Top 30 Interview Questions - From a Recruiters Hiring Playbook

The top 30

questions

Hello everyone, Don Georgevich here with the tools for job

interview

s. Have you ever gone to a job

interview

where you felt like you gave all the right answers, that you did great, but you didn't get the job? I know; me too. It happens a lot to a lot of people. Let me tell you what happened. You didn't tell the

hiring

manager what he wanted to hear; is the most important reason. You see, they have their own

hiring

guide that gives them specific content on what to look for in your responses. And if you don't meet their guidelines, you're out;

It's as simple as that. So what I'm going to do in this video; Instead of telling you what to say, because that's not what this video is about, we'll dive into the top 30 interview

questions

. These are the most common questions employers will ask you in a job interview. But I'm not going to tell you what to say. I'll tell you what they're looking for. I'm going to tell you what a hiring manager, recruiter, or employer looks for in your answer. And then all you have to do is take that information and craft your own answers based on your experience and you'll have a totally natural and genuine answer that will wow any employer.

Now before we start, I want to give you the secret combination to make the interview successful. Write this down; They are 7-38-55; that's how it is. And you'll probably be like, "Don, what the hell are you talking about?" What are those numbers? Well, I'm going to tell you. Those are the three elements of communication in a job interview. You see, most people don't realize this, but your body does most of the communication; that's right. Your body, your posture, represent 55 percent of the communication in a job interview. 38 percent is related to voice and tone. So if you have a monotone voice like this, you'll get a zero out of 38 percent.

But if you strengthen that voice, speak very loudly and enunciate your words, then you will be delivering things at a much higher level. And then only 7 percent of your answer is related to the actual content. That's how it is; only 7 percent. So, write it down; 7-38-55. 7 percent is related to content, 38 percent is related to the voice and tone you use in an interview, and then 55 percent is related to your body language. So, you want to have good posture; If you want to sit up straight, you want to keep those shoulders back. When you take that stance, that position, it just makes you feel more confident and then it makes your voice and your tone come out stronger and clearer.

This is how you succeed. But I tell you, most people are so scared when they go to a job interview that they just sit like this and talk like this and have a really monotone voice. So, they get a 0 percent on 38 tone and they get a 0 on body language, 55 percent. So an interviewer only listens to the content and that's only 7 percent of the answer. I didn't invent this. This is science. This is fully backed by science. Look up the 7-38-55 rule on the Internet. Learn more about body language; That's all I'm going to spend on it.

But what we're going to do is jump into the top 30 interview questions right now and I'll tell you exactly what employers are looking for in your answers. 1. So, the first one we have here; tell me about you. This is one of the most common interview questions used. It's a good question to break the ice, but what an employer is looking for is to know about your journey throughout your career. They want to know what interested you in what you are doing. So if you're in finance, they want to know why you like finance, why you're passionate about finance, and where you're going.

If you work in healthcare, they want to know what you are passionate about about healthcare; maybe you like helping people, whatever. That's what they want to hear. So, you don't want to tell them a bunch of blah, blah, blah, saying, "I've done this and that." Share your passion with them. Tell them what you were excited about, when you were excited about it, and what you did about it and the journey you took in your career to develop that passion. That's the best way to answer; “Tell me about yourself” because that's what they're looking for in your response. 2.

This one is very popular; Why is there a gap on your resume? Well, a lot of people, maybe they got laid off, maybe they got laid off, whatever, they quit their job. So now they have a 3 or 6 month gap on the resume; sometimes more, 1 or 2 years, it is not that unusual. So what does an employer want to hear when they look at your resume and say, "Well, Don, why do you have a two-year gap on your resume?" Let me tell you what they want to hear. hear. They want to know that you were doing something else to improve yourself while you were looking for a job.

They don't want to just hear that, "Oh, well, you know, no one would hire me." They don't want to hear your hard luck story. They don't want to hear that you were caring for a sick loved one. They don't want to hear that the job market was just brutal and you couldn't find anything. They want to know what you were doing to improve while you were looking for a job. So, maybe you attended some free seminars, maybe you did some training, maybe you read some books. But they want to know that you were doing something to improve yourself regarding your career or occupation instead of just sitting around watching TV and eating chips. 3.

