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10 Common Job Interview Questions and How to Answer Them

• Vicky Oliver

Use this guide to stand out from the crowd and land the role you want.

Interviews can be high stress, anxiety-driving situations, especially if it’s your first interview. A little practice and preparation always pays off. While we can’t know exactly what an employer will ask, here are 10 common interview questions along with advice on how to answer them. The questions include:

• Could you tell me something about yourself and describe your background in brief? : Interviewers like to hear stories about candidates. Make sure your story has a great beginning, a riveting middle, and an end that makes the interviewer root for you to win the job.
• How do you deal with pressure or stressful situations? : Share an instance when you remained calm despite the turmoil. If it’s a skill you’re developing, acknowledge it and include the steps you’re taking to respond better to pressure in the future.
• What are your salary expectations? : Before you walk in for your first interview, you should already know what the salary is for the position you’re applying to. Check out websites such as Glassdoor, Fishbowl, or Vault.com for salary information. You could also ask people in the field by reaching out to your community on LinkedIn.

Where your work meets your life. See more from Ascend here .

Resignation numbers have remained abnormally high in the U.S. between July 2021 and October 2021, with millions of Americans quitting their jobs  — which also means there are millions of new openings up for grabs. If you’re entering the market for the first time, or just looking to make a change, use this guide to prepare for your next interview.

• Vicky Oliver is a leading career development expert and the multi-best-selling author of five books, including  301 Smart Answers to Tough Interview Questions , named in the top 10 list of “Best Books for HR Interview Prep.” She’s a sought-after speaker and seminar presenter and a popular media source, having made over 900 appearances in broadcast, print, and online outlets.    

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5 Examples of Take-Home Tasks for Different Roles

Assigning take-home tasks when hiring is much like marmite, coriander, or Hawaiian pizza. Your candidates will either love it or hate it.

The ‘love it’ camp likely welcomes the opportunity to showcase their skills and appreciate the time to think it through versus answering questions on the spot in an interview.

However, the ‘hate it’ group sees it as doing work for free, might already have portfolios of work that give a much fairer picture of their experience level, and resent the infringement on their personal time (regardless of how this might be their dream job).

What we can learn from this dichotomy is that while a take-home assignment is not right for every role, it’s still worth it for some. To figure out if it’s a fit for the role you’re hiring for, let’s look at five good examples of take-home tasks that your candidates will (hopefully) love.

TL;DR — Key Takeaways

A take-home assignment is an important part of the interview process that focuses on candidates crafting and completing real-world tasks .

Incorporating a take-home assignment will give your organization better insight and skill observation over candidates. However, job seekers may see take-home tests as time-consuming, exploitative, or manipulative.

The perfect take-home assignment should be structured around providing the candidate with clarity about the role, respecting their time, and ensuring consistent testing criteria.

Toggl Hire introduced homework tasks in our skills assessment library! It’s never been easier to raise the quality of your hires with reliable proof of competence.

What are take-home tasks?

A take-home assignment is given to candidates during the interview process to complete in their own time and shows the hiring manager how the job seeker is able to complete a task.

These assignments generally consist of coding tests for developers , presentations for upper-level management, and campaigns for marketers. They’re given to candidates after the first interview round. The success will determine if the candidate makes it to the second round.

Pros and cons of a take-home assignment

Obviously, there are pros and cons to using a take-home assignment, right? Of course! So let’s go over the big ones.

• Skill observation : It allows the hiring company to understand the candidate’s skills in action and their thought process.

• Insight : The take-home interview assignment will allow the candidate to have a better understanding of the position, break any key assumptions, and what the company expects of them.

• Supplemental information : If done early in the interview process, an interview assignment allows the candidate’s skills to do the talking as opposed to the hiring manager only relying on the resume.

• Less pressure : Because a Q&A interview can be a pressure cooker, the take-home assignment makes the interviewing candidate feel more at ease.

• Time-consuming : A hiring team may claim the assignment will only take several hours to prepare and complete, but any interview assignment over more than an hour is cutting into the candidate’s personal time and current job.

• Ethical concerns and lost earnings : Asking a candidate to complete an unpaid work assignment can be seen as unethical and equivalent to unpaid labor. Some companies may even go so far as to steal the ideas of the candidate, use them, and not give credit or compensate the candidate.

• Limited personal evaluation : While the interview take-home assignment can assess a candidate’s skill set, it may not capture important aspects such as personality and behavior.

How to structure a take-home task

Creating a take-home assignment that strikes the perfect balance of helpful but not exploitative can be tricky. Regardless of what kind of take-home task or homework assignment you’re creating for hiring, it’s crucial for hiring managers to approach their creation with careful thought and attention.

Your hiring team will need to consider all of the following:

What are the common mistakes?

It’s normal to make mistakes, and learning from them can help you hire better, faster, and more fair.

So, let’s explore common blunders to steer clear of when designing and implementing a take-home assignment during the interview process, ensuring fairness and an effective evaluation process that respects candidates’ time and effort.

• Appropriate Task Alignment : Avoid assigning tasks that aren’t directly relevant to the role.

• Reasonable Task Length : Create a take-home assignment that can be completed within a reasonable timeframe.

• Providing Sufficient Context : Avoid requesting candidates to answer or solve company-specific problems without providing adequate information.

• Ethical Treatment of Work Requests : Refrain from asking candidates to produce work for free that the company may later exploit, such as writing a blog post for publication.

• Timely Introduction of Tasks : Including a take-home assignment as an early screening requirement can discourage candidates. Do this after their first interview.

• Constructive Feedback : Don’t miss the opportunity to provide candidates with constructive feedback on their completed tasks.

• Balancing Mandatory and Optional Tasks : Avoid making the take-home assignment mandatory for all applicants, as circumstances may prevent some candidates from completing it.

• Conduct post-assignment interviews : Once you have received a few tasks back from candidates, we highly recommend that you schedule a take-home assignment interview to better understand any pain points the job seeker may have had.

5 thorough examples of great take-home assignments

Now that you better understand the how , the when , and the why of take-home assignments, we’ll show you five examples. The example take-home assignments will cover tasks for:

• Developer – fixing a broken site
• Product manager – redesigning a feature
• Marketing lead – creating a marketing campaign
• Designer – redesigning the onboarding flow
• Customer success executive – running a mock QBR

Example #1: Take-home task for a developer role

This challenge is geared towards a mid-level developer who can identify and fix errors and optimize the code of an eCommerce website. The goal here is to see how well the candidates understand debugging techniques, approach problem-solving, and how they will communicate with the rest of their team.

Task: Fixing a Broken E-commerce Site

Introduction

Your mission is to debug the broken e-commerce site, fix errors, and ensure it runs smoothly. Customers are unable to place orders due to the significant increase in errors.

Requirements

• Identify and fix all of the errors on the site.
• Ensure that customers can place orders without any problems.
• Optimize the site to improve its performance.
• Document your approach and explain your reasoning behind your changes.

Instructions

• Clone the repository from the following Github URL: https://github.com/debugging-challenge/e-commerce-site.git .
• Install all the dependencies by running npm install .
• Start the development server by running npm start .
• Debug and fix all errors.
• Document your approach and explain your reasoning in a README file.

Your submission will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

• Identification and fixing of all errors
• Site optimization
• Completeness of documentation and reasoning
• Code cleanliness and adherence to best practices
• Clarity and organization of documentation
• Submit your code as a ZIP file.
• Include the README file that explains your approach and reasoning.
• Send the ZIP file to the hiring manager by email.

Example #2: Challenge for a product manager

Our next example focuses on testing product manager candidates on how they approach problem-solving, communicate with customers, and conduct user research while implementing open-ended questions.

In a sense, how well they’ll actually do their jobs in a product management role. This assignment is bound to produce better product management interviews for your organization.

Task: Redesigning Filma’s Collaboration Features

You are the Product Manager for collaboration features at Filma, a leading collaborative design platform. Recent feedback from customers has shown that they are not happy with how collaboration features work on the site. Your mission in this product management task is to redesign the collaboration features to better meet customer needs and preferences.

• Review the problem statement and develop a list of open-ended questions to better understand the issue.
• Conduct user research to validate assumptions and identify pain points and user needs.
• Develop a new design for collaboration features.
• Prioritize features and functionality based on customer needs and business goals.
• Outline the implementation plan.
• Document your approach and explain your reasoning.
• Review the problem statement and develop a list of open-ended questions to better understand the issue and customer needs.
• Conduct (mock) user research to validate assumptions and identify pain points and user needs. Schedule a call with a team member to role-play a customer interview. Include data points such as user feedback, user behaviour, and competitor analysis in your research.
• Develop a new design for collaboration features. Identify the key features and functionality of the new design, and prioritize them based on customer needs and business goals.
• Outline the implementation plan. Include a timeline, resources required, and technical feasibility.
• Document your approach and explain your reasoning in a presentation or document.
• Quality of open-ended questions and user research.
• Soundness of the new design and prioritization of features and functionality.
• Clarity and feasibility of the product management implementation plan.
• Completeness of documentation and reasoning.
• Clarity and organization of presentation or document.
• Submit your open-ended questions, presentation, or document as a PDF or PowerPoint file.
• Send the file to the hiring manager by email.

Example #3: Testing marketing managers

Let’s now explore an exciting marketing challenge that aims to find a candidate who can skillfully design an innovative user acquisition growth loop. This task involves leveraging valuable market research insights to craft a robust strategy that showcases a deep understanding of growth concepts.

Task: Designing a User Acquisition Growth Loop

You are the Marketing Lead at a Product-Led Growth (PLG) company that provides a collaboration tool for remote teams. Your team has conducted market research to identify target customer segments. Your mission is to design a new user acquisition growth loop based on the insights gained.

• Review the market research insights provided by your team.
• Design a new user acquisition growth loop, with a structured approach, based on the insights gained.
• Identify metrics to measure the effectiveness of the growth loop.
• Review the market research insights provided by your team. Use the insights to identify areas where a new user acquisition growth loop can be designed.
• Design a new user acquisition growth loop based on the insights gained. The growth loop should identify key stages, such as awareness, interest, and activation, and prioritize them based on customer needs and business goals.
• Identify metrics to measure the effectiveness of the growth loop. The metrics should be tied to the key stages of the growth loop and should be used to track progress and optimize the loop over time.
• Soundness of the new user acquisition growth loop and prioritization of key stages
• Creativity and effectiveness of the growth loop design
• Identification and feasibility of metrics to measure the effectiveness of the growth loop
• Clarity and organization of presentation or document
• Submit your presentation or document as a PDF or PowerPoint file.

Example #4: Take-home test for designers

This challenge is centered around an intriguing product design assessment designed to narrow down a candidate who excels in analyzing user recording sessions and crafting an improved onboarding flow design.

Task: Redesigning the Onboarding Flow Introduction

You are a Product Designer at a web-based Product-Led Growth (PLG) company that provides a collaboration tool for remote teams. Your team has recorded user sessions for the past 3 months to help identify areas of improvement for the onboarding flow. Your mission is to redesign the onboarding flow to improve user engagement and activation based on the insights gathered.

