Assignment

1. Poten&al
Interview
Ques&ons What
Your
Response
Should
Do Good
Response Poor
Response
Tell
me
about
yourself. This
is
a
chance
to
promote
yourself.
Think
of
it
as
an
adver7sement.
Emphasize
your
strengths
both
personally
and
professionally,
but
tailor
them
to
the
job.
“I'm
an
experienced
network
administrator
with
extensive
knowledge
of
new
tools
and
techniques.
I've
developed
networks
for
several
companies
and
have
wriDen
several
ar7cles
for
technology
magazines.
I
like
working
with
people
and
enjoy
group
projects,
but
am
also
a
self-­‐
starter
who
doesn't
mind
working
on
my
own.
I'm
a
volunteer
with
the
local
school
system
and
help
in
adult
technology
classes.”
“Well,
I’ve
done
network
admin
work
for
a
few
companies,
and
I
think
I
do
just
fine.”
What
are
your
strengths? This
is
a
chance
to
showcase
your
top
abili7es.
Emphasize
a
few
strengths
that
relate
to
the
posi7on
you
are
interviewing
for—say,
team
building
or
leadership
for
a
project
management
posi7on.
"I'm
good
at
leading
a
group,
priori7zing
assignments,
and
7me
management.
But
my
greatest
strength
is
my
ability
to
build
a
strong
team."
“I’m
a
preDy
organized
person
and
can
get
my
part
of
the
job
done
on
7me.”
What
are
your
weaknesses? Most
interviewers
expect
that
people
will
take
a
strength
and
modify
it
so
that
it
looks
like
a
weakness.
It’s
beDer
to
be
honest.
Talk
about
a
weakness
and
what
you’ve
done
to
compensate
for
it.
"I
some7mes
have
trouble
delega7ng
to
others
because
I
think
that
I
can
do
the
assignment
beDer
myself.
This
has
some7mes
backfired
because
I'd
end
up
with
more
than
I
could
handle.
But
I've
taken
a
7me
management
course
and
learned
effec7ve
delega7on
techniques.
So,
I
feel
I’ve
addressed
this
issue.”
“I
am
a
perfec7onist
and
tend
to
hold
everyone
to
the
same
high
standards.”

2. Poten&al
Interview
Ques&ons What
Your
Response
Should
Do Good
Response Poor
Response
Why
did
you
leave
your
last
job?
(ASSUMES
YOU
LEFT
OR
ARE
LEAVING
YOUR
JOB
VOLUNTARILY)
The
interviewer
usually
wants
to
know
whether
you
leP
for
posi7ve
or
nega7ve
reasons.
Sound
posi7ve
no
maDer
what
the
reason
was.
Don’t
refer
to
previous
problems
or
speak
ill
of
the
company.
Instead,
focus
on
your
personal
growth
and
future
plans.
“When
I
learned
that
______
(new
field)
was
what
I
truly
wanted
to
do,
I
spoke
with
my
current
employer
about
making
the
shiP,
but
the
company
did
not
have
any
opportuni7es
in
that
field.
So
I’m
excited
about
the
chance
to
pursue
this
posi7on
with
your
company.”
“Well,
my
employer
was
awful.
The
hours
were
terrible
and
the
pay
wasn’t
enough
for
all
the
work
they
expected
me
to
do.”
Why
were
you
let
go
from
your
previous
job?
(ASSUMES
YOU
WERE
FIRED
OR
LAID
OFF)
Although
this
is
a
tough
ques7on
for
anyone,
just
keep
the
answer
short
and
honest.
Do
not
speak
badly
about
your
past
employer.
“Being
let
go
was
actually
good
for
me.
Now
I
have
an
opportunity
to
explore
jobs
that
beDer
suit
my
qualifica7ons
and
interests.
I
think
that
this
might
be
just
the
right
opportunity.
Would
you
like
to
hear
more
about
my
skills
in
working
with
new
technology?”
“My
boss
always
felt
threatened
by
me
and
took
the
opportunity
to
replace
me
with
one
of
his
buddies.”

