How tackle the common interview questions:
By Cham Posted Date: September 26, 2017
For even the proficient job seekers, interviews can be a tough experience. In addition to your behaviour and how you carry yourself, what you say also has a huge impact on whether you get the job or not. Being confident and looking professional is one thing, but it is very important that you are able to respond to questions in a manner that shows your intelligence and professionalism.
Although not all interviews are the same, there are still some questions that are asked often. Discussed below are some ways to answer these common interview questions:
- Tell us more about yourself? – This is an interview room favourite! This question is often asked, especially because it’s a good icebreaker. When answering this question, keep in mind that the interviewer is not looking to get insight about your whole life story. It’s important that you choose a few (3-5) key things that have happened in your life which are relevant to the role. These life experiences could relate to a specific skill, qualifications you have gotten, experience at work or a passion you have for something that is relevant to the skillset or expertise required. Practice answering this question so you are able to give an interesting response but something concise. Keep your answers short, if they want more information about something they will ask.
- What are your strengths? – Probably one of the most popular interview questions along with the one to follow. This question is designed to see if you know what your strengths are and why you would be a better candidate than the others. When answering this focus on what you can specifically bring to the role and what you can offer to the company. Talking about a strength that is irrelevant to the job is a bad idea. Always try to relate your strength to something that will help you perform better in the specific role you are being interviewed for.
- What are your weaknesses? – A question that many candidates despise is this one. Don’t be afraid of this one, it’s just about knowing your areas that require improvement and expressing what you are doing to improve it. List out a two or three of your weaknesses then think of why it is a weakness and why you think it needs improvement, finally mention what you are doing to overcome the weakness.
- Why do you want to work here? – One of the reasons this question is asked is for the employer to understand if you will take the job if an offer is made and if so how long you would stay in the role. It is also a way to see if you have done enough research into the company itself and know enough about the company that you hope to work for.
- Describe an experience where you worked in a team (or were a team lead)? – Think about the qualities a good team leader has then think of your experiences of working in a team. When answering this question making use of the STAR technique (Situation, Task, Action, Result) is a good idea. The star technique will help you prepare an answer that is meaningful and expresses what you want correctly.
- Do you have any questions? – Another popular question, is the question - question. This usually being the last question to be asked of you, is an opportunity for you to establish a good relationship with the interviewer and express your interest in the job. Ask them things like “What are the challenges facing the company?”, “Can you tell me more about the team/department I will be a part of?” – make sure that you ask these questions in a natural way so it does not sound like a rehearsal.