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INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

“Tell me about yourself”

This is one of the most common interview questions and answers are tough to formulate. Where to
start, where to end, what to focus on! Prepare for this question and you can use it as a great
opportunity to sell yourself!

In your answer highlight how your skills, knowledge and experience relate to the job and the company
profile.

Where you were born and grew up, or what pets you have is not likely to show the interviewer why you
are a good candidate for the job opportunity.

The interviewer wants to know if you will fit in with the rest of the team, the department and the
company. The interviewer is also trying to find out what motivates you and whether it is consistent with
what the job and the employer offer. Refer to your background research and review the job
requirements, focus on how you specifically meet these needs. For example, if the job requires you to
work as part of a team, tell the interviewer about the projects you have undertaken as a team-member.
Most jobs require an element of team work, so this is a good aspect to focus on when thinking about
answers to this interview question.

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What are your strengths?"

Again, make your answer to this common job interview question relevant. Tailor your strengths to the
job and highlight why they qualify you as the right candidate for the job opportunity.

Don't make the mistake of frustrating the interviewer as you describe what a great athlete you are and
list your latest sports achievements during your water quality job interview. However, with some
thought you can translate almost all of your strong-points into job-relevant attributes that will
contribute to your success in the job.

When answering this job interview question you can point out how the determination and discipline you
need to be a good athlete are certainly important strengths in a position.

Candidates often find it hard to verbalize their strengths, so spend some time thinking about this before
the interview. What are your interests? Building beautiful doll house furniture may not immediately
seem to have any relevance to that food production position, but the attention to detail needed for this
is definitely a job-relevant strength.

What have been your successes, what attributes did you have to demonstrate to achieve them? Ask
your friends, colleagues and family to tell you what they appreciate about you. How will these attributes
benefit a future employer?

Don't just list your strengths, back them up with facts. An attribute is far more powerful if it is rooted in
a relevant example. Avoid over-used, vague terms such as "people person". Be specific and pertinent.

Focus on three or four strengths. Good examples include organizational and planning skills,
perseverance, persuasive ability, communication skills, leadership ability, stress tolerance, ability to
learn and apply new information and skills, flexibility, independence, problem-solving, creativity,
technical and professional knowledge, reliability, self-motivation and initiative.

Go to How to identify Your Strengths for a guide to finding out what your strengths are:
[Link]

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"What are your weaknesses?"

With this typical interview question the interviewer is assessing your self-awareness and insight rather
than your weaknesses. The ability to acknowledge a weakness is often seen as a sign of maturity and
wisdom. Refer to a true weakness but then turn it into a positive by describing it as an area for
development. In your job interview answer relate what steps you have taken to try and improve.

"I'm impatient with people who don't work at the same pace as me but I'm learning to manage this. I
make sure that they have the right resources for the job, I follow up to see that they are on track and I
step in and help when needed"

"I can be disorganized; I am aware of this and make sure I answer my emails and messages straight
away. I update my calendar as soon as I have a new task or appointment, this really helps"

A good guide is to acknowledge one or two weaknesses, describe the efforts made to overcome these
and end your story on a positive note.

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"What do you see yourself doing in five years?"

It is not easy to answer this interview question in terms of specific job or company expectations. One
cannot accurately predict what the job or the company will look like in 5 years’ time. You can answer in
general terms about the type of situation you would like to be in and the way you want to have grown
and developed. Avoid giving specific time frames or job titles.

Focus on realistic career opportunities you could expect in your industry and what you hope to have
gained from these opportunities.

Your interview answer should relate to the job you are being interviewed for in some way. The
interviewer does not want to hear that you hope to have published your first novel or be running your
own business.

This interview question is designed to assess a number of things:

 How long are you likely to stay with the company?

 What is your motivation in applying for this position?

 Do you look ahead and set goals for yourself?

Combine your personal growth strategies and goals with commitment to the job and the employer.

When faced with this job interview question and answer, avoid making over-ambitious predictions
about your future potential. This indicates a lack of insight and maturity. Broadly discuss your work
values and goals, not focusing on a specific career plan.

Demonstrate that you understand that reward (salary, promotion, responsibility) will be based on the
quality and value of your contribution.

Align your success with the company's success.

The interviewer will respond positively if you present yourself, in this job interview question and answer,
as a mature, insightful and self-motivated candidate who wants to make an important and constructive
contribution to the company.

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Situational interviews, also commonly referred to as behavioural interviews and competency-based

The questions often begin with phrases like “How would you react…?” or “What would you do…?” or
“How would you handle…?”. The abilities to think on your feet and to remain calm under pressure are
vital in this type of job interview.

Situational interviews allow you to prove to employers that you have the ability to handle the most
difficult of scenarios. A confident situational interview will help ensure you stay ahead of other job
seekers in the search for employment.

Below are several common situational interview questions. Choose two to answer.

• Describe a problem you encountered in your last job, how did you overcome it?

• Summarize a situation where you had to demonstrate ability to use your own initiative, how did you
do this?

• Describe an example where you had to use your leadership skills.

• Have you ever had to work with a colleague or client with whom you had a difficult relationship?

• Provide an example of when your communication skills were used effectively in a work situation.

• What factors do you take into account when making important decisions?

• Describe a situation where you were put under extreme pressure, how did you handle the pressure?

• How do you react to pressure?

• How would you handle delivering bad news to colleagues?

• How would you react to indecision between team members?

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