Tough Interview Questions & How to Answer Them

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This webinar is based on your feedback

We asked you what

questions you found

challenging in interviews.

Over 600 of you replied…

and the same ones came

up again and again.

Types of interview questions

Fish4jobs.co.uk/careers-advice

Common

Tough

Quirky

Inappropriate

Scenario-based

Common questions

Common questions…

Downloads:

1. Common interview questions

Tell us about yourself

Tell us about your current

role

Why do you want this job?

Tell me about yourself

It may sound personal but this is definitely a question

that requires a professional response.

Be creative but link it back to you professional

achievements.

Top tips

Don’t waffle

Focus on your most recent work experience

Explain your career journey (concisely!)

Try to link to the job description

Tell me about your current role

Why do you want this job?

To sum up: common questions

Stay calm

Prepare as much as you can in advance

Keep your answers relevant to the job

Don’t waffle; be concise and confident

Link previous experience to current role

Be enthusiastic – demonstrate how much you want

the job!

Tough questions

Tough questions

Downloads:

1. Tough Interview Questions

Why is there a gap in

your work history?

Why should I hire

you?

Tell me your biggest

weakness?

Why is there a gap in your work history?

Why should I hire you?

Opportunity to reiterate your most impressive

strengths

Keep your answer focused and concise (3/4 points)

Tailor your answer to suit the needs of the role

Remember to demonstrate enthusiasm!

Example

I have four years experience of target-achieving in a very similar sales

environment which I know I can bring to this role and I can start contributing

from day one.

Furthermore, I have been developing my management skills by assisting

new starters which makes me perfect for the role of Junior Sales Manager.

What is your biggest weakness?

Roundup: tough interview questions

Back up your answers with relevant examples

Make sure your answers are relevant to the job

When giving examples of your previous work, think

about how they could apply to the job you’re

interviewing for

Quirky questions

Quirky questions

Downloads:

1. Quirky Interview Questions

If you were a biscuit, what type

would you be and why?

Tell me one fact about yourself

How many tennis balls are

there in London?

If you could be any type of biscuit, what

would you be and why?

Tell me one fact about yourself

Use one of the following as your basis for this answer…

Achievements

e.g. Captain of school sports team, Sales person of the month

Volunteering

Demonstrate your empathetic side.

Unusual hobbies

Can be a great way to set yourself aside from the other candidates

Light-heartedness

A carefully selected & humorous fact will naturally get the interviewer to

warm to you

How many tennis balls are there in London?

This type of question is designed to test your thought

processes when presented with an obstacle

Top tips

No right answer so don’t over think it

Explain your reasoning behind the answer as you go

along so the interviewer can follow your logic

Back up each point in the answer with a reason

To sum up: quirky questions

A potentially fun part of the interview where the

interviewer gets to see the real you & how your mind

works

There is no right answer

Explain your thinking behind your answers

Let your personality shine through in your answers

Be confident in your responses

Inappropriate questions

Inappropriate questions…

Downloads:

1. Inappropriate Interview Questions

Respondents Inappropriate question

2% Religion

6% Age related

6% Pregnant/children

5% Sexual orientation

12% Asked out/sexual nature

Inappropriate questions…

Downloads:

1. Inappropriate Interview Questions

How old are you?

What is your religion?

Are you going to get pregnant soon?

What is your sexual orientation?

Would you like to go out with me?

How old are you?

Video to come

What is your religion?

Are you going to get pregnant soon?

What is your sexual orientation?

Would you like to go out with me?

Video

To sum up: inappropriate questions

These questions aren’t relevant so you shouldn’t really

have to answer them. However, the interviewer might not

know s/he shouldn’t ask them, so…

Keep calm

Stand your ground

No need to be rude, just deflect the question and move

on

Scenario questions

Scenario questions

Downloads:

1. Scenario Interview Questions

Sell me this pen

A colleague has suddenly

been taken ill and your

workload immediately doubles

while they’re off. How do you

manage your time?

Sell me this pen

Could be whatever product they sell…pen, coffee, t-shirt,

adverting etc.

Split this question into sections to make it easier to tackle

1. Gather information on buyer

2. Respond to that information

3. How you deliver that information

4. Close the deal

Avoid:

Not gathering enough information on the buyer

Not listening to their needs

Forcing the sell

A colleague has been taken ill and your workload doubles.

How do you manage your time?

To sum up: scenario questions

Key area of questioning

Tend to be based around your potential role

Break down into sections to demonstrate your

thought processes

Back up with answers with relevant reasoning

Resources to download

All downloads can be found in the resources tab below:

Common interview questions

Tough interview questions

Quirky interview questions

Inappropriate interview questions

Scenario-based interview questions

And finally…

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