• Analyze the user recording sessions to identify user needs and preferences.
• Develop a new design for the onboarding flow.
• Prioritize design features based on user needs and business goals.
• Ensure that the design aligns with the company’s minimalist, intuitive design philosophy.
• Analyze the user recording sessions to identify user needs and preferences. Use the insights gathered to identify areas for improvement in the onboarding flow.
• Develop a new design for the onboarding flow. Identify the key stages of the flow, and prioritize them based on user needs and business goals. Ensure that the design aligns with the company’s minimalist, intuitive design philosophy.
• Prioritize design features based on user needs and business goals. Identify the most important design features that will enhance user engagement and activation.
• Quality of analysis of user recording sessions and identification of user needs and preferences
• The soundness of the new onboarding flow design and prioritization of key stages
• Alignment with the company’s minimalist, intuitive design philosophy
• Creativity and effectiveness of the prioritized design features

Example #5: Testing customer succes

Our final challenge example focuses on a customer success assignment. The perfect candidate will showcase their expertise in defining success metrics for a simulated account, devising impactful tactics to drive feature adoption and enhance metrics, and effectively presenting their approach and results in a mock Quarterly Business Review (QBR) presentation.

Task: Driving Feature Adoption and Improving Metrics

You are a Customer Success Manager at a PLG company that provides a project management tool for remote teams. Your mission is to work with a mock account to define success metrics, develop tactics to drive feature adoption and improve metrics for Q2, culminating in a mock QBR presentation.

• Define success metrics for the mock account.
• Develop tactics to drive feature adoption and improve metrics.
• Document your approach and results in a mock QBR presentation.
• Define success metrics for the mock account. Assume that the mock account is a remote team of 20 people that uses your project management tool for all their projects. Assume that they have been using the tool for 6 months, and that they have expressed interest in increasing feature adoption and improving metrics related to on-time delivery, collaboration, and budget management. Use your own assumptions to define success metrics that measure the impact of the product on their business.
• Develop tactics to drive feature adoption and improve metrics. Use the success metrics to identify the actions needed to increase feature adoption and improve metrics, and assign responsibilities to your team. Use customer success best practices, such as regular check-ins and training sessions, to ensure that the tactics are on track and that the mock account is engaged and satisfied.
• Document your approach and results in a mock QBR presentation. Create a deck that’s less than 10 slides, with consistent title and object placement, fonts, font colors, and different ways of visualizing insights. Use the mock QBR presentation to realign on the mock account’s goals, review their performance, present the tactics and their impact on the success metrics, and recommend the next steps to improve product performance next quarter.
• Quality of success metrics defined for the mock account.
• Soundness of the tactics to drive feature adoption and improve metrics.
• Collaborative execution of the tactics with your team.
• Clarity, organization, and persuasiveness of the mock QBR presentation.
• Submit your mock QBR presentation as a PDF or PowerPoint file.

Try a Homework Assignment by Toggl Hire

Ready to add homework assignments to your hiring process? Our homework assessments provide invaluable insights for hiring managers evaluating candidates ‘ ability to solve job-specific assignments.

Designed to test the hands-on skills necessary for day-to-day work, these assessments offer a glimpse into a candidate’s potential future job performance . With over 500 pre-built tasks available in Toggl Hire’s library, you can quickly implement comprehensive tests that align with your hiring needs.

Toggl Hire’s homework assessments are highly flexible, allowing for either integration with other assessments or standalone use. Create your free account now to explore a few examples!

Juste loves investigating through writing. A copywriter by trade, she spent the last ten years in startups, telling stories and building marketing teams. She works at Toggl Hire and writes about how businesses can recruit really great people.

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Eggcellent Work

Work assignments during interview process: here’s how to handle this request.

When you prepare for a job interview, you likely will  read up on the company , your interviewers and any other subject that will help. But you should also be prepared for your prospective employer to ask you to complete work assignments during interview process.

You may ask, what would I do if an employer asked me to produce free work as part of hiring process? Make sure you can answer that question because it could come up during your job interview. Employers are increasingly asking job candidates to complete work that demonstrates their skills and problem solving.

Some employers believe the assignments help weed out candidates who are not truly interested in the job. They believe if candidates accept the assignment, they will work hard to prove their worthiness as an employee. They also may believe if candidates question the assignment, they may not be as interested in the position.

Table of Contents

How work assignments during interview process help employers

Employers that use this tactic say it helps them see how candidates would approach the role that they are interviewing for, so it is helpful. The  average corporate job opening  receives more than 200 applicants, resulting in four to six candidate interviews. The interview assignment also helps candidates who may not interview well to shine by showing off their skills in the exercise.

An employer also may use the assignment to learn more about the candidate’s work process. Will they complete the assignment before deadline? Will they produce work that goes beyond the minimum needed to complete the assignment?

In some cases, it could be a brief, timed exercise that the employer gives to each candidate. These assignments are not likely to produce work the employer can use. It is more of a boilerplate problem for candidates to solve or a simple writing exercise to complete.

Read More: How To Ace Your Next Corporate Development Interview: Questions and Answers

How work assignments during interview process help job applicants

The interview assignment can help job applicants during the interview process. It is a great way to prove that you are the best candidate for the job. If you do a really good job on the assignment, the employer may be willing to offer more money for salary.

The assignment also gives you insight into the prospective employer’s expectations. It can be difficult at times with some jobs to understand exactly what the daily responsibilities and duties are. Such assignments can help shed light on that for you, and may help you decide whether to take the job.

If you complete the assignment and enjoyed the work, this could be a great sign. If you find the work tedious and not what you expected, it can help identify problems in the job.

What type of interview assignments can you expect?

Most companies are likely not looking for free work from candidates. But they must be sensitive to concerns that candidates will have that their time is not valued. The truth is, some companies receive free work from these arrangements and benefit from it.

There are examples of employers asking candidates to complete more involved exercises, then using the candidates’ work product. For example, a copywriter interviewing for a marketing job may draft content that the marketing team can later use without compensating the candidate. An applicant for a project manager job might develop a workflow plan and budget for a pending project that can be used.

Some employers are sending candidates home with work assignments during interview process that are quite involved. You should be aware that these requests are out there and develop a plan to respond to it.

It is reasonable for employers to ask candidates to demonstrate their skills, perhaps with an assignment that might take an hour. It is not reasonable to ask candidates to tackle assignments that take longer, maybe even days, without compensation. Here are some tips for handling requests to complete work assignments during interview process.

What is a reasonable and unreasonable assignment request?

First, it must be emphasized that employers asking candidates to complete simple, quick assignments is not unusual or unreasonable. In these cases, the person conducting the job interview can explain that this assignment is given to each candidate. It is a repeated task that is not used by the company to complete work without compensation.

It is important for candidates to know what the assignment is used for and how it fits into the interview process. This can be a useful tool to narrow down a finalist list for a position and to pressure test candidate claims about skills.

However, the problem occurs when a candidate receives an overly long and involved assignment request. If the candidate is given multiple days to complete the assignment, that is an indication that it may be too complicated. If a complicated assignment is given with unrealistic deadlines, that also is a red flag to consider.

But how can a candidate competing with others for a good job handle such involved assignments? The biggest fear is if you refuse, the employer will simply move on to candidates who will do the job. Here are several tips to consider when thinking about how to respond to interview assignment.

Suggest a simpler exercise

If you are presented with an assignment that appears complicated and involved, you could consider proposing an alternative. You can tell the employer that you have other work commitments that make it difficult now to complete the assignment. But tell them you are willing to complete an alternative that is less involved.

You can explain that your current job keeps you very busy and you have many commitments now. But offer to complete an exercise that takes about an hour or so to complete. This allows you to protect your valuable time, while also offering them insight into your process.

Offer samples of work similar to assignment

It is not unusual for you to explain that you have limited time outside of work. If you are asked to complete work assignments during interview process, tell the employer you do not typically do spec work. You can offer to share work you have done that is similar to the assignment.

If you have a portfolio of your work, tell them this will offer them the insight they seek into how you complete work assignments. You can even offer to arrange an interview with past supervisors who can discuss the quality of your work.

Find out more about the assignment

If the request you receive in the job interview to complete an assignment appears excessive, ask why it is requested. You can ask what they intend to do with the work you produce from the assignment. Ask them how many candidates will complete the task and are they all the same tasks.

If the assignment is particularly lengthy, you can ask if candidates have declined in the past to complete it. You can also ask if they have considered paying applicants as freelancers to complete the assignment. Also, ask how long to hear back after interview assignment if you elect to complete it.

Ask the Prospective Employer for Payment

Remember, the job interview is a vehicle for you to determine if the employer is right for you. It is a chance to speak candidly and professionally with your prospective employer. You can explain that you are willing to complete the assignment if they will compensate you for it.

As the rap singer Kanye West said, “Know your worth. People always act like they’re doing more for you than you’re doing for them.” You are showing the prospective employer that you know your worth by asking for compensation.

This idea only works when the assignment is particularly extensive and potentially can be used by the employer. Discuss options with the employer about payment, including whether a paid trial assignment will work. You could also offer to forgo payment if the employer decides to hire you.

How the company responds to your request will tell you a lot about it. If a company expects free work before they hire you, it likely will  expect free work  as part of your job.

How to decline an interview assignment and stay in the running

The best way to decline an interview assignment is to be honest. If you believe the assignment is too complicated and will take too long, tell them. If you are worried that the assignment poses a conflict in your other job, tell them.

Your job interviewer may offer some flexibility if you are honest with them. They may also determine that the assignment is not necessary if you are the top candidate contending. It is possible that the interviewer will also agree to an alternative assignment.

Employers asking candidates to complete assignments must recognize that applicants have limited time. It is not reasonable to expect them to complete a task that will eat up hours of their time. And if candidates produce excellent work, offer to pay them.

• What To Expect During Interview With HR After Interview With Hiring Manager
• Is HR Interview a Formality? – The Realistic Truth About HR Interviews
• 7 Tips To Impress an Interviewer in 30 Seconds
• Compelling Interview Presentation Topics to Showcase Your Skills
• Why “Looking For New Challenges” May Not Be a Good Answer When Interviewing for New Jobs
• How To Spots Companies That Interview With No Intention Of Hiring You

Jenny Palmer

Founder of Eggcellentwork.com. With over 20 years of experience in HR and various roles in corporate world, Jenny shares tips and advice to help professionals advance in their careers. Her blog is a go-to resource for anyone looking to improve their skills, land their dream job, or make a career change.

Further Reading...

How To Describe “I Am A Quick Learner And Hard Worker” In a Resume

[Interview Q&A] How Often Do You Find Yourself Naturally Assuming Leadership Roles?

How To List Skills That I Taught Myself On Resume

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6 interview writing prompt examples to qualify content candidates

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Qualifying candidates for content can be a longer process than you think. After all, your content is how people find you, learn from you, and choose you. And good quality and execution of content are what may set you apart from others. So, how do you make sure they’re fit for the role? Or if they can deliver the results you’re looking for? A good place to start is by asking them to complete writing prompts as an early step in the interview process.

As a manager of a content team, writing is one of the most important things I need to vet in order to see if a candidate is fit for the role. And I don’t just want to see writing they’ve done in the past, I want to test them now . That’s why I’ve come up with several different written task prompts to put candidates to the test. Are they a good fit for the role? For the company? For the team?

When you're building your first marketing team, a content writer will be one of the first roles you should consider hiring for , and when working with a small team it'll be essential that you hire the right person the first time, rather than wasting time and resources training someone who's a poor fit. Writing prompts are a perfect way to allow candidates to show off their skills.

When should you ask content job candidates to complete a written task?

There are different stages of the interview process in which you can offer written assignments. First, if candidates maybe lack a portfolio or you need more information upfront, you can ask candidates to complete writing prompts before you even speak to them. Second, and my preferred method, you can ask them to complete writing prompts later on in the process. Alternatively, you can do a mix of both. I’ll let you decide what works best for your hiring funnel. 