What motivates you? Now, the best way to motivate yourself is to get excited about something. So if they ask you, “What motivates you, Don?”, tell them that when you're passionate about something, that's all you need because you're fully committed. What an employer looks for is what excites you about your job. . What are you excited about? So the easiest way to respond to this is to tell them, "I'm really excited about where I work because you have a clear vision of where you're going and that's what motivates me." When the company knows where they are going and their values ​​and mission are aligned with me, I get very excited to wake up every morning, get out of bed and go to work because I am going to a beautiful place with beautiful people with a clear vision and mission. to help people or whatever our mission is... or whatever your mission is.

Here's how you answer that question. 4. Why are you applying for this position? Now, a lot of people will say, "Well, it's because I need the money." Because I need the job. Totally wrong answer. What you want to do is find out what their core values ​​are. You can do it from their website. Find out what their core values ​​are, find out what their mission is, and then align with what they're doing; That's what they want to hear. So, let's say, for example, you are applying to a company that is in the recycling business. Let them know that you have a deep passion for making the world a beautiful place by cleaning up all the trash out there through recycling.

Share with them your passion for a beautiful and green planet. Let them know that your values ​​are aligned with yours. And here's how he answers why he's applying for this position. It's because you are aligned with them. 5. Tell us your resume. Now, they don't want you to read their resume, they don't want you to look at it and just read it from start to finish. What they really want is just a summary of your experience. So the best place to start with this is from the beginning and start with your education. And just say, "I went to such and such school." These are some of the things I did.

And don't spend too much time there; just briefly cover your school, cover some grades, maybe some clubs you were in. And then talk about what you did after college; the next job you had. And then the subsequent works until the present. That's all. It's a simple question. That's all they want to hear. But they don't want you to read your resume. Therefore, you should not look at it while answering this question. You should be able to do it from memory. I mean, it's your resume; good? It's all about you. You should be able to talk to them.

And you can even ask them, "Do you want me to start at the beginning or the end?" or you can just tell them, "I'm going to start from the beginning in college and then you can follow me." from there and then guide them briefly. It shouldn't take you more than a minute. 6. Why do you want to work here? The key to answering this question is to align yourself with the direction of this company. So, you have to find out. You may have to ask some questions or want to do some research about the company. And what are your values?

What is your mission? Where are they going? What do you want to do? And you want to align yourself with where they're going. And by doing that, you'll see them as someone who can contribute to your overall mission, your projects, or whatever you're trying to do; align yourself with them. That's what they're looking for in your response. 7. Why are you the best person for the job? Now, for most people, that will hit them like a ton of bricks because they will start to doubt themselves and end up giving a poor answer because they will feel like they are not the best person.

But let me tell you; What an employer wants to hear is that you understand them. So throughout the interview process, try to understand what their pains and problems are and what they are trying to do. So when they ask you this question, you can relate to them and say, "Well, Mr. Employer, I understand what you're trying to do, I understand what your values ​​are, and these are a lot of things that I've done. I know how to do this." very good, maybe better than anyone else; I really don't know. But I'm very good at it. Here's why.

Give them some examples of things you've done before that are related to what they're trying to do. That's what that they want to hear. Here's how you answer that question. 8. Where do you see yourself in five years? Now, this is a growth-oriented question. So if you simply say, "I see myself sitting here for the next five years until I figured out what I want to do," that's not what they want to hear. You want to align this question with the direction of the company. So, you have to understand where the company is going, what direction it's going in, and then talk about how You see yourself fitting into their future.

It's that simple; not too hard. 9. What interests you about this position? Don't just tell them, "I'm interested in a job" or "I need the money." Relate this to what the company is doing. What kind of projects are you doing? What kind of people are they helping? Whatever it is; What are your objectives? What are your values? Align with what the company is doing. Do some research on the company; Find out the type of things they have been active in. I mean, maybe they're only active in some charities, maybe they like helping certain people. You can say that I'm attracted to the kind of things you're doing and here's why.

