This is still one more projective question you're likely to face. Your interviewer will compare your description of your favorite boss, looking for similarities and differences between this individual and the person you would be working for if you got the job. Again, the counsel applies. If you ask early on in your interview "What kind of person do you think would succeed best in this job?" you're likely to pick up clues for answering "your favorite boss" question later on.
For example, if your interviewer tells you that an independent person would do best in the job, keep this in mind when you talk about your favorite boss. If he or she was the sort of person who liked his or her subordinates to "handle problems on their own", by all means let your interviewer know this. The closer your favorite boss is in style to the way the person you'd be working for is perceived to be by the person who interviews you, the greater your chances of getting an offer.
What are your hobbies and outside interests?
Your initial reaction to this question might well be that it's not very important to your getting a job, so what difference does it make how you answer this question. In point of fact, your hobbies and outside interests tell your interviewer a lot about you. For one thing, if you're the kind of person who responds to this question by describing many active hobbies or outside interests, your interviewer will probably infer some things about the way you'd be on the job. He or she might presume, for example, that you have broad interests; that you budget your time well; that you are a high energy person (because you are capable of maintaining these interests besides getting your job done.)
Even if you have few hobbies or outside interests, the kinds of things you do when you're not at work can be important to the impression you create. If you are a regular Softball player, for example, you may convey a team involvement. As a racquetball or handball player, you invoke an image of drive, competitive spirit and good health. If you participate actively in a civic organization like Kiwanis, Rotary, etc. you suggest to your interviewer a sense of social responsibility and interest in your fellow man. Similarly, your active participation in church or political groups, or even family outings suggests qualities about you.
What should you do to make your hobbies pay off for you if you are asked about them? Two things. First, prior to any job interviews, review your hobbies or other outside interests with a few acquaintances and ask them the image that your participation conveys. Then, if you are asked about your outside activities, focus on the ones that evoke the kind of image you want to portray for yourself. Second, be prepared with examples that demonstrate successful participation in whatever outside interests you discuss at interviews. Anyone can join an organization such as Kiwanis. The real key is what contributions you made to the organization. Keep in mind that your worth points outside of work can demonstrate personal qualities as much or more than your worth points on the job. In discussing non-work activities, be prepared to talk about the problems you've solved; the recognition you have achieved. If you can't (or don't want to) be involved in outside activities, be prepared with a positive, plausible reason why you don't do anything except work. It might help.
What boss did you like least? And why?
This question is the flip side of the "most" question, and ought to be answered with the same thoughts in mind. If you've never had a boss you didn't like, it's perfectly okay to let your interviewer know this. But don't be surprised if you get a variation on this question at that point. If your interviewer wants to pursue the "liked least" topic, he or she might ask, instead, "What characteristics in a boss do you like least?" If you've probed about what your prospective boss likes most at the start of the interview, you'll be prepared.
As a youth, what were your favorite pastimes?
This question is a favorite among interviewers who believe that leopards rarely change their spots. Its purpose is to get at the kind of person you are today, not what you were like as a kid. So reveal the kinds of things you did in your youth that suggest the kind of person you are today. If you organized a Softball team in high school, you might be the one who organizes a task force in your next job; if you were competitive in sports, you might just be a competitive performer today. If, on the other hand, you loved to read novels for hours on end by yourself in your room, you could infer that you're a loner and a dreamer. That could hurt.