Here are examples of what a typical interview process may look like and where the writing prompts may fall:

• Resume, portfolio & video introduction reviewed
• Pre-interview writing prompts completed
• Phone screen or initial interview
• Writing prompts completed
• Interview with the hiring manager (where writing prompts are presented)
• Interview with another member of the team 
• Interview with higher-level managers/CEO if needed
• Hired :) 

Let’s take a look at 6 different sample writing exercises for job applicants you may find helpful in your next round of interviews.

3 short writing prompt examples 

Now that your hiring pipeline is full, you’ve reviewed resumes, portfolios, maybe a quick applicant video introduction, and the like, and you’re probably ready to start scheduling interviews. At this stage, it might be wise to ask some of your top choices to do a bit of homework that applies to your product/company to kick it off. You can do this before you start the first round of interviews, or after.

These short writing prompts should give you just enough to test the legitimacy of their work. To make the most of their time and yours, make sure that all assignments and expectations are clearly explained to candidates, especially if it’s before they get the chance to speak to anyone.

Short writing prompts to choose from

These examples can be tweaked and modified to the position at your company or depending on what exactly you’re looking for. Nonetheless, they can help you get started on how to develop short writing prompts. 

1. ‘Wow’/awareness prompt  

Please choose something on our website that you can build upon and write a blurb to ‘wow’ our audience. Make sure to use language that draws them in and makes them the center (it should be less about us and more about them). Consider a headline that sparks interest or curiosity from the reader. 

Add a short description explaining what you expanded on and why you did what you did. 

2. ‘How’/Consideration Prompt

Write a short blurb that helps our audience answer questions they have or learn something to help them along their buyer’s journey—whether they’re in the awareness, consideration, or decision stage. This can be for website copy, an email—just something to show you know how to write for this stage of the funnel.  

Add a short description explaining how your writing piece guides readers along in their journey.  

3. ‘Now’/decision prompt 

Please write an email inviting someone to do something—download our new guide to X, reach out to us, schedule a demo, etc. Make sure to describe why you wrote what you did and how it requires action from the audience. 

These are good tests that force candidates to really think about their targeted audience and the stage of the funnel they’re in and how to write for them—a true marketing skill. They are interesting, yet broad topics you can have job candidates complete to really challenge them—both in writing and in marketing knowledge. 

Now, let’s take a look at project-based writing prompts that are a bit broader. 

3-part project-based sample writing prompt 

I personally prefer to ask candidates to complete a project-based writing exercise after an initial interview. This gives us the opportunity to learn more about them and their experience, so instead of short samples, the project-based writing prompts allow us to further determine if they are a good fit. 

For this project-based writing prompt, I ask candidates to complete 3 stages of a writing assignment. First, I test their ability to edit and improve their writing. Second, I test their ability to write a piece, and third, I test their ability to plan and build a content strategy. 

Of course, this is specific to what the content role does here at Kalungi on a day-to-day basis, but I’m confident any content marketer or content manager should know how to do these 3 tasks (or hopefully you can get some inspiration for how to tweak this for your company). As a note: no matter what, this longer, project-based writing prompt should specifically do 2 things:

• Allow the candidate to get a taste of what they will be doing during their day-to-day
• Allow you as the hiring manager to see if they will be a good fit for their job depending on the work they deliver 

Let’s dive into this 3-part writing project. You can choose to assign all the parts, or select one or two. However, we’ve found this to be a good test of whether they’re a good fit for us, and we’re a good fit for them.

Project-based writing prompt for job candidates

1. editing & improving writing .

Please edit, leave suggestions and optimize this blog: [insert blog here]. Let us know what you’d change or improve to make it the best it can be.

2. Writing a blog 

Please showcase your ability to create high-quality content that adds value, drives organic traffic, and boosts keyword rankings. Write an 800-1,000 word blog post on ‘[insert keyword here]’ for [website].

3. Planning & strategy 

Demonstrate your ability to strategize, plan, and advise a topic cluster content strategy . Put together a topic cluster strategy in this spreadsheet [insert link here]. 

This 3-part writing project requires the hiring manager and the job candidate to discuss the decisions that were made in the next interview. I prefer to invite candidates to schedule an interview with me right when this project is completed so we don’t delay the process. This is because I’ve found that although sometimes people don’t ‘nail’ these projects, or do complete them with the quality I hoped for, I can tell if they are on the right track or if they can learn quickly when they explain the approach they took—especially for the editing and planning projects. 

An example of what I added to the end of the project description: 

Present your work! Please schedule a 30-minute content interview with the hiring manager. Contact [email protected] to schedule.

An optional portion of the project I also like to include is a self-review where the candidate answers the following questions. 

• How do you think you did? What do you think you did well? 
• What did you struggle with? What do you want to learn more about?

I give them the option to answer these questions in the project document or to be ready to discuss them in our interview. These are questions that allow you to tell the kind of person they are and the attitude they have towards work and learning. I think it also opens up the conversation and makes us more human. After all, honesty is key, especially during interviews :)

Good luck with your next hire

I hope these writing sample prompts help you better determine which candidate is best for your business. Remember, it’s the work that should impress you, not their resume or their experience. 

If you do use any of these writing prompt examples—we’d love to hear your feedback on what you (or the candidate!) thought about them and how they helped you in your hiring journey. You can reach out to me personally at [email protected] . 

Looking to build your marketing team? See our resources on " What roles to hire first " and " How to hire your B2B SaaS CMO " or get in touch with our team to learn more about how Kalungi's outsourced marketing services could provide you with a full-service, instantly-on marketing team .

CTO and co-founder at Kalungi, Fadi has helped SaaS companies grow with Inbound Marketing strategy and tactical best practices. as well as Marketing & Sales alignment to generate over $250MM in revenue for companies globally.

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35+ Job Interview Questions and Answers for 2024 [Full List]

The time has come!

After creating a killer resume and cover letter and passing the first round, it is time to face the final challenge:

Your job interview .

And that scares even to the best of us .

Being judged and evaluated by people who have your future in their hands is more anxiety-inducing than meeting the in-laws.

You’ve heard the interviewers and hiring managers say there are no right or wrong answers to calm you down before an interview.

But here’s the thing:

They are almost always looking for a specific way of answering .

Which brings us to this guide. We’re going to cover the most common interview questions and answers, turning you into a bona fide interview expert by the time you’re done reading.

So, let’s get started!

To make this guide as practical as possible, we covered just about every interview question out there. 

Don’t let that put you off, though. You don’t have to read the whole thing end-to-end. To get the most out of the guide, we’d recommend:

• Going through all the common interview questions
• Checking out the situational interview questions section and learning how to answer questions that are relevant for you
• Learning what’s the idea behind behavioral interview questions, so you’re prepared to answer whatever the HR manager shoots at you

Most Common Job Interview Questions:

• Tell me something about yourself .
• How did you hear about this position?
• Why do you want to work here?
• Why did you decide to apply for this position?
• What is your greatest strength?
• What are your strengths and weaknesses?
• What do you know about this company/organization?
• Why should we hire you?
• What is your greatest accomplishment?
• What are your salary requirements?
• Do you have any questions for us?
• What are you looking for from a new position?
• Are you considering other positions in other companies?
• What is the professional achievement you’re most proud of?
• What kind of working environment do you work best in?
• Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

Situational Job Interview Questions:

• Why haven’t you gotten your Bachelor’s Degree/Master’s Degree/Ph.D.?
• Why have you switched jobs so many times?
• Why did you change your career path?
• Why did you decide to leave your previous/current job?
• Why is there a gap in your work experience?
• Why were you fired?
• How do you feel about working weekends or late hours?
• How would your boss describe you?
• Do you have any serious medical conditions?
• What would your first 30, 60, or 90 days look like in this role?
• Are you a team player?
• Are you a risk-taker?
• How do you deal with pressure or stressful situation?
• Do you think there is a difference between hard work and smart work?
• How quickly do you adapt to new technology?
• Do you have any interests outside of work?
• What do you think our company/organization could do better?

Behavioral Questions in a Job Interview:

• Give an example of how you have handled a challenge in the workplace before.
• Give an example of when you performed well under pressure.
• Give an example of when you showed leadership qualities.

How to Answer 14 Most Common Job Interview Questions [+ Sample Answers]

These questions are the ones you’re bound to hear at just about any job interview - whether you’re an intern or a senior professional with a decade of work experience.

All of these questions are used to learn more about you, both as a person and a professional.

You might have heard the popular idea that there’s no right or wrong answers for job interview questions .

Well, while that might be true, there ARE a set of rules you need to follow when answering these questions.

If you understand what, exactly, the interviewer is looking for with each question, you’ll be able to give the right answer (and rock that interview!)

In this section, we’re going to go through 14 of the most common job interview questions and answers. We’re going to explain what the HR manager wants to see in you, as well as give you sample answers you could use.

So, let’s get started! 

1) Tell me something about yourself.

How hard can it be to talk about yourself? We do it on a daily basis without much thought to it.

However, recruitment managers are not looking for your whole life story, your third-grade achievements, or what you had for dinner last night. Instead, they are looking for a pitch . 

This is usually the first question asked in an interview, so it acts as your introduction. Make sure your answer is relevant to the position you are applying for. What you should be aiming for here is to present yourself as the ideal candidate for the job.

A good rule of thumb is to structure your talking points as follows:

• Briefly introduce yourself: What’s your name? How long have you been working as [profession]?
• What do you love about your job?
• What are your top 2-3 achievements that are relevant to the job you’re applying for?

Now, let’s go through some examples:

• Sample Answer 1:

Hey! So, my name is John Doe and I’ve worked as a business analyst for 5+ years in Company X and Company Y.

I have some background in data analysis, having studied Information Systems at [Made-Up] University.

Throughout my career, I’ve done some pretty impressive stuff (if I do say so myself, haha). 

For example, at Company X, I led a project for migrating all operations data to a new data warehousing system to cut down on costs. The new solution was a much better fit for our business, which eventually led to savings of up to $200,000 annually.

• Sample Answer 2:

I am Jane Doe, a recent college graduate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. 

I have just graduated with honors in Biochemistry. I know my way around a lab and have had multiple opportunities to put my knowledge into practice as a chemistry research assistant.

The lab felt like home, which is why I’d love to work as a lab assistant. I am passionate, hard-working, and extremely responsible. I am also looking forward to putting to practice all the things I learned during my time at university.

2) How did you hear about this position?

Although at first glance this might seem like a straightforward question, you should grab any opportunity you can to show your interest in the company. 

Even if you haven’t been continuously refreshing the company’s website for job listings, make it seem like you have (in a professional way, of course). Show excitement and curiosity.

If someone inside the company told you about the position or recommended that you apply, definitely make sure to mention that.

You’ll have a much better chance at getting hired if someone credible can vouch for your skills.

So, mention his/her name and his/her position inside the company and give their reasoning for inviting or recommending you to apply for the position. Tell the hiring managers what excites you about the job opportunity or what exactly caught your eye.

• Sample answer 1:

“I’ve known about [MadeUpTechnologies] for a long time - I’m a big fan of your products. I even own one of your latest phone models!

I love the company’s passion for creating super intuitive, beautiful hardware, and I would love to be a part of it.

So, when I saw your job ad at [RandomJobBoardWebsite], even though I wasn’t actively looking for a job at the time, I couldn’t help but apply!”

• Sample answer 2:

“I heard from Jim Doe, my old colleague and college friend, that [Company X] was looking for a new sales director. He encouraged me to apply, saying that my experience managing a sales team at [Some Software Company] would be helpful for [Company X].

I’ve heard a lot about [Company X] from Jim, and I’m a big fan of the way you do things there. I’ve always wanted to work for a company with a flat organizational structure.”

3) Why did you decide to apply for this position?

Through this question, the interviewers want to assess how passionate you are for the position. And no, the answer isn’t:

“Well, I’m very passionate about not starving to death.”