Don't just say, "I like what you're doing." I think you are a great company. Tell them why. What excites you about this company? Why are you passionate? You can't just say, "Well, I read that you're a great company." I think I would like to work there� Now, be more specific and tell them what really excites you about wanting to work there; wanting to contribute. Let them know that you can contribute in many different ways that will help support them and know where they are going. 10. Why are you a good candidate for this position? What they want to hear now is that they want you to talk about your past experiences, your past education, the kinds of things that you have done that are related to the kinds of things that they are looking for.

So you need to get a lot of information about the position, the job description, what they are looking for, and what the goals are for this position. And then use that in your response and say, “Well, I know you guys are trying to do this and that in this job and these are some of the things I've done” and relate that to what you did. I want to do and say, "I can help you do that." Now, the question here is; Why are you a good fit? Think about that for a minute. What is unique about you or the experiences you have that makes you perfect for this job compared to someone else?

I mean, sure, you might be able to do it. Yes, yes, I can understand it, but that's not what they want to hear. They want to know what kinds of things you've done make you a good fit. So, talk about those things; Relate your past experiences to what they are looking for. It's as simple as that. 11. Tell me about a time when you faced a difficult challenge. Now this is a behavioral question. You want to answer this using the STAR format. You know, STAR (Situation, Task, Action and Results). So the first thing you want to do is talk about a situation that you've had where you've experienced a challenge.

And then you want to talk about the steps that you took and what you did to solve this problem. And then you want to conclude with the result and tell them how it turned out. So you could relate this to anything, but this is a behavioral question and you should use that STAR format specific to a situation you worked on, a task, and how it all turned out. So basically, they want to hear about one of your past experiences.where things were down, things were tough, it wasn't working and you had to get ahead, get ahead, save the day, whatever it was.

Here's how you answer that question. Don't just tell them how you would approach a difficult question or difficult challenge, but tell them how you have approached it; That's what they want to hear. 12. Why should we hire you? I guarantee you'll probably be asked this question, but it'll most likely come near the end of the interview, after they've had a chance to build some rapport and are really thinking you might be good. So why should we hire you? Now this is your chance to sell yourself. But you have to understand what they are looking for. You have to understand all the pains and problems that they are experiencing or where they want to grow or what the mission is.

Then you'll want to tell them that. You want to tell them why you think it is a good option for them and why it will help them. How are you going to help them grow? I mean, that's really the question; Why should we hire you? Anyone can do the job; maybe. Why can you do better? So why should we choose you and not these other five people? Well, you don't know what those other five people can do. Therefore, you should care about yourself and what you can do and what makes you unique. Therefore, try to highlight unique aspects of your experiences.

I used to do this too. When I was interviewing for a job and asked, "Why should we hire you, Don?" I'd say, "Well, because I can do this, this, and this," which accomplished its main goals. And then there were other things that I could do very well that weren't necessarily a requirement, but were nice to have. And then I'll talk about those additional things as well. And so, I came as a complete package; I just didn't have what they were looking for, I had more of what they were looking for. So, it was like they got extra stuff for free.

Here's how you answer that question. 13. What are your weaknesses? This one breaks everyone. You don't want to just walk in and tell them you have a bad temper or whatever. The best way to answer this question is to talk about a weakness you've had that you've already overcome and explain how to overcome it. There are actually two ways to answer this. You could talk about a weakness that is not related to work and what you did to overcome it and that it is no longer a weakness. That way they can see the progression. That's what they really want in this answer.

They want to see progression; You had a problem, you solved it and now it's not a problem anymore. You can also choose a problem that is related to your work. Maybe you're in sales and maybe you used to be nervous in front of clients and you've learned to overcome that and now you're a great salesperson; That's all they want to hear. Simply explain a problem you had, what you did to us to resolve it, and that it is no longer a problem. 14. Tell me about a time when you went above and beyond. So what they're trying to prevent is you from talking about your daily duties, because everyone likes to talk about what they do at a job.

