Basic Interview Questions:

Tell me about yourself.

What are your strengths?
What are your weaknesses?
Why do you want this job?
Where would you like to be in your
career five years from now?
What's your ideal company?
What attracted you to this company?
Why should we hire you?
What did you like least about your last
job?
When were you most satisfied in your
job?
What can you do for us that other
candidates can't?
What were the responsibilities of your
last position?
Why are you leaving your present job?
What do you know about this
industry?
What do you know about our
company?
Are you willing to relocate?
Do you have any questions for me?
Behavioral Interview Questions:
What was the last project you headed
up, and what was its outcome?
Give me an example of a time that
you felt you went above and beyond
the call of duty at work.
Can you describe a time when your
work was criticized?
Have you ever been on a team where
someone was not pulling their own
weight? How did you handle it?
Tell me about a time when you had to
give someone difficult feedback. How
did you handle it?
What is your greatest failure, and
what did you learn from it?

What irritates you about other people,

and how do you deal with it?
If I were your supervisor and asked
you to do something that you
disagreed with, what would you do?
What was the most difficult period in
your life, and how did you deal with
it?
Give me an example of a time you did
something wrong. How did you
handle it?
What irritates you about other people,
and how do you deal with it?
Tell me about a time where you had
to deal with conflict on the job.
If you were at a business lunch and
you ordered a rare steak and they
brought it to you well done, what
would you do?
If you found out your company was
doing something against the law, like
fraud, what would you do?
What assignment was too difficult for
you, and how did you resolve the
issue?
What's the most difficult decision
you've made in the last two years and
how did you come to that decision?
Describe how you would handle a
situation if you were required to finish
multiple tasks by the end of the day,
and there was no conceivable way that
you could finish them.
Salary Questions:
What salary are you seeking?
What's your salary history?
If I were to give you this salary you
requested but let you write your job
description for the next year, what
would it say?
Career Development Questions:

 What are you looking for in terms of

career development?
How do you want to improve yourself
in the next year?
What kind of goals would you have in
mind if you got this job?
If I were to ask your last supervisor to
provide you additional training or
exposure, what would she suggest?
Getting Started Questions:
How would you go about establishing
your credibility quickly with the team?
How long will it take for you to make
a significant contribution?
What do you see yourself doing
within the first 30 days of this job?
If selected for this position, can you
describe your strategy for the first 90
days?
More About You:
How would you describe your work
style?
What would be your ideal working
environment?
What do you look for in terms of
culture -- structured or
entrepreneurial?
Give examples of ideas you've had or
implemented.
What techniques and tools do you use
to keep yourself organized?
If you had to choose one, would you
consider yourself a big-picture person
or a detail-oriented person?
Tell me about your proudest
achievement.
Who was your favorite manager and
why?
What do you think of your previous
boss?
Was there a person in your career who
really made a difference?

What kind of personality do you work

best with and why?
What are you most proud of?
What do you like to do?
What are your lifelong dreams?
What do you ultimately want to
become?
What is your personal mission
statement?
What are three positive things your
last boss would say about you?
What negative thing would your last
boss say about you?
What three character traits would
your friends use to describe you?
What are three positive character
traits you don't have?
If you were interviewing someone for
this position, what traits would you
look for?
List five words that describe your
character.
Who has impacted you most in your
career and how?
What is your greatest fear?
What is your biggest regret and why?
What's the most important thing you
learned in school?
Why did you choose your major?
What will you miss about your
present/last job?
What is your greatest achievement
outside of work?
What are the qualities of a good
leader? A bad leader?
Do you think a leader should be
feared or liked?
How do you feel about taking no for
an answer?
How would you feel about working
for someone who knows less than
you?

 How do you think I rate as an

interviewer?
Tell me one thing about yourself you
wouldn't want me to know.
Tell me the difference between good
and exceptional.
What kind of car do you drive?
There's no right or wrong answer, but
if you could be anywhere in the world
right now, where would you be?
What's the last book you read?
What magazines do you subscribe to?
What's the best movie you've seen in
the last year?
What would you do if you won the
lottery?
Who are your heroes?
What do you like to do for fun?
What do you do in your spare time?
What is your favorite memory from
childhood?
Brainteaser Questions:
How many times do a clock's hands
overlap in a day?
How would you weigh a plane without
scales?
Tell me 10 ways to use a pencil other
than writing.
Sell me this pencil.
If you were an animal, which one
would you want to be?
Why is there fuzz on a tennis ball?
If you could choose one superhero
power, what would it be and why?
If you could get rid of any one of the
US states, which one would you get
rid of and why?
With your eyes closed, tell me step-bystep how to tie my shoes.