“Well, I needed the money, and you guys tend to pay a lot.”

What the interviewer is looking for here is to see how passionate you are about the job or the company. After all, job performance is directly linked to job satisfaction. The happier you are about your position at the company, the more productive you’ll be.

And here’s the kicker - your passion will be very evident during the interview.

When you’re talking to a person that’s passionate about something, you can pretty much feel them glow as they talk. And if you’re an HR manager who’s interviewed hundreds of people, this is a very good sign to hire the candidate.

So, use this knowledge to your advantage. 

When asked this question, your answer should include 2 things:

• What motivated you to apply for this position, specifically .
• Why this company? Have you heard of them before?

I’m very passionate about sustainability and renewable energy . In fact, I minored in Environmental Science at [XYZ University].

I’ve always wanted to put my engineering degree to a good cause - and the position as a Sustainability Coordinator at [Company XYZ] is just the right thing.

I’ve been following your company for the past few years, and I love how you’re changing the renewable energy landscape in America. 

Keep in mind, though, that if you don’t know much about the company or the position - that’s OK too. Just be honest and show your passion for the job. However, it’s always better to do your homework before going to an interview..

I’ve always wanted to get into marketing. Having done promotional jobs here and there, I never had an opportunity to do something more serious.

I do believe, though, that I have just the right skills to get started: copywriting, basic photoshop, and of course, lots of creativity.

So, I thought that an internship at [Company X] would be an awesome start to my career in marketing.

Want to find more samples answers to this question? Check out our article on 10+ best answers to “ Why do you want to work here? ”

4) What are your biggest strengths?

There are two answers you could go for here: what your actual strengths are, and what you think the hiring manager or HR representative wants to hear. We would most certainly suggest you go with the first answer. 

For this question, you would want to narrow your answer down to at most three strengths . Pick 1 or 2 skills that would help you really excel at the job, and 1 or 2 personal (more or less unrelated) skills. 

Not sure which ones are your top strengths? Check out the table below to learn which one’s perfect for your field:

After picking your strengths, back it up with a situation or story that shows how you have used it to benefit you on the job. 

After all, words are just that - words. The HR can’t know whether your “natural leadership” is an actual strength, or just means that you were super active in your high school class.

As you probably already know, this is one of the most common interview questions out there, so make sure you’re prepared for it before facing the HR manager!

My biggest strength is that I’m good at picking up new skills. I’ve worked a variety of different odd jobs - things like working as a waiter, house-keeper, cook, and a lot more (as you’ve probably seen on my resume).

For most of those jobs, I ended up picking up all the needed skills within 1 or 2 weeks (with basically no previous experience). 

So, I’m pretty sure while I don’t have any experience as a bartender, I have the right certification , and I believe I can get good at it within a week or two.

• Possible answer 2:

My biggest strength is that I’m very efficient at working under pressure. No matter the crisis or stress, I can make the right decisions on-the-spot.

As an event manager at Company X, we were organizing an IT conference for a client. There were a ton of last-minute hiccups - some speakers canceled and the catering company said they’d be late for the lunch break. On top of that, we were understaffed because 2 of our volunteer organizers got sick and couldn’t show up.

At that point, things looked so bleak that we were considering canceling the event or postponing it. Instead, I took the initiative in my hands and sorted through the problems one by one.

5) What is your biggest weakness?

Ah, this is always a tricky one! 

After all, you don’t want to mention your flaws during an interview, so it’s guaranteed to be a tough question.

The trick to answering this one is realizing that the interviewers don’t expect you to be perfect. Everyone has flaws, weaknesses, and things to improve on.

When asking this question, the HR manager is actually seeking to learn:

• Whether you have the right skills for the job. If you’re applying for the position of a server in a busy restaurant, and you say your biggest weakness is performing under pressure, then you’re definitely not getting a callback.
• If you’re self-aware and really know what your sticking points are.

And NO: fake humble-brag weaknesses don’t count as weaknesses. You can’t just say that your biggest weakness is that you work too hard, or that you’re a perfectionist.

The key here is to mention a weakness that’s real , but not something that would get in the way of you doing your job. You wouldn’t want to say you’re bad at math if you’re applying for an accountant position, would you

It’s also good practice to mention how you are working towards overcoming this weakness and realizing how it affects you negatively. If you can, just balance it with a positive side effect: treat it like two sides of the same coin.

My biggest weakness has always been my communication skills. I’ve been pretty shy and anxious as a kid. Over the years, however, I’ve been really working on the issue.

At this stage, I’m much better than I’ve ever been, but I’m still far from perfect.

This, however, won’t have any impact on my job as a programmer. Despite lacking communication skills, I’m very good at working in a team.

Well, as a recent graduate, I’d say my biggest weakness is the lack of real-life work experience.

While I’ve worked on a dozen software projects in the university, I don’t have the experience of working in a fully agile environment with an experienced team.

I am, however, willing to do my best and catch up as fast as I can.

Looking for more samples answers about your strengths and weaknesses ? Check out our full guide!

6) What do you know about this company/organization?

A quick search in the “About” page of the company/organization you are applying for should be enough, right? Well, yes and no. 

Think of this as an open-ended question. There’s no real wrong answer here, other than:

I don’t know anything about this organization. In fact, how did I end up here? Can you guys call me a cab real quick?

However , the more you actually know about the company, the better your chances of getting hired.

Imagine 2 equally competent candidates:

• One who doesn’t particularly care much about your company, and is only applying because they know you pay good salaries
• Another who’s been following your company blog for ages, loves your product, and has several friends already working in the company

Which one would you pick? Exactly, the second one!

So, with this job interview question, you want to convince the recruiter that you’re the candidate #2.

Now, how do you do that? Well, a rule of thumb here is to do some Googling before the interview and learn the following about the company:

• What does their product or service do?
• What impact does the product / service have?
• What’s the company culture like?
• What are the latest news about the company? How are they performing?
• ...And pretty much whatever other type of info you can dig up.

I hadn’t heard about you until recently, actually. I found out about [Company X] through your job ad on RandomJobBoard.

After doing some brief research on you guys, I ended up falling in love with your software and your mission.

Now, I’ve worked with a ton of different project management software - Example Software 1, Example Software 2 - but none of them were as intuitive and as Example Software 3.

Well, I know that you’re one of the biggest investment banks in [town / state / country]. Company X pops up on news pretty often - I’ve read that you’ve invested in some of the hottest tech IPOs, and have several up-and-coming biotech companies in your portfolio.

I got particularly interested by your recent investment in [Startup X], I found that interesting because of [Y Reason].

7) Why should we hire you?

Ah, the ultimate humble-brag question. 

Now, the real question is, how do you sell yourself without trying to look arrogant, desperate, or needy? 

A good rule of thumb here is to stay away from the extremes. Think you’re a good fit for the job? Say that “you have the right experience.”

Whatever you do, don’t oversell yourself:

“I’m the best salesman you’ve ever met!”

Instead, make a general statement (I’m a great fit for the position because…) and talk about your experiences and achievements.

Here are 3 general points you can mention:

• How you’re super passionate about working for the company (and why).
• How your skills fit their requirements.
• How you’re going to help the company solve their existing problems. Improve a metric, setup a process, etc.

Well, as a start, I have all the skills and work experience required for the job. I’ve worked as a Sales Manager for 5+ years, and over the past 2, I’ve closed several deals totalling in 6-figures.

Oh, and on top of that, I have experience working with tech companies, so I’ll be able to pick up all the product specifics much faster than the other candidates.

I have just the right skill-set to excel as an executive assistant. While I haven’t previously worked as a personal assistant, I pretty much fit the bill for the role.

I’m extremely organized, having managed several project teams in my university. I led the organization of Event #1 and Event #2. This involved continuous communication with 12+ companies, 30 speakers, and 15+ sponsors.

I’m very meticulous and organized, and I’m more than capable of helping the CEO get the most our of their free time.

Looking for more sample answers? Check out these 10+ answers to “ Why should we hire you? ”

8) What are your salary requirements?

This is always a tricky question. You don’t want to lowball yourself, but at the same time, you don’t want to be told “No” because you gave such an outrageous number.

When answering, keep these 3 things in mind:

• What’s the average salary for someone of your skill-level?
• How much does the company pay employees of your skill level? GlassDoor should be super helpful here.
• Finally, how much are you getting paid in your current company? In most cases, you can probably negotiate a pay bump from what you’re currently getting.

The final number you tell them should incorporate all 3 of the points we just mentioned. Do you know for a fact that the company is doing well (and compensates employees accordingly)? You’d quote a higher salary.

Is your skill-level above average? This should be reflected in your salary.

As a rule of thumb, you can figure out 2 numbers: what’s the “good” scenario, and what’s the “best” scenario?

Answer the interviewer with your “best” pay, and worst case scenario, they’ll negotiate it down.

Or, you can also answer with a range, and chances are, they’ll pick the number somewhere in the middle.

My salary expectation is around $70,000 annually.

My salary requirement is in the $30,000 - $40,000 range annually.

9) Do you have any questions for us?

You’ll hear this question in every interview you will attend. 

While there isn’t a right answer, there IS a wrong answer:

Nope, all good! Thanks, I’ll go show myself out.

Instead, with this question, you want to show your enthusiasm about the company. Imagine they’ve already hired you and you’re starting tomorrow - what would you like to know about them?

Keep in mind, though, that the questions shouldn’t be too easy (So, what does your company do?).

Other than showing the recruiter that you’re really interested in working for them, this is your opportunity to really find out more about the ins and outs of the place. 

The answers you get from the interviewer could also be an indicator of whether you really want to work there or not . 

So, what kind of questions can you ask? Here are some of the most essential ones:

• What does a regular day in this company look like?
• What’s the best thing about working for the company?
• What’s the worst thing about working for the company?
• What would you say are the biggest challenges a person in this position might face?
• What are the most important skills and qualities one must have to succeed in this position?
• What do you like best about working in this company?
• What are the most pressing issues and projects that need to be addressed?
• Do you have training programs available to employees?
• What sort of budget is there for my department?
• What kind of opportunities do you have for future development?
• What are the performance expectations for someone in this position?
• Do departments usually collaborate with one another?
• Do you celebrate birthdays or retirements in the office?
• Do employees usually hang out with each other outside of work?
• Is there anything else I can help you with at this stage?
• What is the next step in the hiring process?

For the complete list of all the questions you can ask the interviewer , check out our article!

10) What are you looking for in a new position?

The easiest way to answer this question would be to simply say that you’re looking for whatever the company is offering.

Look at it from the point of view of the potential employer. Would they hire someone if they answered this question with:

A good salary. And uhh, well, that’s about it!

This answer pretty much says that the moment they get a higher paying offer, they’re going to jump ship!

Instead, explain to the interviewer that this job at this company is the perfect fit for you. Mention what your short-term and long-term career goals are, and how this position ties to them.

I’m looking to further apply my machine learning skills that I developed during my 2+ years of work at [Startup X]. There, I used to do programmatic ads model design.

Now, I’m looking for an opportunity to work on a larger scale project that involves setting up programmatic ads for audiences of more than 10 million people.

I believe that worked with such a large-scale project will allow me to progress significantly faster in my career .

11) Are you considering other positions in other companies?

Here’s a tricky one: How much does the HR manager need to know here? 

If you admit to having interviews with other companies, it might look like you’re not 100% dedicated to this one. 

On the other hand, if you say you are not considering other positions, it might make you seem like you don’t have other options (and the company has the upper hand in salary negotiations).

The right way to go about here is to find common ground between the two answers.

