A lot of jobs require someone who can think on their feet or present ideas with crispness and clarity. This question provides employers with an early preview of your core skills, your personality and your ability to respond to an unstructured question.
Employers want to see if you can strike the right balance between confidence and humility. Hiring managers also want to get a sense for how self-aware and honest you are and align your strengths to the role at hand.
The interviewer is assessing whether your weaknesses will get in the way of doing the job. Employers are looking for humility and whether you’re committed to learning and growing. This is a place you can showcase what you’re doing to improve.
This question tests how persuasive you are. Interviewers want to see if you can make a calm, confident case for yourself, even if they’re acting skeptical. They’re looking for factual and compelling answers.
Interviewers want to understand what prompted you to apply for this job. They don’t want candidates who are indifferent to where they work. Instead, they want someone who offers very specific reasons for why they want this job.
Employers want to understand your capacity to step up and handle tough situations that undoubtedly arise in the workplace. They want to know when you’ve seen an opening to lean in and lead with good judgment.
If you can show that you’ve helped a team move through a challenge, you probably have strong communication and interpersonal skills. These kinds of “soft” skills are in high demand and make people successful in their jobs.
Employers want to see how you handle competing priorities, understand the implications of missing deadlines, and can stay cool under pressure.
Employers want to determine how serious you are about your career and whether your goals match the goals for this job. Employers don’t expect you to offer up a specific title you want. Instead, they want to know what you hope to accomplish
This question assesses how you define a professional success. If the story resonates, the employer will want you to do similar things at his or her company. You should focus on the impact and outcomes.
If this question arises early, odds are that the interviewer is really asking: “Can we afford you?” If it arises much later, the interviewer may be hoping that your salary requirements are aligned to what they have budgeted for this role.
This question isn’t just designed to make sure you leave with all of your questions answered; it’s intended to see if you’re prepared and to assess how curious and thoughtful you are.