3. Poten&al
Interview
Ques&ons What
Your
Response
Should
Do Good
Response Poor
Response
What
did
you
like
most
about
your
previous
job?
Interview
ques7ons
about
what
you
liked
most
or
least
about
your
previous
job
can
be
tricky.
You
want
to
make
sure
that
the
things
you
like
the
most
are
also
part
of
the
job
you’re
interviewing
for.
“I
truly
enjoyed
the
7me
I
spent
interac7ng
with
customers
–
in
person
or
on
the
phone.
I
found
it
rewarding
to
build
rela7onships
with
our
clients.
I
know
that
will
be
a
component
of
this
posi7on,
and
I’m
looking
forward
to
being
a
part
of
your
team.”
“Well,
I
like
dealing
with
customers,
but
I
hate
being
on
the
phone.
I
hope
most
of
the
client
interac7on
here
can
be
done
by
email.”
What
were
your
primary
responsibili&es
in
your
previous
job?
The
best
way
to
answer
this
ques7on
is
to
describe
your
responsibili7es
in
detail
and
to
connect
them
to
the
posi7on
you’re
interviewing
for.
That
way,
the
employer
will
see
that
you
have
the
qualifica7ons
necessary
to
do
the
job.
But
be
honest;
remember
that
the
company
will
be
checking
with
your
previous
employer.
“As
a
Customer
Service
Representa7ve
at
a
major
cell
phone
company,
I
handled
50
to
70
inquiries
every
day.
Some
ques7ons
only
required
standard
assistance,
while
others
needed
in-­‐
depth
care
and
aDen7on.
My
responsibili7es
included
answering
customer
requests
via
phone
and
email,
upselling
customers
to
more
comprehensive
plans,
and
upda7ng
customers'
most
current
contact
informa7on
and
adjus7ng
their
accounts.
I
also
interacted
with
our
product
team
as
necessary
to
handle
customer
concerns.”
“I
answered
customer
inquiries
over
the
phone
or
by
email.”

4. Poten&al
Interview
Ques&ons What
Your
Response
Should
Do Good
Response Poor
Response
Describe
a
situa&on
in
which
you
didn’t
work
well
with
a
supervisor.
What
was
the
outcome?
In
answering
this
ques7on,
avoid
responses
that
make
you
seem
difficult
or
temperamental.
“I
had
a
rough
start
with
a
manager
once
because
we
had
different
expecta7ons
for
the
workflow.
But
when
we
talked
it
through,
I
realized
that
our
goals
were
really
compa7ble
and
we
were
able
to
work
together
successfully.
So,
I
now
know
how
valuable
it
is
to
discuss
goals
and
expecta7ons
at
the
beginning
of
a
project.”
“Well,
I
had
a
supervisor
who
was
always
on
my
case.
She
micromanaged
everything
I
did,
and
I
hated
that.
I
know
now
that
I
need
to
work
with
more
laid
back
people.”
What
did
you
like
least
about
your
previous
job?
When
you're
asked
what
you
didn't
like
about
your
previous
job,
don't
be
too
nega7ve.
The
interviewer
might
think
you’d
be
nega7ve
about
this
job
or
company
as
well.
“I
was
actually
preDy
sa7sfied
in
my
job.
I’ve
worked
with
great
people
and
learned
a
lot.
However,
over
half
of
my
7me
was
spent
on
paperwork.
Because
working
with
people
is
my
strength,
I
felt
that
my
7me
wasn’t
spent
as
effec7vely
as
it
could
be
in
a
different
posi7on.”
"In
my
last
job,
my
boss
was
overbearing
and
wouldn't
let
me
do
my
job.
She
dumped
all
of
her
paperwork
on
me."
Describe
one
problem
you
encountered
or
mistake
you
made
in
your
previous
posi&on.
Make
sure
you
give
an
example
that
shows
how
you
turned
your
mistake
into
a
posi7ve.
“We
all
learn
from
our
mistakes.
I
used
to
think
that
there
was
one
best
solu7on
to
a
problem,
but
I've
learned
that
that
kind
of
thinking
limits
the
possibility
of
success.”
“Well,
I
had
a
hard
7me
when
the
team
chose
someone
else’s
solu7on
over
mine.
But,
I
guess
that
everyone
needs
to
win
some7mes.”

5. Poten&al
Interview
Ques&ons What
Your
Response
Should
Do Good
Response Poor
Response
Why
do
you
want
to
work
for
our
company?
Interviewers
almost
always
want
to
know
why
you
want
to
work
at
their
company.
Research
the
company.
Try
to
relate
your
personal
goals
to
the
company
and
indicate
that
the
company
offers
great
opportuni7es
for
success.
“Based
on
the
research
I've
done,
this
company
is
an
industry
leader.
When
I
visited
your
Web
site,
I
saw
descrip7ons
of
future
projects,
such
as
_______
(be
specific)
that
were
innova7ve
and
exci7ng.
I
was
also
impressed
with
the
current
financial
statements.
This
is
the
company
I've
been
looking
for,
a
place
where
my
background,
experience,
and
skills
can
be
put
to
use
and
make
things
happen."
"I
really
love
your
product,
and
I
have
used
it
for
many
years.
Since
I
need
a
job,
this
seems
like
the
perfect
place.”
Why
are
you
interested
in
this
posi&on?
Find
something
specific
about
the
job
that
relates
to
your
skills.
“I’m
interested
in
this
job
because
it
seems
tailored
to
my
skills,
which
include
sales
and
marke7ng.
In
a
previous
posi7on,
I
created
an
annual
growth
rate
of
24
percent
in
a
flat
industry.
And
I
see
you’re
interested
in
crea7ng
a
new
marke7ng
concept
–
something
that
I
would
really
enjoy
working
on.”
“I’d
like
to
work
at
this
company
because
it’s
really
stable
and
has
good
benefits.
This
posi7on
appears
to
be
the
best
match
for
me
right
now.”