The interviewer is probably asking because they want to know whether they have competition in hiring you. They also want to know if you are serious about the industry and are legitimately looking to be employed in this field of work.

If you do have other interviews lined up for other companies, express that you are keeping your options open but that you favor this job in comparison to the others. 

Don’t have many other options? Stick to the same approach.

Whatever you do, don’t make it seem like you’re desperate or that you don’t have any other options.

I have had two interviews during the past week with companies in X and Y industries.

However, as I’m very passionate about both your industry and the work you have done during the past several years, I am more inclined toward working for you, if everything works out.

Not yet - I wasn’t really actively looking for a job until my friend, [name], recommended your company. I’m not looking for just any company - I’m interested in an interesting, engaging project such as yours.

12) What is the professional achievement you’re most proud of?

This is another version of the “Why should we hire you” question, but with a focus on one very specific achievement.

This one’s pretty straightforward, just mention your #1 professional achievement and you’re good to go.

As a given, the achievement has to be related to the job you’re applying for. Let’s say you’re applying for the position of Sales Manager :

• [Incorrect Example]

“I’m very good at underwater basket-weaving, having woven 20+ baskets in the past year.”

• [Correct Example]

“In my previous sales position, I managed to hit and exceed department KPIs by 50%+ for 6 months in a row”

Keep in mind, though, that you want to be very specific with your answer. To get this right, try using the STAR method . It goes something like this:

• S: Situation - Set the scene and context.
• T: Task - Describe what your challenge or responsibility was.
• A: Action - List and dwell on all the actions you took towards addressing the challenge or responsibility.
• R: Result - Explain what the outcomes were and how they fit with the overall goal of the project or company.

So, find a work-related achievement that showcases your contribution through your skills and experience to something that matters to the company. 

• Sample Answer 1: 

My biggest achievement is the fact that I went from being an intern to managing company X’s entire marketing over 2 years.

As an intern, I basically had 0 instructions on what to do - it went like “hey, go learn social media advertising and get it going.” The founders didn’t exactly expect me to achieve much, and didn’t particularly care, as they were 100% focused on making the product work.

Instead of just complaining about a lack of direction, I started reading up on digital marketing - pretty much anything I could get my hands on. I learned how to do content marketing for example, from Neil Patel’s blog, and started putting everything into practice.

My first success was getting an article to go viral, generating over $5,000 revenue in a single day. While that’s not much for a software company, it felt like a lot for an intern.

After that, the founding team gave me a lot more trust, and assigned me a small marketing budget of $1,000 per month. With a lot more confidence in my abilities, I started experimenting with other strategies.

Then, over the next 2 years, I got promoted to Head of Marketing. After making a couple of hires, I managed to scale up our marketing efforts, growing the company from $2,000 to $30,000 monthly recurring revenue.

• Sample Answer 2: 

My greatest accomplishment so far is graduating from [University X] within 4 years, with a GPA of 3.9. My family was unable to support me financially, so I had to take care of all the university bills on my own.

Through hard work and dedication, I ended up graduating with almost no student loans. I managed this through a combination of:

• Working part-time while studying
• Doing seasonal full-time work during the summer
• Maintaining a high CGPA and winning 2 scholarships over 4 years

13) What kind of work environment do you like best?

The aim of this question is to assess whether you’ll fit in the company’s working environment . 

For example, some organizations are pretty structured and hierarchical, they require tight organization and have a well-planned day filled with rules and guidelines on how to do things.

If you’re the creative, think-out-of-the-box type who likes to break the rules and innovate, this is probably not going to cut it for you.

On the other hand, some companies are more laid back, with a lot less bureaucracy. “Go get us more sales” can actually be your main duty for the week if you’re working in an early stage startup.

If you’re the type who prefers to have strict to-dos and objectives, you probably won’t enjoy such a job.

So, the takeaway? Different people work best in different environments, and that’s okay. 

Before you go to the interview, go through the company’s website and social media pages to get a sense of the general vibe and environment there. 

Look at employee reviews on GlassDoor, or if you know someone already working there, ask them. 

Depending on what you learn, answer accordingly.

I work best in smaller companies. I really dislike the corporate world - rules, guidelines, SOPs, and so on. I perform best when I have a certain level of freedom to do things. Want to find innovative solutions to problems you didn’t even know you had? I’m your guy.

Want someone to just blindly follow instructions and do what they’re told? Then we’d probably not be a good fit.

I love working in a youthful, energetic environment. You know, when you’re working on a common goal with a team of people who are as passionate as you are?

I like to think of my work as a second home, and my coworkers as family. 

The last company I worked at had such an environment, and I excelled at the job.

I get that exact feeling about Company X, since the moment I walked in here for the interview. So, I’m pretty excited to get to know how you guys work!

14) Where do you see yourself in five years?

Sometimes the honest answer to this is “Hopefully not doing this.” especially with entry-level jobs. 

Don’t think the hiring manager doesn’t know it, though. There are diplomatic ways to go around it. 

In general, the motivation behind this question is for the interviewer to assess whether you are an ambitious person or not and whether you have realistic expectations for your career. 

Make sure to avoid any of the cliche answers such as…

“In your seat!”

“As the big boss man”

Instead, think realistically about what the next step after this position is, and whether it is possible to reach it within the company you are applying at. 

Within the next 5 years, I’d like to reach the position of a Senior Business Consultant. During the time period, I would like to accomplish the following:

Help 20+ organizations improve their business

Create a personal network of highly specialized professionals

Learn as much as I can about optimizing and improving clients’ businesses, as well as the essentials of operating a company

As a start, I want to learn if accounting is the right field for me. While I loved what I studied at the university, I want to see if working in the field feels the same.

If I do end up enjoying it, I’d like to specialize in either internal auditing or forensic accounting, as I really like to discover and solve problems. From what I’ve seen from your job ads, you guys are hiring for both, so I hope it’s going to be possible to move up from the position of an “intern” within the next few months!

Still not sure how to answer this one? We don’t blame you! Sometimes, you might not know what you’re doing next week, let alone next year! Check out our guide to answering the “ Where do you see yourself in 5 years? ” job interview question to find more possible answers.

How to Answer 18 Situational Job Interview Questions

You’re past the hard part. 

You already know the most common job interview questions, and can probably deflect whatever the interviewer throws at you.

Depending on your specific situation, though, you might also need to learn how to answer these situational job interview questions...

1) Why haven’t you gotten your Master’s Degree/Ph.D.?

As a start, keep in mind that the interviewer isn’t judging you for your decision.

After all, if they were looking for someone with a better degree, they wouldn’t have invited you to an interview. The degree is not the dealbreaker here, but your answer to the question might be.

When asking this question, the interviewer is trying to see your reasoning for pursuing a career instead of getting another degree.

Heck, there’s a chance that if you give them the right answer, they’re even going to like you more than someone with 3 Phds!

So, simply explain why you didn’t think that another degree was the right thing for you at the time.

Don’t say you were lazy or didn’t feel like it, or that it’s a waste of money (even if that might be the case). 

Instead, give compelling arguments, such as…

• You wanted to see whether your field was the right one for you.
• You didn’t have the financial resources at the time.
• You wanted to get some practical work experience before committing to another degree.

At this stage of my life, I decided to pursue my career instead of further education. On the one hand, I want to make sure that Marketing is what I want to do with my life.

On the other hand, I believe that in my field, practical work experience is a lot more valuable than academic.

So far, my decision has paid off pretty well - I’ve already gotten a lot of experience doing online marketing for 3+ companies and delivering awesome results to boot.

I might eventually decide to pursue a masters, but at this point, I really don’t see the point in that.

Because it’s not in sync with my future career path. I believe that for software engineering, practical experience matters a lot more than having a degree.

I’ve already done an internship as a Junior Javascript Back-end Developer, and I believe that it gave me a lot more knowledge than my B.A. in Computer Science.

While I am eventually planning on getting a Masters, it’s going to be in a more theoretical field, such as Artificial Intelligence.

2) Why have you switched jobs so many times?

If you’ve switched jobs in a very short period of time (2 or more full-time positions in 1 year), the interviewer is bound to ask about it.

After all, job-hopping is one of the biggest red flags for HR managers.

True, you might have had a reasonable cause. Maybe the second company you got hired in just wasn’t a good culture fit for you.

Well, you’ll have to communicate that.

Companies tend to be skeptical because of the following reasons…

• You might be a job hopper . Some people tend to switch jobs the moment they get a better salary offer.
• You might be unqualified for the job and you quit because you couldn’t deliver.
• You get bored easily and your solution to that is quitting.

So, your job here is to convince the interviewer that you don’t belong to any of those 3 categories. 

You need to make them realize that you will not jump ship a few months after getting hired just because some recruiter PM’d you on LinkedIn with a better offer.

The best way to answer this question is to explain the reason you switched jobs. It could be one of the following:

• The company culture wasn’t a good fit. This happens to the best of us - sometimes, the company just isn’t the right one.
• The job description was misleading and you ended up doing something you either didn’t enjoy, or were not qualified for.
• You learned that you simply didn’t enjoy the job, and are not willing to try out something different. While this isn’t the best potential answer, it’s honest and chances are, the HR manager will understand.

The last company I got hired in just wasn’t what I expected. The hiring manager didn’t communicate the role well enough.

As you already know, I’m a copywriter - I write sales copy. I work with:

-Landing pages

-Email marketing

-And sales pages

Around a week after I started work at the company, I realized that they were actually looking for something completely different. They asked me to write generic blog and social media posts, which is pretty far off from what I do.

This was really not what I expected, and not something I find interesting.

Well, as a start, my first job was in a big corporation straight out of university. While I did learn a lot there about Software Engineering practices, I also learned that a huge company with lots of regulations, rules, and the like isn’t for me.

So, at the end of my internship there, I decided to try working at a startup. I enjoyed that job a LOT more, as it gave me a lot of freedom when it comes to problem-solving. I wasn't told HOW to do it. Rather, I was given the option of coming up with my own solution.

Unfortunately, the company went belly-up after failing to raise money, putting me back on the job market. 

And here we are - [Company X] is pretty much THE place I’ve always wanted to work in. I’ve heard a lot about your company culture, and thought I’d really belong there.

3) Why did you change your career path?

If you recently changed your career path , the interviewer is sure to ask about it.

Don’t worry - there’s nothing wrong with this. 

A lot of people go through a career change . Some even do it several times in their lifetime! 

As long as you’re good at what you do, no one cares if you were a pediatrician in one year, and a professional chef in another.

When asked this question, all you have to do is answer truthfully. Explain how your old job just wasn’t for you, and how the job you’re applying for is so much more interesting.

• Sample Answer

I realized that being a doctor is not for me. While I did enjoy my 3 years in med school, the 6 year study period was too much.

I wanted to start making money and help out my family way before that, so I dropped out of university and started taking online courses in accounting.

At this point, I’m pretty good at it, having done 2 internships so far in [Company X] and [Company Y].

• Sample Answer 2

Simply because I enjoy doing sales much more than accounting. After 5 years of working as an accountant for Firm X, I decided I wanted to try something new.

I asked my boss at the time to let me transition to the sales team, and I ended up liking it AND being pretty good at it.

4) Why did you decide to leave your previous/current job?

When asking this question, the interviewer wants to learn:

• Did you have a good reason for leaving your last job? The HR manager doesn’t want someone that just jumps ship the moment things go bad.

“Oh, well, the company started bleeding cash and was on its way to bankruptcy.”

“I felt like it was time - I got to a point where everything I was doing felt monotonous. I learned as much as I could at this position while delivering amazing results. It was, however, time to switch to something new.”

