How to answer frequently asked questions

Every interview is different; questions change depending on the job you are applying for. However, there are some questions that recur regularly, and those can be advantageous for you, as you can prepare for them.

Tell us something about yourself / Can you introduce yourself for us, please?

An evergreen opener of most interviews. See the chapter Personality for more tips.

What are your strengths?

Let the requirements of the position guide you. Link your strengths to the recruiter's perception of the ideal candidate.
Demonstrate your strengths with an example. The STAR method, mentioned in the chapter Competency, can help you with that.

What are your weaknesses?

First of all, talk about things that can be changed or fixed. In particular, mention lack of certain skills (MS Excel, presentation skills, time management, giving feedback, languages, …)
And then demonstrate that you are working on your shortcoming ("I have an issue with public speaking, but I have been trying to deliberately seek out such situations so that I can get used to them.").
Of course, don't mention long-standing personality traits or things that might prevent you from effectively performing the position you are applying for.

Why do you think you’re the right fit for this position? Why should we choose you?

Try to think of your strengths and link them to the job requirements. Use the job advert to prepare.
Try to highlight strengths that might make you better than other candidates. And don’t forget to mention your motivation for working at their company.

How do you cope with stress and pressure? Can you work under pressure?

Once again, the STAR method can help you answer this question. Have a story from your past ready to demonstrate that you can cope with a stressful situation.
Also, try to avoid talking negatively about stress. For example, don’t mention that stress prevents you from working well. Instead, describe your coping strategies and how you prevent stress (breathing exercises, mindfullnes, relaxation, physical activity, planning and organising in advance, risk analysis, ...).

What are your career goals? Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

Try to be as specific as possible. Describe what role you would like to take on, what are you are interested in or, for example, what areas you would like to develop and improve in.
If you are not completely sure about your future career path, try to at least outline the activities you would like to do (“I would like to be more involved in creating training workshops, I would like to develop my communication skills.”)
And always link your goals to the position you are applying for.

What would you consider an appropriate wage?

Think about the answer even before you start sending out your CVs. The question of salary often comes up during the telephone screening process.
Do your market research. Ask your friends and acquaintances who work in similar positions. And you can also use the internet – for example, www.platy.cz is a great source of useful statistics.
Figure out what amount you would not go below (calculate living expenses, food bills, etc.).
Don’t give one specific amount, but rather a range of around 10k. This will increase your chance of hitting the company's idea of an acceptable wage.
Don't be afraid to start a discussion. For example, ask if the amount you have quoted is realistic and what their expectations are. This will help you avoid misunderstandings.

Diskriminatory questions

As we have previously discussed, there are some things that are out of our control. And one of those things is how others treat us. Despite top notch preparation, we may encounter unfair treatment, that can manifest by so-called discriminatory questions – questions that elicit information irrelevant to the position we are applying for. Typically, these questions relate to age, gender, medical condition, sexual orientation, race, socioeconomic status, religious beliefs or, for example, political preferences.

Some of these questions can be obvious and are very easy to spot:

How old are you?
When do you plan to start a family?
How many children do you have?
Do you suffer from any illness?
Who did you vote for in the last election?

And sometimes can be hidden behind more sophisticated questions:

What is your parents’ occupation? (socioeconomic status)
Do you have a partner? How long have you lived together? (potential pregnancy, sexual orientation)
How often are you sick? When was the last time you took sick leave? (medical condition)
How do you usually spend your holidays? (children and socioeconomic status)

However, we need to remember that these questions are not always discriminatory. They can crop up at the interview if the answer could have a real impact on your job. For example, when applying to a religious organisation, a question about your beliefs is more than appropriate. And pregnancy may be of interest to an employer when it is against the law for pregnant women to do certain tasks (e.g. handling chemicals).

Dealing with discriminatory questions

So how do we deal with such questions? There are couple of ways, each with its own risks. Let’s take a look at them.

1. Refuse to answer. Morally speaking, this is certainly the best thing to do, but it may not always work in your favor. Your employer may perceive you as a potentially problematic employee who is trying to hide something.

Example answers:

I don’t want to answer that question.
I find this question too personal. I would rather not answer it.
I don’t see the connection between the question and the job I am applying for, so I would prefer not to answer it.

2. Answer truthfully. Forget your moral principles and tell the truth. This may be an appropriate option especially if the answer works in your favour.

Example answers:

I don’t plan to have children until 5 years from now.
I have two kids, but they are old enough to take care of themselves. And in case of illness, their grandmother can babysit.
Both my parents are doctors.
I’m rarely sick. I haven’t taken sick leave in three years.

3. Start a dialogue. Before taking a clear position on whether to answer such question, you can try to find out why you are being asked in the first place. Such answer is appropriate if you have great communication skills and reasonable amount of assertiveness. Be careful, however, about the tone in which you ask the question. Try not to appear too aggressive.

Example answers:

This question seems quite personal to me. May I ask how it relates to this job?
I find this question slightly discriminatory. May I ask what effect this may have on my job performance?

This may help you realize that the recruiter didn’t mean the question badly and maybe just chose the wrong words.

As we said at the beginning, the interview is not one-sided. Recruiter is choosing their employee; you are choosing your employer. Regardless of how you choose to react when faced with discriminatory questions, it’s good to remember that such behaviour is not okay, and it is up to you to consider whether you want to work for a company that does not behave ethically even during an interview.

Elevator pitch

Conclusion