Well, going above and beyond is going beyond your daily duties. So, don't just tell them a silly story about how you do your job. Again, this is another behavioral issue; situation, task, action and result. Now, the situation and task; those are the same. So, it is situation or task, action and results. So that behavioral question has three parts. So, you want to talk about a time when maybe things were normal; Everything was going well on a project and then you ran into something totally out of place and totally unexpected. And maybe you had to do something, maybe you had to communicate with a group of people that you normally didn't have to or maybe you had to fly somewhere or maybe you had to go out and give a presentation;

Whatever it was. Talk about something extraordinary; something where you really had to go out and make a big difference or the project was going to fail; Whatever it was. Alright. Therefore, don't talk about the job description or daily duty; talk about something extraordinary. 15. Tell me about a time when you achieved a goal. So what they really want to hear is for you to set goals. Most people don't even set goals; They just appear and work. So, talk about how you set goals, talk about the process you use to set goals, and then tell them how you applied that process to a project or something like that and how you worked to achieve that goal. 16.

Why did you leave your last job? There are probably many reasons. I mean, maybe you got fired, maybe you got fired, maybe you just couldn't handle it and quit or maybe you just got bored or maybe you got over it. But one of the best reasons to explain why you left is that you were looking for bigger challenges. That's really what they want to hear. They really don't want to hear that you were fired. But hey, if they fired you, tell them; say it. "I was fired from my last job because maybe I wasn't meeting my monthly quotas" or "maybe I just wasn't delivering at the level they needed" or "maybe they just eliminated the position." What the interviewer wants to hear are his reasons for making the transition from one job to another.

And ideally, what they're looking for is that you have a growth mindset and that you're looking for more opportunities and greater responsibilities. So, don't lie about why you're transitioning a company. If you are fired, say so, then you were fired. If you were fired, you were fired. But ideally, what they want to hear is that you know why you're transitioning from one company to another. And they expect you to say something like, "I outgrew it and I was looking for more responsibilities and I couldn't get it there and I had more opportunities here." That's what they want. hear. 17. "What are your strengths?" or "What are your greatest strengths?" So, this is another great opportunity for you to share what makes you so unique.

What are you really good at? Are you really good at leading? Are you good at designing? Are you good at managing people? You know, whatever it is. But the key here is to tie it to what they are looking for. So, you probably have many strengths; There are many, many strengths (we all have them), but you want to tie your strengths to what they are looking for. So, take that job description and read it very, very carefully and really understand what they're looking for and then try to fit in there; Where can you really help? Where can you help best?

And those would be your greatest strengths. Tell them that in the interview, but talk about the things they want to achieve and why you're a good fit and why your past experiences have prepared you for this like no one else. 18. What are you most proud of? Now let me tell you what you don't want to hear. They don't want to hear that you're a proud father of four or anything like that. What they want to hear is how proud you are about the things you've done; your contributions to maybe society, the past a place you worked.

What are you most proud of? Where did you make a difference? What made a difference in someone's life, a project or a goal? What specifically? Why are you proud? What have you done? And being proud could simply be: “I'm so proud to have gotten my master's degree; I got it from Stanford. That's the highlight of my life. You know, whatever it is. And it doesn't have to be great; It's just something that means a lot to you. But keep it business or career related and not so much family related, because they really don't want to hear how proud you are of a parent or that you just gave birth to a new child.

I mean, those are great; those are beautiful things. But that's not what they're looking for in the interview. So keep the professional mindset. 19. Describe what you do at your current job. Now, don't give them a summary of all your daily tasks. Give them a summary of the things you do that are related to what they are looking for. In some cases, maybe only 30 percent of what you do in your day job is related to what they are looking for someone to do in this job. So let's just talk about that 30 percent or 50 or 10 or whatever number.

But talk about what you do in relation to what they are looking for. That's what they want to hear in your response. 20. What is your management style? Now, they're not going to ask everyone this question; is a common question. But if you are looking for a team leader, project management or manager position, you will be asked; What is your management style? What they are really testing is; Do you even have a style? Have you really managed enough people? Have you been managing long enough in your career to really have a management style? And whatever your style is, it's irrelevant.