• Did you leave on good terms? Meaning, did you go through the offboarding process, instructing your coworkers on how to take up your responsibilities? Or did you just say “Adios” and stopped showing up at work?

“Things started to get really boring, and the boss man was kind of mean. I totally deserve better, so I just ghosted them and now I’m looking for a new company. Hi!”

“I didn’t feel like the company’s values coincide with mine. The management was too controlling and micromanaging. I prefer to have some control over my work, and being able to contribute by going above and beyond my requirements.”

Of course, I went through the off-boarding properly. Meaning, gave a timely resignation notice , and transferred all the essential company knowledge to my replacement.”

• Did you leave voluntarily, or were you fired?

“I got fired for missing work for a week without an excuse.”

“I was fired, actually. The fault was in my communication skills at the time. I misunderstood my supervisor’s instructions and ended ended up setting a higher monthly spend on ad account for the client. The losses were not more than 3-figures, but apparently, the relationship with the client was already strained, so they ended up leaving.

Of course, I really took this to heart and worked very hard on improving my communication skills, to ensure that I don’t make any mistakes of this nature ever again.”

5) Why is there a gap in your work experience?

In most cases, a gap in your work experience doesn’t really mean anything. You probably have a very good reason for it.

The interviewer, however, will definitely ask about it, and you should answer adequately.

There’s no secret sauce to answering this question, just let the recruiter know about your situation, whatever that may be:

• Maternity leave
• Health issues
• Caring for a sick family member
• Time off to pursue further education
• Relocating to a different city
• Working on a personal project

Whichever the case may be, just explain the situation in brief and move on.

One thing to keep in mind, however, is that if you were laid off at work, or you quit and had trouble getting a new job , you should be very subtle about it.

If the interviewer knows that you’re struggling to find a job , you’re going to give them the upper hand in salary negotiations.

“I had a baby and had to take maternity leave.”

“My father was sick, so I had to be the one to take care of him full-time over a few months.”

6) Why were you fired?

Now this is a tough one.

Getting fired is pretty much never good.

Keep in mind that we’re talking about getting fired, not getting laid off. There’s a huge difference between the two:

• Getting laid off means that you got let go for something that had nothing to do with your competence. I.e. budget cuts, company down-sizing, etc.
• Getting fired , on the other hand, means that you got let go for a reasonable cause. And chances are, it’s probably your fault.

If you got fired and the interviewer asks you about it, you should be honest. After all, they can easily check-in with your previous employer.

Your best shot here is to be critical about your mistakes, and explain what you’ve done to improve.

“None of it was my fault. My boss is a total tool, and he hates me for no real reason. He yelled at me for no real reason!”

In the example above, the interviewee gets defensive. That’s a pretty huge red flag for the HR manager.

Instead, try saying something that shows that you’re aware of your mistakes.”

“The main fault was in miscommunication. The interviewer was unclear about the job responsibilities - from what I understood, they were looking for a senior-level marketer to oversee their email marketing operations.

At the end of the day, though, it turned out that the company was looking to experiment with email marketing, and specifically for someone to set it up from scratch.

While I did my best to deliver, in the end it turned out that their niche doesn’t actually need email marketing. This was against the management’s vision, so that decided to let me go.”

7) How do you feel about working weekends or late hours?

You’re gonna get asked this question in one of the following 2 cases:

1) You’re applying for a job that requires working odd hours.

In this case, your answer is pretty straightforward - since you’re applying for such a job, you probably don’t have any problems working odd hours.

“Sure! I’m OK with working late hours or weekends, as long as you let me know about it at least a few days in advance.”

2) You’re applying for just about any other type of job.

Now, you should look at this as a red flag. Is the employer just checking your dedication, or are they looking for someone that’s going to work 24/7 with no overtime pay?

In this case, ask them to clarify what they mean.

“Given enough warning, sure. Is that something I’ll be required to do often? Do you offer overtime pay for this kind of situation?”

8) How would your boss or coworkers describe you?

This question is pretty much the same as “ what are your greatest strengths ,” the only difference is that it should be from the point of view from your boss or coworkers.

Here, you want to focus on your traits and achievements that you’ve previously been praised for (After all, the interviewer might ask for a reference!).

There are at least 2 ways to answer this question:

1) Describe a specific situation where you excelled at work (and received praise from your boss and coworkers)

“They’d say I’m super hard working. During my weekend-off, not one, but three of my coworkers got sick, and I had to spot for them.

The weekend was peak season in Nantucket, so the restaurant was getting seriously overwhelmed. All of a sudden, we went from being very prepared for the season, to complete panic.

Had to jump between serving, bussing, and line-cooking, but overall, managed to survive through the weekend successfully.”

2) Quote a performance review

If you’ve previously worked in an office job, you’re probably all too familiar with these.

Did your boss give you a glowing performance review? Make sure to mention it here!

“Well, in my last performance review in September, my boss described me as someone who takes initiative.

My position as a PR manager involves constantly keeping track of our clients brand reputation, and if something goes wrong, dealing with it as fast as possible.

In a lot of cases, you need to be very proactive - if you wait for your entire team to have a meeting on how to deal with the issue, it might already be too late.

There were 4-5 different situations where I had to take charge and react to problems literally the moment they arose, whether it was during my work hours, or not.”

9) Do you have any serious medical conditions?

When asking this question, the interviewer wants to learn if you have any medical conditions that could impair your ability to do the job correctly.

In most cases, you’re not obliged to give an answer. If you do have a health condition, and it doesn’t have anything to do with your career, you can simply choose not to answer, or to say “No.”

However, you might want to disclose anything that could potentially have an impact on how you perform.

For example, if the job requires you to lift heavy boxes, for example, and you’re not able to do so because of a condition, you should let the HR manager know.

• [Sample Answer 1]

“I don’t have any serious medical conditions”

• [Sample answer 2]

“I’m unable to lift heavy objects because of issues with my back, but it won’t have any impact on how I perform at an office job”

10) What would your first 30, 60, or 90 days look like in this role?

If you’re applying for a senior or leadership role, you’re probably going to get asked this question.

Chances are, at this stage of the interview, you already know a lot about your future position and the company.

Now, it’s time to show off your knowledge in your field, and explain how you’re going to start making things happen at the company.

So, here’s how to answer the question:

You’re probably going to need to get to know the company first. You’re going to be learning as much as possible, including information on:

• What does the company do?
• What are the key processes?
• What does your department do?
• What are the current problems and challenges?
• Where can you help?

You’ll start start making things happen. From all the info you gathered, suggest a handful (3 to 5) initiatives you could take on:

• You’d audit the company email marketing strategy and suggest improvements
• You’ll help come up with better ad copies for Facebook marketing
• You’ll help the team with their ongoing marketing initiatives

You’re already have started making an impact. Describe several things you think are going to be functioning better:

• Online ads are going to be performing better by 10-20%
• Email marketing operations are going to be more streamlined, taking significantly less manpower

11) Are you a team player?

Wherever you’re applying, the answer to this question should be a “Yes!”

Even if you’re applying for a completely solo role, chances are, you’re still going to have to work in a team occasionally . 

We’d recommend being very specific about your answer here - don’t just say yes. Give the interviewer an exact example of when you excelled at working with a team.

“I’m much better at working in a team than alone, actually. That’s what I love about working in advertising - everyone has their own specific type of a creative spark, and when you combine it all, magic happens!

I’m good at both leading and following in terms of creativity and brainstorming. I’m also super receptive to others ideas, and do my best to help them execute it without nay-saying or criticism.”

“Yep, definitely. I excel at team-work. 

This one time while working at [Company X], I was assigned to an existing team working on a web application for a business process management company.

They were working on a tight deadline, and needed help on the API side.

I optimised their development cycles and oversaw a team of three developers while collaborating with the other two dev teams.

Everything went pretty well, and we managed to finish the project on time.”

12) Are you a risk-taker?

This one’s pretty tricky, as the answer here depends on your profession and field.

Ask yourself - is risk-taking a valuable skill for the job?

If you’re a pilot, for example, the answer should be a strict “No!”

If, on the other hand, you’re a day trader, then risk is an essential part of your job.

So, depending on how valuable risk is for your job, answer accordingly.

You could also give a more strategic answer. Let’s say, for example, you work in investment banking. You need to be a risk taker to an extent, but being too risk-friendly might make the entire company go bankrupt.

The strategy in such a case would be to show that you’re all about calculated risk . You’re willing to take chances, but only when the odds are in your favor.

As with most interview questions, you should give examples of situations where you had to take risks, and what the end-results were.

“Yes, I’m a risk-taker. I believe that to achieve real results, you always need to be willing to take a certain level of risk.

Pretty much any marketing initiative you launch is tied to risk. You can plan everything from beginning till the end, but no matter how well you plan it out, things might just not work out.

It’s just part of the job - in order to succeed, you need to take launch risky campaigns on a regular basis, and hopefully, one in every 5 is going to bring you massive results.”

“I’m not a risk-taker, I’m more of a risk-manager. As someone who’s been in finance for years, I can say with a lot of confidence that there’s risk in everything.

The most important things are to one, minimize your risks, and two, minimize potential damages if everything goes very, very wrong.

While working at Investment Bank X, we had a very interesting policy for investing in new fintech projects. We used to avoid moon-shots, high-tech projects, as well as anything that had an experimental business model.

Our strategy was to invest in proven tech. As in, proven product-market fit, business model, etc. In most cases, these were runner up companies. We wouldn’t invest in that one innovative company that was all over the news - we’d instead invest in their latest competitor. More often than not, this ended up being more profitable, and significantly less risky.”

13) How do you deal with pressure or stressful situations?

If you’re applying for a high-stress job, you’re guaranteed to get asked this question.

The aim of this question is to see if you’re the type of person who’d survive working at the job, or fall through the cracks when the first signs of trouble show up.

Obviously, you wouldn’t answer with the following…

“Well, I end up having a panic attack, crying, and running away from work.”

Instead, answer as follows…

• Say that yes, you do tend to perform well during stressful situations
• Give 1-2 examples of a situation where you had to perform well under pressure

Now, let’s go through some real-life examples:

“Though I can’t particularly say I enjoy stressful situations, I AM very good at working under pressure.

During chaos and panic, I tend to take a step back, think, plan, and prioritize.

For example, there have been times I’ve had to juggle multiple university projects and assignments at the same time. I would break up large assignments into small, individual tasks, and prioritize based on:

• How fast I could complete each task
• Figuring out which task would take the longest
• Which project had the earliest deadline

This way, my work became a lot more manageable. The most times I had to experience such situations, the better I performed overall.”

“I actually prefer working under pressure. I look at it as a challenge - a situation where I really have to up my game to succeed.

As a cook, working under pressure is pretty much part of the job. I’ve been in several situations where the restaurant was understaffed for the occasion. Heck, it’s pretty much a constant thing during peak season.

When there’s a ton of orders coming in and we can barely keep up, I tend to get significantly more productive than usual.”

14) Do you prefer hard work, or smart work?

By definition, hard work is when you, well, work hard. It’s when you’re willing to put in a lot of work to get the job done.

Smart work on the other hand, means doing the work efficiently. If you manage to get the job done in 2 hours instead of 5, with the same end-result, you’re doing smart work.

Keep in mind, though, that by asking this question, the interviewer is looking to understand what your work ethic is like. Meaning, they’re looking for a healthy combination of both, not just one.

That is, they want you to be the candidate who not only thinks smartly but works hard as well. 

So, your answer here shouldn’t be one-sided...

“Oh, I looove smart work. That’s when you come up with what to do, and make other people do it, right?”

Instead, explain how you excel at both:

“I don’t particularly have a preference - I believe that both hard and smart work is important to get the best results.