You
What is your greatest weakness? - Best
Answers
What is your greatest strength? - Best
Answers
Tell me about yourself. - Best Answers
Tell me about something that's not on
your resume. - Best Answers
How will your greatest strength help
you perform? - Best Answers
How do you handle failure? - Best
Answers
How do you handle success? - Best
Answers
Do you consider yourself successful?
Why? - Best Answers
Are you lucky? - Best Answers
Are you nice? - Best Answers
How would you describe yourself? Best Answers
Describe a typical work week. - Best
Answers
Describe your work style. - Best
Answers
Do you work well with other people? Best Answers
Do you take work home with you? Best Answers
How are you different from the
competition? - Best Answers
How do you view yourself? Who do
you compare yourself to? - Best
Answers
How does this job fit in with your
career plan? - Best Answers
How many hours do you normally
work? - Best Answers
How would you adjust to working for
a new company? - Best Answers

 How would you describe the pace at

which you work? - Best Answers
How do you handle stress and
pressure? - Best Answers
Is there anything else we should know
about you? - Best Answers
What motivates you? - Best Answers
Are you a self motivator? - Best
Answers
What do you find are the most
difficult decisions to make? - Best
Answers
What has been the greatest
disappointment in your life? - Best
Answers
What are you passionate about? - Best
Answers
What are your hobbies? - Best Answers
What are your pet peeves? - Best
Answers
What do people most often criticize
about you? - Best Answers
What is the biggest criticism you
received from your boss? - Best
Answers
What is the worst thing that you have
ever gotten away with? - Best Answers
What is your dream job? - Best
Answers
What is your professional
development plan? - Best Answers
What makes you angry? - Best Answers
What strategies would you use to
motivate your team? - Best Answers
What will you miss most about your
last job? - Best Answers
What wont you miss about your last
job? Best Answers
What would you be looking for in an
applicant? - Best Answers

When was the last time you were

angry? What happened? - Best
Answers
Would you rather be liked or
respected? - Best Answers
Why did you choose your major? Best Answers
Why did you go back to school? - Best
Answers
Why should I take a risk on you? Best Answers
If you could relive the last 10 years of
your life, what would you do
differently? - Best Answers
If the people who know you were
asked why you should be hired, what
would they say?Best Answers
Do you prefer to work independently
or on a team? - Best Answers
Give some examples of teamwork. Best Answers
More teamwork interview questions. Best Answers
What type of work environment do
you prefer? - Best Answers
How do you evaluate success? - Best
Answers
If you know your boss is 100% wrong
about something how would you
handle it? - Best Answers
Describe a difficult work situation /
project and how you overcame it. Best Answers
Describe a time when your workload
was heavy and how you handled it. Best Answers
Questions which don't have a right or
wrong answer. - How to Respond
More job interview questions about
you. - Best Answers

Questions About Your Qualifications

Are you overqualified for this job? Best Answers
Describe how you managed a problem
employee. - Best Answers
How did you impact the bottom line? Best Answers
Interview questions about your
abilities. - Best Answers
What applicable attributes /
experience do you have? - Best
Answers
What can you do better for us than
the other candidates for the job?
Best Answers
What part of the job will be the least
challenging for you? - Best Answers
Which parts of this job are the most
challenging for you? - Best Answers
What philosophy guides your work?Best Answers
What strength will help you the most
to succeed? - Best Answers
Why are you interested in taking a
lower level job? - Best Answers
Why are you interested in a nonmanagement job? - Best Answers
Interview Questions About Your Work
History
Name of company, position title and
description, dates of employment. Best Answers
Questions about your resume. - Best
Answers
What were your expectations for the
job and to what extent were they met?
- Best Answers
What were your responsibilities? - Best
Answers

What major challenges and problems

did you face? How did you handle
them? - Best Answers
What have you learned from your
mistakes? - Best Answers
What did you like or dislike about
your previous job? - Best Answers
Which was most / least rewarding? Best Answers
What was the biggest accomplishment
/ failure in this position? - Best
Answers
Questions about job demotions. - Best
Answers
Questions about your supervisors and
co-workers. - Best Answers
What was it like working for your
supervisor? - Best Answers
What do you expect from a
supervisor? - Best Answers
What problems have you encountered
at work? - Best Answers
Have you ever had difficulty working
with a manager? - Best Answers
Have you worked with someone who
didn't like your work? - Best Answers
How did you fit in with the company
culture? - Best Answers
How have you impacted worker safety?
Best Answers
Who was your best boss and who was
the worst? - Best Answers
Describe your ideal boss. - Best
Answers
Describe the gap in your employment
history. - Best Answers
Tell me about something you would
have done differently at work Best
Answers
Why are you leaving your job? - Best
Answers