I mean, if you're a micromanager or a hands-off manager, you're an open-door manager or whatever. But be genuine about what makes you a good manager and why you manage this way and why you like to manage this way. And give some examples. Tell them about some of your management exercises or some of your meetings and why you believe in your management method. And why it is effective and why it works for you. That's really what they want to hear. They don't really care what your actual style is, but they want to hear the depth of your experience.

Because people who have not managed before do not have a management style. So if I'm interviewing a manager and I ask, "What is your management style?" and you say, "Well, I don't know." That just tells me he hasn't made it. So I want to know what you've done, how you've done it and why you like it, why you manage it that way and why you feel it's effective. 21. Tell me about a mistake you made. Now, they don't want to hear about a mistake you made at home. You want to keep this career related and you don't want to tell them that you accidentally put black toner where the blue toner was in the copier.

Give them something to chew. Give them a mistake that you made that you wish you hadn't made, but you know you made a mistake and then what you did to fix it. What did you do to recover from that mistake? Because people are going to make mistakes. We all make mistakes, I make mistakes, but how do you recover from your mistakes? Do you make mistakes and throw them into other people's laps or do you take care of the problem? That's what they want to hear. So, explain to them a time when you made a mistake and the pressure was on, there was pressure and then explain to them what you did to recover from your mistake and that everything was okay.

But again, that's a behavioral question; situation or task, action and result. Explain a brief scenario of how you did it. 22. What are you passionate about? Now, if you think about this, it's like, "Oh, man, I'm passionate about a lot of things." So, there are a couple of different paths you can go down. I would like to align my response with the company's values, its objectives, its mission, whatever it may be and I like my passion to be consistent with theirs. I may be passionate about other things too and that's okay. But I should also feel passionate about this company and what it's trying to do.

And what this is doing is eliminating people; This is a question to weed out candidates who are not aligned with your company culture. For example, let's say you're interviewing for a company that makes and sells pet supplies. If you are not passionate about animals, kittens, bunnies, and dogs, then you are not aligned with this company's values ​​and they will not be interested in you. But if you go to a company that makes pet supplies and stuff and you say, "I love animals." I have many animals. I have many kittens, cats and dogs and I love animals.

Now, you are aligning yourself with their culture and that is what they are looking for. Because when you are passionate about what they do, you are fundamentally aligned with the core values ​​and that is the type of person they are looking for for this job. Makes sense; good? That's pretty easy. 23. What do you know about our company? And you better know something. You should do some research on the company before you get there. I mean, unless it's a really big company like Amazon, Google or Microsoft, then it's pretty easy to get information about them. But for many of us, we're simply interviewing for a smaller company that's relatively unknown.

So, you want to do some research. You want to investigate that company in every way. Try to find articles that have been written about them; Maybe magazines have written some articles about them or even local newspapers. But do your research and try to find out what they have done or why they have been recognized. Don't just say, "Well, I heard you guys are really good at making shoes." Go beyond that. Find out that maybe they are a company that makes shoes, but maybe they also donated a thousand pairs to some homeless shelters and you found out about that.

And then they can come in and say, "Well, I know you guys really care about people." And I know you guys donated a thousand pairs of shoes to a homeless shelter in California. I think it's a beautiful thing and that's the kind of place I want to be; who really cares about society and other people. This is how you answer that one.ask. 24. How did you find out about this job? Now this one is pretty easy. You can ask. Remember, like I said, "Only ask questions that will help you make a decision about whether you want to work there or not." So in my case, I want to know what the day-to-day responsibilities are.

If day-to-day responsibilities are all of these for eight to 12 hours a day, that doesn't interest me. So, that disqualified that employer for me. So, that's what these questions are about. All of these questions you should ask should be interview questions to qualify this position or this company or disqualify them. And if you just get a lot of “No, no, no” or whatever is negative for you, then you're basically saying, “This is not a place I want to be,” or “This is a place I want to be.” That's what I want to be because they are doing all the things that I want to do and I want to be a part of that.