Smart work, on one hand, lets you figure out the best and most efficient way to get things done.

Hard work, on the other hand, means that you’ll do the job right. Even if there’s no way to do it smart or efficiently, you’ll be willing to put in long hours of work to get it done.

I’m the type that does both. 

For an example of smart for, during my time at [Made Up Corporation], I was in charge of the sales department. As a process improvement initiative, I migrated from an outdated, in-house CRM, to Pipedrive. This improved the department’s productivity by around 20%.

On the other hand, the whole migration process took around 3 months of hard work. As the software we were using was outdated, trying to learn how to map and migrate our data was a lot more complicated than we’d expected.”

15) How quickly do you adapt to new technology?

Today, whether you’re applying for a software engineering job, or as a cashier in a supermarket, you’re going to need to use technology at least on some level.

It’s very common for a company to adopt new tech - new point of service system, self check-out kiosks, customer management software, and whatever else.

So, you should be able to pick up new tech ASAP . Any new change shouldn’t completely disrupt your work.

So, when answering this question, you should talk about how tech-savvy you are.

• Sample Answer: 

“I’m pretty tech-savvy. I’ve worked with a lot of different Point of Service systems so far, and have zero difficulties learning how to use new ones.”

As a given, I own a PC, have used Office 365, and all the usual stuff.”

“I’ve always been interested in tech. In fact, I’m the type of person to actively seek out new software to help solve business problems at work.

I’ve worked with 3 different Customer Management Software in the past, such as PipeDrive, SalesForce, and Zoho CRM.”

16) Do you have any interests outside of work?

If the interviewer asks you this question, take it as a good sign!

It means that they liked your professional background, and now they’re just trying to get to know you and see if you’re a good fit for the company culture.

It’s pretty hard to go wrong here, unless you’re going to answer something like:

“I have literally no hobbies.”

“All I do is play video games all day.”

Just talk about your hobbies and interests , and you’re all set!

Bonus points if you can mention something that’s also relevant to your job (creative writing if you’re applying for a copywriting job, for example).

• Sample Answer 1

“I’m a big fan of creative writing. I have my own personal short-story blog, and contribute actively to several online writing communities (such as Writing Prompts on Reddit).

Oh, and I’m also a huge fan of the New York Giants.”

“Well, I’m very interested in all sorts of sports. I like to keep active, as it really helps keep me productive. Over the past 2 years, I’ve done a bit of everything - fencing, archery, hiking, and several other things.”

17) What do you think our company/organization could do better?

Well, this one’s interesting!

While not too common for most organizations, it’s a favorite amongst tech companies.

How come? Well, answering this question shows a couple of things…

• That you’re really passionate about the organization, and have done your research
• Are not afraid of giving feedback

Obviously, you should be very political about your feedback. You can’t just say that:

“Well, a lot of things really. I’m not enjoying this interview right here, for example.

And your product kinda sucks, no offense. But hey, there’s always room for improvement, am I right?”

Instead, you want to show off the research you’ve done. Talk about anything that might seem off about their product or business:

“I actually went through your resume builder before coming to the interview, and found several things that seemed kinda counter-intuitive.

Not to say that it’s too hard to understand, or something, but it took me a while to figure out some stuff.

If you want, I can open up my laptop and show you what I mean.”

How to Answer 3 Most Common Behavioral Questions in an Interview [w/ Possible Answers] 

Finally, behavioral job interview questions are questions that focus on how you’ve performed in the past, or how you’d perform in a specific situation.

They’re used to understand your thinking patterns, and whether you can think on your feet.

Remember the STAR interview method we discussed all the way up? Well, it can be used to answer just about any behavioral interview questions.

To brush up your memory, the main idea behind the STAR method is that each answer should involve the following:

Here are 3 of the most common behavioral interview questions (with sample answers):

1) Give an example of how you have handled a challenge in the workplace before.

What the interviewers want to know in this case is how well you handle conflict and difficulties.

So, the answer here should be pretty straightforward. You should describe a challenge you faced at work, and explain how you solved it.

“During my last job as a Google Ads expert, one of the company clients had accidentally butchered their own ad account. I noticed this over the weekend and saw that they were basically wasting money on nothing.

I took the initiative and immediately got in touch with the client to let them know about the issue. Then, we set up an impromptu meeting on the same day, and fixed the account before any real damage could be done.”

“During my last job, I was managing the creative and web dev team in charge of creating an online store for a client. Two days before deploying, we found a major bug that messed up the whole front-end user experience.

Now, we could have pushed the deadline a bit, but that would have messed up the relationship with the client. The project was already postponed once because of unforeseen circumstances, so this one was a do or die.

I assembled a task force consisting of web developers from my team, as well as some software engineers from another department. We focused 100% of our time on fixing the issue, and actually managed to launch on time at the end.”

2) Give an example of when you performed well under pressure.

For any high-stress work environment, you’re guaranteed to get asked this question.

“I actually perform a lot better when under a lot of pressure. The sense of urgency and importance really motivates me to up my game and make sure everything works out right.

When I worked as a Financial Analyst at [MadeUpFinanceCompanyInc], most of the work was very high pressure. I had to go above and beyond the line of duty to make sure we met the tight deadlines set by our clients. This often meant working 12 hour work days, and sometimes, working over the weekend.”

“As a seasonal worker, my entire career is high-pressure, haha... My last position was as a line cook during the summer at the SomeRestaurant in JacksonHole, Wyoming.

Around 3 out of 4 of the months were super high stress - there was a LOT of work, and the restaurant was pretty much always full. Heck, I’ve even had to skip breaks just to make sure we wouldn’t be understaffed.”

3) Give an example of when you showed leadership qualities.

Applying for a leadership position? You’ll definitely get asked this behavioral interview question.

Keep in mind, though, that this question doesn’t necessarily mean that you should have held a managerial position.

What the interviewer is asking for is a situation when you took the initiative and led a project or an initiative.

“As an entry-level marketer, there was not much expected of me at SoftwareCompanyInc.. My main to-dos involved doing research, and completing whatever tasks were assigned to me.

During a content marketing brainstorming session, I came up with an awesome idea to market the company. The gist of it was, we’d interview company clients who were very successful at using the software, create case studies on what exactly they’re doing, and include it in our email marketing strategy.

The Chief Marketing Officer loved the idea and put me in charge of executing the project, which I did with flying colors.”

[BONUS] Job Interview Infographic

Now, it’s time for a quick recap! Check our our new infographic on some of the most common job interview questions (and how to answer them):

Additional Interview Preparation Tips

And we’re finally here!

If you managed to get to this point, you definitely deserve a high-five!

Now, before we wrap up the article, let’s go through a couple of essential tips on acing your interview…

• Make sure you’re prepared to answer all the common job interview questions. Wherever you’re applying, you’ll likely be asked several of these questions.
• Think of the answers you’ll give for the situational interview questions (whichever ones apply to you). I.e. gap in your work experience, why were you fired, etc.
• Understand how to answer behavioral job interview questions. If you know how the STAR method works, this shouldn’t be difficult at all.
• Follow basic interview etiquette. Make eye-contact with the interviewer, but polite, and so on.

And finally, good luck on the interview! You got this!

Suggested readings:

• How to Make a Resume & Land That Job
• How to Make a Cover Letter
• How to Ace a Video Interview
• Thank You Email After Interview
• Phone Interview Questions & Tips

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Why Take-Home Assignments are the Biggest Mistake for Hiring Managers

There’s no “right” way to hire.

Some companies are comfortable having a 30-minute conversation and pulling the trigger, while others might want a couple of steps and additional interviewers involved in the process to ensure they’re getting multiple opinions on who to hire. 

And while some employers make it a point to stay on top of the latest industry trends like the ones found in our 2023 Salary Guide , others fall short and — time and time again — make the same mistakes.

Why the take-home assignment interview is a big mistake

Different interview processes work for different companies. But there is one interview mistake I’ve seen across various industries — for both contract and full-time hires — that creates a major bottleneck in the interview process, and that is the take-home assignment .

Take-home assignments can be called something different depending on what the role is.

• For a marketing position, it might be a case study .
• For a software development position, it might be a coding test .
• For a client-facing role, it might be a presentation .

Regardless of the name, the outcome is often the same: candidates you were excited about drop out of the interview process, and you find yourself back at square one again and again. 

From my experience in staffing, I strongly advise my clients against incorporating a take-home assignment into their interview process. 

Why You Shouldn’t Assign a Take-Home Assignment

No one likes to do take-home assignments for free..

When asking candidates to do an assignment during the interview process, it’s often the work that they will be doing once they get hired, so it’s essentially asking them to work for free.

For candidates, time is money, and it’s time that can be spent working for their clients who are paying them. 

This interview mistake doesn’t respect people’s personal time.

Imagine you’re working 9-5 and looking for a new job. You also have two kids who need to be picked up from school, fed, bathed, and put to bed every night.

You are so overloaded in your job that you sometimes have to work after hours. When would you have the time to also fit in doing an assignment that can take anywhere from 2-10 hours?

Candidates often cannot prioritize doing additional work because it will take time away from something else they need to get done. The longer it will take a candidate to find the time to complete the take-home assignment, the more likely their interest in the job opportunity will wane. 

Other companies aren’t making this interview mistake.

As much as you want to vet candidates for the right skill level, it’s important to be competitive with how other companies are hiring, so you don’t lose out on top talent.

Creatives often get hired based on their portfolios—without an interview. Developers get hired off of a single Zoom interview.

Higher-level roles get hired after multiple rounds of interviews, which function as conversations with various stakeholders at a company, without being asked to do homework for an interview other than preparing.

If you ask a candidate to do an assignment before engaging them in the next step of an interview process, they might say they are happy to do it, but the truth is they will usually wait to start it until completing any other interviews they have lined up in hopes of getting a decision from another employer sooner.

This interview mistake fails to filter out people who aren’t serious about the role.

Many companies think these assignments will show how much a candidate wants to work at their company.

I strongly caution against this logic. The post-COVID job market is more competitive than ever, as companies with once-traditional mindsets around employees working onsite have adapted to now offer fully remote roles.

This means that candidates now have access to nationwide job opportunities and are getting job offers faster than ever before.

If seeing how serious someone is about a role at your specific company is important to you, gauging how much they researched the company before the interview is a great way to find that out.

Hiring Managers Should Avoid the Take-Home Assignment

Making the common interview mistake of requiring a take-home assignment most often results in the assignment not getting completed and the candidate pursuing a different employment opportunity that doesn’t require an additional assignment. 

It’s understandable that a hiring manager would want to test a person’s skill before offering them a job. The good news is that there are ways to do this that don’t involve asking a candidate to do extra work.

Ways to Avoid Making this Interview Mistake

Ask to see sample work from potential candidates..

Copywriters and designers have portfolios, developers have GitHubs, and high-level individuals can often pull sample proposals and plans they’ve put together in the past to exhibit their work.

If you have questions about how much they did themselves, what went into the decisions they made, or other related questions, the interview is the perfect place to dive in and find out. 

Ask your job candidate to do a test in real-time on the interview.

Some hiring managers prefer not to do this because candidates might feel “put on the spot” and not perform their best.

However, I can’t think of a single employer I have worked with who didn’t care equally about the candidate getting to the right answer, as they did about how they got to the right answer and what that showed about their thought process.

Doing a test or exercise together, and being able to speak with the candidate during it, is a great way to understand their logic.

Ask your job candidate scenario-based questions.

If you have a concern about how a candidate would handle a situation—whether it’s technical, about communication, or how they work with a team—ask specific, pointed questions to find out your answers. 

Requesting references is a great way to avoid this interview mistake.

