If you have an interview scheduled after some time, you need not be told how important it is to get everything right. It is the pathway to your dream job.
Every employer wants a specific skill set for an available position. To help understand whether your skill set fits the desired, they ask different questions.
However, there are some questions that tell them about your personality and are thus common in almost every interview. Here are some of the most important Interview Questions and Answers by IK that you must know before you get into the interview room:
- Tell me about yourself.
This is beyond doubt one of the most frequently asked interview questions. No matter what job you are interviewing for, this question is bound to pop up at the beginning. Though it seems like a very simple question, if not answered in the right way, it can create an unpleasant impression of you in front of the interviewer.
You will be asked a question about yourself and your background. You should start by giving them a short overview of your current job or the ones you have held in the past. Next, you should provide the relevant information from your past that highlights your best skills and qualities that make you suitable for the job you are applying for.
You may include some personal details in your answer as it establishes a connection between you and the interviewer but make sure that you just touch on these details to avoid straying away from the topic.
- What makes you unique?
Employers go through dozens of candidates in every interview. Most of these other candidates have similar resumes and employers find it harder to select the perfect candidate for the job. Thus, they would like to know what makes you different from the others who are applying.
The best way to answer this question would be to focus on your qualities that would benefit the employer the most. You can cite past job experience if you have any. You can also describe how you have used some of the skills required for the job to successfully complete tasks on prior occasions.
As you won’t know the other candidates, you will have to focus on highlighting your best traits that make you suitable for the job.
- Why do you want to work here?
The purpose of this question is for the interviewers to judge if you have done some research about the company and the job position before you came in for the interview. While you might get to know a lot about both during the interview, you must learn everything about them before you get into the room.
Stats reveal that about 47% of interviewers don’t give jobs to interviewees with no company knowledge. So, research about the company’s history, their work culture, and their objectives. This will allow you to make a list of points describing how you would fit into the company easily because of the traits you possess. Other than that, you must know the job inside out.
Go through the job description thoroughly and understand the kind of things you would require to do and the skills you would need for doing them in the best way possible. This will give you the opportunity to answer the question by describing how your qualities make this job perfect for you.
- What are your greatest weaknesses?
While the main focus of the interview is going to be highlighting your strengths and achievements, you will be asked about what you think are your biggest weaknesses as well. It might feel a bit awkward to discuss this as you will surely want the employers to think only the best of you.
However, it is important to answer this question properly as it allows them to see that you are self-aware and have the will to get better.
You should start by listing out some of your weaknesses and follow it up by describing how you have taken some measures to improve.
Over to you…
Make sure that you prepare for answering these questions well in advance. Other than this, there are several other aspects of an interview that you need to prepare for, like, the way you conduct yourself, the way you dress, etc. You can also take a look at Interview Kickstart on Linkedin for more help in preparing for your dream job interview.