Difficult Interview Questions
July 25, 2010What are some of the “difficult” questions that an interviewer can ask?
The one that job seekers seem to hate the most is the “strengths and weaknesses” question.
Most of us can rattle off our strengths but when it comes to weaknesses, that’s harder.
No one likes to detail their weaknesses and if you don’t bring up any, it can be perceived as arrogance by an interviewer.
I advise candidates to think of some areas where they don’t have much in depth knowledge. Telling a prospective employer that you have not had a chance to use Excel (or whatever) much and that you would like to take a course to hone your skills makes you look honest, ambitious and willing to learn.
There is nothing wrong with letting an employer know that there are areas where you feel you could use more training. It is taking a negative and turning it into a positive.
The other question that job seekers hate is being asked what their current salary is.
I suggest getting around this by saying “my salary expectations for a position such as this one, would be $xx”.
If you quote your actual salary, the employer will focus on starting you in that range or just slightly above and the employer may well have been planning on a higher salary.
State the amount that you are looking for based on what you know about the responsibilities of the job.
