Ninety percent of the questions you will be asked can be predicted and prepared for. Jot them down -and prepare answers to particularly sensitive ones. First, outline on paper what you are going to say. Second, prepare a 3 x 5 card for each answer, which you can use for practice in the same way as for your PARs. Familiarize yourself with these answers but don't try to memorize them verbatim. In answering a question be clear, concise, and positive. One to two minutes ordinarily should be enough.
In answering questions:
- Listen to the question. Be sure you understand it. Ask for clarification if necessary. Occasion ally repeating the question shows you're really listening.
- Take enough time to think through your answer.
- Use only positive information if possible. Be complete enough, but try not to open areas of difficulty. Be truthful.
- Preparation of your answers to typical questions often can enable you to turn what might be an awkward question to your advantage.
Here are some approaches to several of the particularly sensitive ones: "What was your last salary?"
This is a loaded question, particularly in the early part of an interview. If you give an answer that is out of the range of the job before you've had a chance to sell yourself, you may have closed the door to the opportunity - or priced yourself under what you should be getting. Try to defer an answer to this question until later on in the interview. You might say something like this, "My salary requirements are somewhat flexible depending on the job and the long-range opportunity." When you are forced into discussing the salary question, ask for a salary in line with your last one including your fringe benefits and a reasonable increase.
Your first-tier answer might be "I feel that with my experience I'm worth $60,000" (your last salary plus a reasonable increase). Try to avoid giving your actual salary, although you may be forced to. Make sure you point out any unusual fringe benefits you've been receiving, such as a company car or a club membership. Bear in mind that sometimes a difficult question is asked not to see what your specific answer is, but rather for the interviewer to get a feel for how you handle a tough problem. Prepare an answer to the 15 most important questions you're likely to be asked. Here is a list of particularly sensitive questions:
- How well would you work for a younger man or woman?
- How long have you been out of work?
- What have been your biggest failures?
- What would you change about yourself?
- Aren't you overqualified?
- Where do you want to be five years from now?
- Where do you think you'll be?
- What's wrong with your present job?
- Does your present employer know you're looking for another job?
- Will you be out to take my job?
- What have you disliked most about past jobs?
- If you were starting out now, what would you do differently?
- Are you willing to relocate?
- How important is salary compared to other aspects of the job?
- What three things have you done in your life that you're most proud of?
- Give me some examples of the biggest problems (or frustrations) of your last job. How did you resolve them?
- Tell me about the best boss you ever had. The worst.
- What kind of criticism has been given you? Was it deserved? What did you do about it?
- Did you ever fail at any job you tried? Why?
- What adverse factors have kept you from progressing faster?
- What does the word success mean to you?
- What do you and your spouse disagree about?
- How large a mortgage do you have?
- How much outside income do you have?
- What are your savings?
- Your net worth?