 Why do you want to change jobs? Best Answers

Why were you fired? - Best Answers
Why were you laid-off? Best Answers
Why did you quit your job? - Best
Answers
Why did you resign? - Best Answers
What have you been doing since your
last job? - Best Answers
Why have you been out of work so
long? - Best Answers
Why weren't you promoted at your
last job? - Best Answers
Interview Questions About Money
What were your starting and final
levels of compensation? - Best Answers
What are your salary expectations? Best Answers
What are your salary requirements both short-term and long-term? - Best
Answers
Why would you take a job for less
money? - Best Answers
Interview Questions About the New Job
and the Company
How is our company better than your
current employer? - Best Answers
Should employees use social media at
work? - Best Answers
What interests you about this job? Best Answers
Why do you want this job? - Best
Answers
What can you do for this company? Best Answers
Why should we hire you? - Best
Answers
Why shouldn't we hire you? - Best
Answers

Why should we hire you instead of

the other applicants for the job? - Best
Answers
Why are you the best person for the
job? - Best Answers
What do you know about this
company? - Best Answers
Why do you want to work here? - Best
Answers
What challenges are you looking for
in a position? - Best Answers
What can we expect from you in the
first 60 days on the job? - Best Answers
What can you contribute to this
company? - Best Answers
What do you see yourself doing
within the first 30 days on the job? Best Answers
What would you do if you found out
the company was doing something
illegal? - Best Answers
Are you willing to travel? - Best
Answers
What are the most significant trends
in your field? - Best Answers
What is good customer service? - Best
Answers
What would be your ideal company
culture? - Best Answers
How long do you expect to remain
employed with this company? - Best
Answers
When could you start work? - Best
Answers
Please rate me as an interviewer. - Best
Answers
Is there anything I haven't told you
about the job or company that you
would like to know? - Best Answers

Interview Questions About the Future

What are you looking for in your next
job? What is important to you? - Best
Answers
Where do you see yourself 5 years
from now? - Best Answers
Where do you see yourself in 10
years? (for older applicants) - Best
Answers
What are your goals for the next five
years / ten years? - Best Answers
How do you plan to achieve those
goals? - Best Answers
How would you feel about working
for a younger manager? - Best Answers
More questions about your career
goals. - Best Answers
What will you do if you don't get this
position? - Best Answers
Where else are you interviewing? Best Answers

Traditional Job Interview Questions

How would you describe yourself?
Why did you leave your last job?
What are your long range and short
range goals and objectives?
What specific goals other than those
related to your occupation, have you
established for yourself for the next
ten years?
What do you see yourself doing five
years from now? Ten years from now?
What do you really want to do in life?
What are your long range career
objectives?
How do you plan to achieve your
career goals?

What are the most important rewards

you expect in your career?
What do you expect to be earning in
five years?
Why did you choose this career?
Can you explain this gap in your
employment history?
How well do you work with people?
Do you prefer working alone or in
teams?
How would you evaluate your ability
to deal with conflict?
Have you ever had difficulty with a
supervisor? How did you resolve the
conflict?
What's more important to you -- the
work itself or how much you're paid
for doing it.
What do you consider to be your
greatest strengths and weaknesses?
How would a good friend describe
you?
Describe the best job you've ever had.
Describe the best supervisor you've
ever had.
What would your last boss say about
your work performance?
What motivates you to go the extra
mile on a project or job?
Why should I hire you?
What makes you qualified for this
position?
What qualifications do you have that
make you successful in this career?
How do you determine or evaluate
success?
What do you think it takes to be
successful in a company like ours?
In what ways do you think you can
make a contribution to our company?
Do you have any hobbies? What do
you do in your spare time?

 Have you ever been fired or forced to

resign?
What qualities should a successful
manager possess?
Do you consider yourself a leader?
What are the attributes of a good
leader?
Describe the workload in your current
(or most recent) job.
Which is more important: creativity or
efficiency? Why?
What's the most recent book you've
read?
Describe the relationship that should
exist between the supervisor and those
reporting to him or her?
What two or three accomplishments
have given you the most satisfaction?
Why?
Describe the most rewarding
experience of your career thus far.
If you were hiring a job-seeker for this
position, what qualities would you
look for?
Do you have plans for continued
study? An advanced degree?
In what kind of work environment are
you most comfortable?
How do you work under pressure?
Are you good at delegating tasks?
What's one of the hardest decisions
you've ever had to make?
How well do you adapt to new
situations?
Why did you decide to seek a position
in this company?
What can you tell us about our
company?
What interests you about our
products?
What do you know about our
competitors?

What two or three things are most

important to you in your job?
Are you seeking employment in a
company of a certain size? Why?
What are your expectations regarding
promotions and salary increases?
What criteria are you using to evaluate
the company for which you hope to
work?
Do you have a geographic preference?
Why?
Are you willing to relocate?
Are you willing to travel for the job?
Why do you think you might like to
live in the community in which our
company is located?
What major problem have you
encountered and how did you deal
with it?
What have you learned from your
mistakes?
What have you accomplished that
shows your initiative and willingness
to work?