Either way, that's up to you, but that's how you ask those questions. Alright, these are the top 30 job interview questions and what employers are looking for in your answers. Now, before your next interview, grab a copy of the Complete Interview Answer Guide. This book has over 140 different questions that you can expect to be asked in any interview. I mean, I covered 30 questions you might be asked; 10 or 15 of them could depend on the interviewer. But this guide has more than 140 questions. It has over 40 behavioral questions, so I go into a lot more depth on how to answer those behavioral questions using the STAR method that I mentioned in the video.

We talk about a Situation or a Task and Action and the Result. This guide goes much deeper into that behavioral process (that competency interview) than this video does. It also covers all the interview questions you are likely to be asked. Some people bought this book saying, "I wasn't asked 80 to 90 percent of the questions in your guide." Even some employers purchased my guide to use as a hiring procedures guide for hiring people. Now, this book is an e-book. You can download it from jobinterviewtools.com; I'll put the link below. It's like 47 dollars. You can also get the printed copy; this physical version here.

I'll send it to you by mail. That is a different option. It also comes in audio and video. So if you like to learn by downloading audio tracks to your iPod or whatever and listening to them or watching videos, I've got that too. This is the only job interview guide on the market that comes in electronic, print, audio and video formats. But more than anything, it will give you a much deeper insight into what employers are looking for and give you plenty of sample answers. So, I already told you what employers look for in this video, but this guide will tell you how to phrase your answer.

So maybe you're struggling, maybe you understand what employers are looking for, and maybe you don't know how to phrase your answers in a way that sounds good, appeals, and resonates with the employer. This guide will show you how to do it. She will take it to the next level and expose it all. So, starting from the next interview you have, by simply reading this guide here; just for an hour or two before your interview connects all the dots for you and you seem much more confident, much more connected to that employer in your next job interview.

And they'll see a lot more of you than other employers in your previous interviews. Because you're probably here, watching this video today, because you've been on a few job interviews and maybe they didn't go well, maybe you've been on a lot of interviews, maybe you've been interviewing for six months. or a year and no one has hired you yet and you're really getting depressed and it hurts a little. I understand. I mean, you go to a job interview and you keep going interview after interview and they keep telling you, "No, no, no." It's like he defeats you.

But one way to recover from that is to show up for an interview and be everything you can be. Be the best of yourself. Be in perfect condition. Be in a perfect state of mind. Make sure you have done all the work, all the homework, and all the preparation steps you can take to prepare for the interview. So when you go in there, you're doing your best and you feel good about doing your best. Take it to that level. So, whether they hire you or not, you feel inside that you did the best you could and no one can take that away from you.

Nobody. This is how you win and this is how you build. So, in every interview you attend; whether you get the job or not; learn something. Learn a little from each interview. So if you fail four or five interviews, don't let it affect you. Because employers are fickle. Out of every 10 employers, maybe three or four of them really had no interest in hiring you. And maybe that job was simply reserved for someone else. So, just because you didn't get the offer, don't let that be a reflection of your abilities, your skills, your experience, your passion. Because when you do;

When you let those interviews reflect negatively on you, they get you down. And it hits you and hits you and then you don't want to interview anymore. And then you show up and you sit there and you say, "Well, my name is Don and I'm here for a job interview." No, you have to be passionate in every interview you attend. Do you remember what we talked about at the beginning of this video? About the 7-38-55 rule? Body language; 55 percent. You need to be alive. It is necessary to have good posture, sit straight, use your arms when speaking; to be alive.

And then 38 percent; voice tone. Express yourself, enunciate your words. Don't just sit there and talk like that; to be alive. And then, like I said, the 7 percent is just content; just your words. So you could take some pretty mediocre answers and break them down with your body language, your vocal tones, and your inflection, and even the silliest answers will come to life and people will get excited because you're up there, using your hands. and your body and you're presenting yourself and they're attracted to that. I mean, who will you be attracted to? the person who sits there and talks like that or someone who is really full of life, bringing that room to life in exciting and passionate ways.

This is how you succeed. This is how you succeed in the interview. That's all I have for you today. I know this was a very long video; longer than ever, but I think it will help you a lot. Good luck in your next interview and see you in the next video. See you later.