It has been a while since I have gone out on an interview. Are there any trick questions that I need to watch out for?

Behavioral Interviewing

In a full course of onsite interviews, it would be unusual in this day and age for you not to get asked some behavior-based questions. These questions are based on the idea that past behavior is a good indicator of future behavior. Behavior-based interview questions will ask for specific examples of how you have behaved in certain situations. This line of questioning works on evaluating your ability to do a job by looking at how you have handled similar situations in the past. Interviewers often will base their line of questioning around the job description and ask questions related to it.

Some examples of behavior based questions are:

1. Tell me about a problem person that you had to deal with on your last job. Tell me exactly what happened and how you handled it
2. Give me an example of a situation where you had to exert leadership to get a problem resolved.
3. What was one stumbling block that you had to overcome in your last job? How did you do it?

These can be tough questions to think of responses for if you are not expecting them. Expect them and plan for them. Keep in mind, your interviewer is looking for specific examples---not generalizations. Be ready to explain the situation or problem and be prepared to describe the action you took to solve the issue and the results of those actions. Be concise but thorough.

The best way to prepare for these types of open-ended questions—since you won’t know exactly which questions you will be asked, think of examples from past work and life experiences where specific skills were demonstrated: i.e., leadership, follow-through, personality conflict, ethical issues, etc….

Know that your interviewer will be looking for both positives and negatives. Everyone has both. Be prepared to discuss your successes and failures.

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