- Why do you want this job?
- What can you do for us?
- Are you willing to travel?
- When can you start?
Thanks to New Age ethics, employers search for perfect, omniscient, highly motivated candidates. They reason that the best way to get them is by asking indirect, obscure, deep, off-the-wall questions. If this keeps up, by the millennium job applicants will be interpreting Rorschach tests. If Freud were alive today, he'd be pulling down hefty retainers from Fortune 500 companies, maybe even grossing more than management guru/motivational speaker Tom Peters.
Through it all, remember why you're sitting in the hot seat. The idea is to return correct answers sounding the right buzzwords. It's an odd, often silly, and pretentious game. But if you want the job, you'd better learn to excel at it.
Before I list possible questions, let me offer some tips and suggestions for delivering great answers.
Evade the Age Issue
Watch out for direct or indirect questions about your age. Face it, plenty of sadistic interviewers out there-many of whom work for human resources departments-would love to make a big deal about your age. "A woman your age might have a tough time keeping up the pace." Or, "Are you sure you can put in these kinds of hours? You're not as young as you used to be." Or, "You've probably got a lot of years behind you." Or, "I bet you're not a day over 55." Although legitimately enraged, be careful and unclench your fists.
Advice: Pick your battles carefully. Think twice about going one on one over the age issue. You can straighten out this person professionally without going for the jugular. You can explain how the inter viewer violated Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) laws and you have every intention of taking legal action.
According to EEOC regulations, employers are breaking the law if they ask about an applicant's age, creed, religion, race, sex, marital status, or military service. If you want the job, the smart approach is to politely evade the issue, swallow your pride, and be cool. Just drive home the fact you're capable of doing the job as well as a 25-year-old. "My past record at Bozo Widgets proves I can handle 16-hour days and 7-day schedules. More important than stamina is the quality of my work, which Mr. Bozo himself will attest to."
Also, bear in mind that many naive employers may drop an inappropriate age question with no ulterior motive. Who said all employers are intelligent? Some are trying to be cute. Others are merely making what they think is an innocent observation, unaware they're violating EEOC laws. But if you're turned off by the company or employer and have no desire to work there, say anything you want or take legal action. You've got nothing to lose. Enjoy some well-earned revenge.
Keep Politics Out of It
Avoid anything hinting at company politics or personal disputes you had at prior jobs. Prospective employers don't want to hear any of this. More important, it makes you look bad. Nobody wants an organizational screw-up, malcontent, or whistle-blower.
Advice: Keep your dirty laundry to yourself. If you have skeletons in your closet, keep them there. Some applicants have a bad habit of letting it all hang out. Their philosophy is "I have nothing to hide." That's naive. No one has an unblemished record. Smart people know what events work either for or against them. The idea is to chart a smooth course for yourself by avoiding messy issues surrounding personality disputes. Try not to say things like, "My boss thought anyone over 50 was washed up. When I asked for a promotion she turned me down, saying a bigger job would give me a coronary in 6 months." Or, "My boss fired me because I wouldn't sleep with him. Every time we were alone in the office, he had his hands all over me."
Even though an employer will listen with polite interest, you'll be branded a troublemaker as soon as you exit. "Uh oh, I smell trouble. God forbid, I should say the wrong thing and I'll be slapped with a lawsuit."
Take the hint. Don't put yourself in a position where you have to defend your actions. Remember, you're there to sell yourself into a job. Nothing more! If you don't have anything positive to say, don't say anything at all.
The Seven Questions Interviewers Love to Ask
Now for some questions you can expect. First, here are seven easy questions employers love to ask.
- Why do you want to work for us?
- What qualities do you bring to the job?
- Why should we hire you as opposed to someone else?
- Why did you leave your last job?
- How far would you like to go with the company?
- What is your long-term career goal?
- Where else are you interviewing?
For example, when asked why you want to work for a company, avoid flag-raising generalities about the company's great reputation. Instead, offer specific reasons. For instance, "Over the past 5 years, your company has dominated the office market with a host of revolutionary new products. I can make a significant contribution to the marketing of these new products." Your answer should show that you made an effort to learn about the organization and its problems plus offer a thoughtful examination of how your talents might be of use.
Avoid opening up a can of worms when asked about your last job. If it was corporate politics or your boss hated your guts and fired you because he was a manic-depressive alcoholic subject to paranoid episodes, simply say, "There was a massive cost-cutting reorganization. Upper management eliminated most of middle management. Since I didn't have the seniority some of the managers enjoyed, I was among the first to go." How's that for an innocuous answer? Never forget the undiluted truth can do irreparable harm.