6. Poten&al
Interview
Ques&ons What
Your
Response
Should
Do Good
Response Poor
Response
Where
do
you
want
to
be
in
five
years?
This
ques7on
can
be
hard
if
you
don’t
prepare
for
it
in
advance.
Focus
on
real
career
steps.
“I
hope
I
will
have
contributed
to
a
company
by
applying
my
sales
and
marke7ng
exper7se,
helped
launch
a
new
product
successfully,
grown
professionally
through
training
opportuni7es,
had
a
chance
to
manage
or
mentor
someone,
and
worked
with
and
learned
from
high-­‐
caliber
people.”
“Well,
I
think
I
should
be
a
Vice
President
by
then.”
Why
should
we
hire
you? This
is
the
7me
to
highlight
your
best
skills
and
how
these
can
be
useful
for
the
company.
"Well,
I
have
the
experience
needed
for
the
job
and
I’m
excited
by
the
great
challenges
and
opportuni7es
for
growth
your
company
offers,
so
I’m
mo7vated
to
work
hard.
Also,
my
teamwork
and
organiza7onal
skills
fit
with
the
demands
of
the
posi7on,
and
my
willingness
and
ability
to
learn
mean
that
I
can
quickly
become
a
valuable
contributor."
“Because
I
need
a
job
and
I
know
I
can
handle
this
posi7on
well.”
What
country
are
you
from?
(ILLEGAL
QUESTION)
Of
course,
as
with
any
illegal
ques7on,
you
can
calmly
refuse
to
respond
to
the
ques7on.
However,
if
you
want
to
respond,
focus
on
providing
useful
informa7on
to
address
the
underlying
concern,
but
do
not
answer
the
illegal
ques7on
directly.
"If
you’re
concerned
that
I’m
authorized
to
work
in
the
United
States,
please
be
assured
that
I
can."
“It’s
none
of
your
business.”

7. Poten&al
Interview
Ques&ons What
Your
Response
Should
Do Good
Response Poor
Response
Do
you
have
children?
(ILLEGAL
QUESTION)
You
may
politely
refuse
to
respond.
Or,
you
can
try
answering
the
illegal
ques7on
indirectly.
Focus
on
providing
useful
informa7on
that
addresses
the
underlying
concern.
"I
am
prepared
to
meet
any
travel
and
over7me
required
to
do
a
great
job.”
“Yes,
and
they’re
a
handful.
My
teenager
is
the
worst!”
When
did
you
graduate
from
college?
(ILLEGAL
QUESTION)
Of
course,
you
may
politely
refuse
to
respond.
Or,
you
can
try
answering
the
illegal
ques7on
indirectly.
Focus
on
providing
useful
informa7on
that
addresses
the
underlying
concern.
“As
my
degree,
recent
training
cer7fica7ons,
and
experience
show,
I’m
well
equipped
to
handle
the
responsibili7es
of
this
posi7on.”
“Probably
about
the
same
7me
as
your
mother.”
How
do
you
think
your
degree
will
help
you
succeed
in
this
job?
(FOR
FIRST
–TIME
JOB
APPLICANTS)
Your
response
will
allow
you
to
demonstrate
how
you
plan
to
apply
your
coursework.
“My
design
courses
gave
me
a
solid
technical
background.
In
addi7on,
I
was
on
several
design
teams
that
won
awards.
Those
projects
taught
me
how
to
work
in
a
group
environment
towards
a
successful
product
launch.”
“I
don’t
think
much
of
my
coursework
was
relevant.
But
I’m
crea7ve
and
I’ve
always
wanted
to
be
in
adver7sing.”
What
was
the
most
important
lesson
that
you
learned
in
school
that
would
relate
to
this
posi&on?
(FOR
FIRST-­‐
TIME
JOB
APPLICANTS)
Your
response
will
allow
you
to
demonstrate
personal
growth
and
maturity.
“The
most
important
lesson
I
learned
was
how
to
manage
my
7me.
This
skill
helped
me
to
complete
all
of
my
work
on
schedule
while
balancing
the
demands
of
my
part-­‐7me
job
and
personal
responsibili7es.”
“I
learned
that
I
really
couldn’t
go
out
partying
the
night
before
an
exam.”