end.

My resiliency in the face of a bullying, venomous boss has wavered at times. She had me in tears last week, but no one saw as I went on a break. I put on my big girl panties and came out with a smile for my co-workers and stayed clear of the boss. Can't use that one, but I'm being candid about my weaknesses.

Off to work now, I'll check in later. Thanks for the help!!!

 

[UrsTx]

Question: where do you see yourself in 5 years? Keep it professional. Giving personal answers like you want to grow your family may erroneously tell them you won't be dependable due to sick days to take care of young children, may quit to stay home with young children, etc. (it's not fair but it happens) Also don't say you want the job of the person interviewing you. No one wants to hire someone who could bump them out of their job if they're really good at it (self preservation).

 

[marymm]

Especially for a non-traditional interview question that requires a real-life example from your work history, I do think it is entirely acceptable to first respond "oh, what a great question, let me just take a moment to consider the most relevant example..." Of course, in my opinion you can only use this "pause" response once during an interview, and you may not need it at all, but I always keep it ready so to speak - and you really can only take a moment to quickly review potential responses before giving your concrete answer.

For interpersonal-type questions (i.e., "how do you handle difficult co-workers/managers/situations in the work-place?") - I pretty much always respond with something like, "while there are all kinds of personalities in the workplace, I am confident in my abilities and skills, and I remain focused on getting the job done right and on time."

Good luck on your interview!

 

[kgizo]

I think staying current with tech is a good answer so long as it isn't an important job criteria. Many people have to work at staying current and it sounds like it's something you are already working on.
Have you checked out LinkedIn to see if you have any connections at that company?
Spend a couple of hours researching the company. When I am the interviewer I wonder why I should bother with candidates who haven't demonstrated enough interest in the company to do some simple research.
And, prepare 3 questions to ask the interviewer at the end. Sometimes your question will get answered during the interview so I always recommend having 3.
Union v nonunion hasn't come into play in my experience, but you never know.
Good luck!

 

[VRBeauty]

Spend a couple of hours researching the company. When I am the interviewer I wonder why I should bother with candidates who haven't demonstrated enough interest in the company to do some simple research.

Big ditto! Also be clear you know about the part of the organization that's hiring... for example, don't go on and on about what a great job this company is doing in marketing if you're interviewing for a position in administration. You don't want the interviewers to think you would just be using their position to scout for other opportunities in the company. For all you know, they have a vacancy to fill because they'e been losing staff to marketing.

 

[Snicklefritz]

I had an interview recently and found this site very helpful, especially the part at the bottom about "How to answer 7 of the most common interview questions:" http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquel...ace-the-50-most-common-interview-questions/3/

I was offered the job

 

[Deactivated member 42515]

WY

Haha!! Now it'll be here forever!!!!

 

[sonnyjane]

Some of the less typical questions I've received in interviews were:

How would you deal with the situation if you had a conflict of opinion with your manager?
Do you participate in workplace gossip?
Describe a time when your attention to detail prevented something very bad from happening?
What is your proudest professional accomplishment?
Describe a time when you had a disagreement with a coworker and how did you resolve it?
If you weren't a (whatever job you're applying for), what other job would you love to do?
Describe a time that had to deal with an angry customer and how did you resolve the issue?

 

[anne_h]

The technology response is great, especially if the job is not tech-centric. It's an authentic answer, and gives you a chance to show that you are working on this improvement area.

I have interviewed hundreds of people in my career and hired dozens. Last year I did a major job hunt myself. I did the usual preps - googled 'standard' questions and prepared my responses.

Keep in mind most orgs use some version of behaviour-based interview techniques - meaning, they will ask you to describe examples of situations you've handled that demonstrate the particular behaviour they are looking for. For example: "Tell us about a time you had to meet an important deadline" or "Tell us about a time you had to work under pressure", etc.

A nice tip I learned during my preps: During the interview, most orgs just want to find out 3 things:
1. That you are qualified for the job
2. That you will love the job
3. That you will stay with the org

Keep that in mind as you answer the questions, and spin your responses accordingly.

And I agree with the others - do your research and prepare some insightful questions to ask during the interview. Some of my faves:
- What are the biggest challenges associated with this role?
- What is the first thing you'd need me to do if I was hired into this role?

Good luck!!

Anne

PS - General tip: I got great responses once I figured out I should tailor my resume and interview answers as if I was applying to jobs one level above my actual one. Suddenly I started looking pretty smart!!! lol