Career Savvy: Tricks and Other Stumbling Blocks

If you can effectively answer questions that are intended to find "hidden meaning" and formulate smart questions of your own, you will be well ahead of other candidates who get tripped up on these obstacles.

1. Why did you leave your last job?
If you left your last job, be careful with this one. The old “never be negative” rule applies. Even if you left because your boss was the classic example of the south end of a northbound horse, you can’t say that.

Think of another way to phrase it, such as, “Changes in management styles forced me to pursue other avenues that would allow me to utilize my leadership and decision-making skills” –– and leave it at that. Most people leave jobs because of problems with management. The next most-popular reasons are: need more money, bored with the work and want a promotion but denied by the company.

These can all seem negative to a potential employer, so when asked why you left, stress what you’re going after, not what you’re running from.

2. In what areas do you feel you need additional experience?
This is usually asked of recent college grads and midlife career changers. From time to time, we all feel insecure about our experience level. After all, most of us feel that to win the job, you can never have too much. But the recruiters go right for the jugular and remind you that you really don’t have a heck of a lot of experience – and you get thrown into a self-conscious tailspin.

Well, you can’t say that you know it all. And you can’t be too humble and provide an in-depth analysis of your areas of improvement.

The middle of the road is best. Choose an area that is secondary or tertiary to this job’s main objectives and discuss how you are attending to this need for additional experience. Maybe you’re taking courses at a community college or studying the topic with the help of a former colleague who understands the topic quite thoroughly. You get the picture.

3. What was the worst job you ever had? And who was the worst boss you ever had?
Never be negative! “The worst job I ever had was at XYZ Inc. The management style was lackadaisical, and it showed in many areas, especially production. The least effective boss I ever had was my supervisor at this same company, where management morale was low.” No!

Never give opinions or personal observations. Instead, be factual. It is a good idea to preface your answer with a statement that indicates you haven’t had a worst job or boss because you carefully examined each offer and tried to make the most informed decision before accepting. As a result, you are comparing a less desirable experience to the many positive ones you have had.

4. What is your strongest asset?
If you want to answer this question correctly (and I think you do), make sure you pick an asset that is valuable to the recruiter and his or her department. You may know this through your research. You may even be insightful enough to ask the recruiter at the interview’s start to describe projects the department is working on. When the recruiter answers, you will be thinking about your skills fitting in with their needs and how your strongest “asset” ties into their greatest problem.

5. What is your major weakness?
This is not your cue to say, “I get bored easily.” But you certainly don’t want to lie. And, please, never use those phony answers in all of the interviewing books: “I am such a dedicated worker that I lose track of time and work right through lunch.” This will make the recruiter lose her lunch.

To answer this question, you have to be honest with yourself. Think about your “milder” weaknesses, something you’re really trying to change about yourself. Make a list. Be prepared to talk about all of them. Why? I’ll tell you why: Some human resources managers ask for your seven major weaknesses because the first three are all lies, the fourth is watered-down, and, by the time you get to numbers five through seven, you’re finally being honest because you can’t fabricate any more!

So, think about honest “mild” weaknesses and what you’re doing to improve the situation. Maybe: “My major weakness is feeling angry when I think people around me aren’t working hard. I realize that I need to concentrate on my efforts and help my co-workers if they need it. As it turns out, one person I thought wasn’t ‘holding his own’ was just stumped by a problem I helped him through.”

Keep your answers short and sweet. When you’re finished speaking, just smile. Rambling can be dangerous!

6. Which is more important to you: the money or the type of job?
These either-or questions can be deadly traps. Never discount one answer completely: Saying money is more important might make you seem shallow, but if you’re not driven by money, why would I hire you? I need people who understand the value of money.

You should indicate that the type of job is important because if you are matched with a position that utilizes your best skills, you will be able to perform at levels that will increase the company’s bottom line, which also affects your income. See? In business, nearly all variables are interrelated and dependent on each other.

7. What are some things that really irritate you?
Being too honest will blow you out of the water, but so will handing the interviewer a canned response, such as, “Slackers really bother me.” The interviewer asked for THINGS, so she apparently wants a list of pet peeves.

Do you turn this question into a gripe session and rattle off a string of irritants, from traffic jams to Barry Manilow? Of course not! You might say something like, “I get irritated by the things that bother many people. I take action about the ones that involve me, but irritants are mainly my subjective interpretations of what someone else is doing or not doing. If I’m bothered by this, I need to get my mind back on my work.” Whew! That was a tough one!

8. What was your greatest accomplishment at your last job?
Bragging isn’t what you need now. Think of an accomplishment you are proud of that helped a company (or group at school) solve a problem or save money. Talk about how others helped you and how you helped others; never take all of the credit. And make sure this accomplishment is related to your new job’s duties.

Troy Behrens, Ed.D., is executive director of SMU's Hegi Family Career Development Center. He writes "Career Savvy” for SMU Connections.