It is completely acceptable to extend an offer pending reference checks so you’re able to get background information from someone who worked with this person before and can vouch for the candidate’s expertise.

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The Final Word On Take-Home Assignments for Hiring Managers

Hiring is a gamble. It’s normal to have a degree of trepidation about extending an offer to someone without a guarantee that they’ll be able to perform at the level you expect. But the best way to see if someone can do the job is to trust your gut and give them the chance to prove you right. 

Mondo Matches Great Talent With Great Companies

With an expansive, connected network of the top IT, Tech, Creative, and Digital Marketing professionals and a proprietary process,  Mondo  can match you with the hard-to-find, specialized talent you need.

• Contact Mondo today for all your hiring needs
• Download our 2023 Salary Guide  for detailed salary breakdowns for roles & jobs across the technology, creative & digital marketing industries

2024 Salary Guide: Tech, Creative & Digital Marketing

By Sarah Magazzo

Digital Marketing Manager for Mondo National Staffing Agency

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More From Forbes

Master These 4 Talking Points To Ace Your Job Interview

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It doesn’t matter if you’ve done it hundreds of times before, job interviews will always be nerve-wracking. There are a lot of variables to consider — from the way you look to whether or not you arrived on time to the stories you tell.

But what’s even more crucial is to ensure that your conversation with the interviewer flows naturally. Because not everyone is a natural conversationalist, it’s still better to practice ahead of time and have a good idea of what you want to say to ensure a positive impression.

It’s worth noting that no two interviewers will be the same. While many will stick to the prescribed questions, others may test your ability to think on your feet by asking curveball questions. But if you can master these four talking points, then you should be well-equipped to ace just about every job interview.

Most people treat small talk as a mere formality, a way to fill the awkward silence before diving into a real conversation. As a result, they try to skip this part of the interaction to get to the “real” discussion faster, viewing small talk as unnecessary and superficial.

While there might be some truth to that sentiment, it’s far better to know how to engage in small talk than not. This is especially true with job interviews, where small talk can help you establish rapport and leave a lasting good impression.

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Engaging in small talk is excellent at establishing rapport because it helps to create a sense of familiarity and ease between the interviewer and the candidate. With the job market being this tough , you may likely be competing with hundreds (if not thousands) of applicants, so you want to be as memorable as possible.

Make it a point to give more than one-word answers to even the simplest questions, and try to incorporate elements of your personality or interests into the conversation. For example, if your interviewer asks you how you’re doing, avoid giving a noncommittal “I’m good.” Instead, you can say that you feel energized after your morning run or excited to know more about the company!

The ability to do small talk is a good sign that someone possesses excellent people skills. As a former recruiter myself, I can confidently say that between two candidates of similar skills and experience, the one who was more engaging in interviews is most likely to get the role.

Past Experiences

It’s customary for a recruiter to go over your past experience during your interview since it’s their best way of knowing what you’ve done before and what you can bring to the table.

A lot of people in these situations wing it by answering questions on the spot but if you really want to stand out, it’s best to craft those experiences into stories that put you in the best light. How do you do this? I’ll explain.

All good stories start with a problem, which is why you were hired. Maybe the company was having an image problem, which is why they hired a marketing professional with crisis management skills. Or perhaps they needed to increase revenue to meet certain projections, so they hired a business strategist. Make sure you make this part clear, as this will help make your story more compelling.

After the conflict comes resolution, so once you’ve shared the problem, it’s time to share how you contributed to a quantifiably positive outcome . For example, maybe you spearheaded a public relations campaign that improved customer sentiment by 30%. If you were applying for the sales position, you could share how you consistently hit 20% above quota for six months straight.

Anything you can share where you come out as someone who positively contributed to the betterment of your former employer will help you score points with your interviewer.

One thing worth mentioning here is that many recruiters will also ask why you left, especially if you were doing so well. It’s fine to be completely honest here, but within reason. For example, refrain from mentioning real names or discussing potentially proprietary information. And whatever you do, never air out dirty laundry against your previous employer. Some things are just better left unsaid.

Interests and Career Goals

During the interview, you may be asked about your interests and what you’re looking for in your ideal role. This allows the interviewer to gauge how good a fit you’ll be for the position and the organization as a whole.

To ensure a good outcome, make sure that you’re able to portray yourself as someone genuinely excited to grow in this role and industry. A good way to do this is to look at the job description for clues on what they’re looking for and incorporate that in your response.

For example, if the job description mentions community involvement, then it’s a good idea to mention the summer you spent volunteering at a local shelter. If the role calls for leadership, don’t forget to mention the recent project you spearheaded while your boss was on maternity leave.

Another common but equally important talking point is your career goals, which hiring managers use to determine whether you’re likely to stay for the long term. If you’re unlikely to fulfill these career goals in the company, then the hiring manager may think that you’re not in for the long haul, leading to higher turnover rates and additional costs for recruiting and training .

To remedy this, make sure that you align your career goals with the company’s expectations. Let them know that you intend to contribute to the company’s success while also pursuing professional growth. This way, you can assure your hiring manager that they won’t have to spend valuable resources again to replace you in a few months.

Questions At the End

Asking good questions at the end is also a crucial talking point, even though it’s something that a lot of people skip during interviews. Thoughtful questions are particularly excellent at demonstrating your interest in the role because they show that you did your research prior to the interview.

The kind of questions that you can ask will vary depending on what comes up during your research. However, a good place to start is by asking about the specific team or department that you might work with should you get the role. The answer to this will help you learn about the dynamics of the team you’ll be joining, while also demonstrating your eagerness to work.

Another important question to ask about are the opportunities for growth and development . This question serves you in two ways: it lets you get a sneak peek at the company’s policies on upskilling while also signaling to the recruiter that you’re in it for the long haul — which, as I mentioned earlier, can only help you.

The reasons I laid out here for asking good questions are helpful to show your interest in the role. However, perhaps the best reason to do so is to gauge whether or not you really want to work with them and if the company is the right fit for you. After all, job interviews are not just about the employer evaluating you; they are also an opportunity for you to assess the employer. Rooting for you in your next interview!

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Interview Tips for Travel Nurses in Ohio

I nterviewing for a travel nurse position can be both an exciting and nerve-wracking experience. The interview process is a critical step in landing the assignment you want, allowing you to showcase your skills, experience, and passion for nursing. 

The initial step of your journey involves researching and identifying potential travel nurse jobs in Ohio from AdvantisMed . Once you’ve found a role that aligns with your professional goals and interests, it’s time to prepare for the interview. The interview gives you an opportunity to articulate why you’re the best candidate for the position. If you’re looking to land travel nurse jobs in Ohio, we’ve put together some helpful interview tips to help you stand out from the crowd.

Understand the Job Requirements

Start by reviewing the job description and requirements in detail. Understand the skills and qualifications required for the role, and be ready to provide examples of how you meet these requirements.

Research the Healthcare Facility

Familiarize yourself with the healthcare facility you would be working at. Knowing the facility’s size, patient population, and core values can help you tailor your responses during the interview.

Highlight Your Skills and Experience

Draw attention to your nursing skills and experiences that align with the job requirements. Share specific examples from your past assignments that demonstrate these skills in action. Remember, the goal is to show how you can add value to the healthcare team.

Display Adaptability

Travel nursing requires adaptability, as you’ll often be expected to hit the ground running in a new environment. Highlight your ability to adapt quickly to new settings and situations.

Show Your Passion for Nursing

Let your passion for nursing shine through. This passion can set you apart from other candidates and show your commitment to providing high-quality patient care.

Questions to Ask in the Interview

Remember that an interview is a two-way street. It’s not only an opportunity for the employer to learn about you but also for you to learn about the job and the healthcare facility.

Ask About the Work Environment

Ask about the work culture, nurse-to-patient ratio, and what a typical shift might look like. These insights can give you a sense of what to expect on the job.

Inquire About Orientation and Support

Ask about the orientation process for travel nurses and what kind of support is available. This information can help you gauge how smoothly you’ll transition into your new role.

Post-Interview Follow-Up

After the interview, be sure to send a thank-you note to the interviewer. This is not only polite but also another opportunity to express your interest in the position.

Successfully navigating the interview process is a critical step in securing a rewarding travel nurse position in Ohio. Your preparation and performance during the interview can significantly influence the outcome, making it essential to put your best foot forward.

A standout candidate isn’t just someone who meets all the job requirements—it’s someone who exceeds them. By highlighting your skills, demonstrating your adaptability , and showing your passion for nursing, you can differentiate yourself from other candidates. Use specific examples from your previous experience to show that you not only have the required qualifications but that you also have a proven track record of success in similar roles.

The post Interview Tips for Travel Nurses in Ohio appeared first on Sarah Scoop .

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Jorge lopez calls mets ‘worst team in the whole f–king mlb,’ gets dfa’d after glove-launching tantrum.

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Jorge Lopez threw his glove into the stands and the Mets promptly tossed him aside. 

The reliever was designated for assignment Wednesday night after he angered the team when he flung his glove above the safety netting and into the stands near the home dugout at Citi Field.

He had been ejected by third-base umpire Ramon DeJesus for arguing a Freddie Freeman check swing in the eighth inning of a 10-3 loss to the Dodgers . 

"I think I've been on the worst team in probably the whole f–king MLB." – Jorge López pic.twitter.com/NB0cDJ5w0i — SNY (@SNYtv) May 30, 2024

Prior to the team announcing the move, Lopez had a bizarre postgame interview with reporters in which he expressed no regret for his actions and seemingly called the Mets “the worst team probably in the whole f–king MLB,” although there was some confusion about what Lopez meant, since the native of Puerto Rico was speaking in English, his second language. 

Asked to clarify whether he meant the Mets were the “worst team in the whole f–king MLB,” Lopez said, “Yeah, probably. It looked like [it.]” 

Either way, he won’t be on the Mets — the worst team or not — anymore. 

Before Lopez created more controversy with his postgame comments, Carlos Mendoza made it clear he was upset about the pitcher’s actions on the field. 

Jorge López was asked to clarify his comments about the Mets being "the worst team in the whole f–king MLB" pic.twitter.com/xjaJhGsCOz — SNY (@SNYtv) May 30, 2024

“Whenever you go through a stretch like this, you see some emotions from players, but what we saw from Lopez today was unacceptable and we’re gonna address that,’’ Mendoza said. “I understand guys get frustrated at times, but we’re not gonna tolerate that. He’s got to be better.” 

Regarding the glove toss, in which Lopez fired his glove underhand into the stands, where it was caught by a fan, the right-hander said, “I don’t regret it.” 

Asked afterwards if he had spoken to management about the incident, Lopez said he hadn’t. 

Francisco Lindor, who called a team meeting following the loss, said of Lopez’s actions and lack of remorse, “It doesn’t look good.” 

“If our manager says it’s unacceptable, it’s unacceptable,’’ Lindor said. “With that being said, sure, I hope [Thursday Lopez] feels completely different. He’s still in the heat of the moment. He’s someone that carries things around a little longer than other players.” 

As it turns out, Lopez won’t be with the Mets on Thursday, as they cut loose a player they signed to a one-year, $2 million deal in the offseason and could certainly use now, with the bullpen a mess due to injuries and lack of performance. 

“Jorge is a good guy inside,” Adam Ottavino said. “Deep down he knows he shouldn’t have done that. We’ll talk. Everybody’s going through stuff.” 

Lindor, when asked if he still wanted Lopez on the team, answered, “It’s not up to me,” before adding, “I still love the guy. I feel like he’s a great competitor. If he’s on the team [Thursday], I’ll be happy.” 

As it turns out, Lindor and Lopez won’t get that chance. 

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