Honest Job Interview Answers....

[Dragonlover]

'Can you give an incident when you have had bad customer service?'

Um..no. Because, wierdly, I don't tend to shop on the high street and when I do I don't get served by morons. That question has fucked up at least one interview for me, because they insist on you answering it. I have since come up with a very convincing lie.

Dragonlover

[powerboy]

Why should We hire you? Because I have bills to pay. I actually said that once. Why did you apply here, you dumbass?

What would your friends say about you? Ohhhhh, you don't want to know what they would say about me, hell I don't want to know what they would say.....wait, yeah I do want to know.

What would you do if someone was talking bad about the company? I don't know the company that good. Most likely, let them talk, it is their opinion!

Those animal questions, I always put Dog on them. I always say, that if someone I don't want to be in my personal space, I let them know.

Where do you see yourself in whatever time frame? Being the owner of my own companies.

Tell Us One Instance Where You Went Above And Beyond The Call Of Duty For a Customer
Ummm, well I never done that, I actually have a spine

[iradney]

What would you say to an irate customer:

Calm the hell down. So you can't use a chat application on your phone, boohooo! There are people starving, being tortured and killed all over the world - how about using some of that righteous indignation to help fix that!!!

[Emrld]

the question about an unpopular decision is to see where some of your loyalties lie . . is it with the companies best interest (will it pad the big wig's pockets) or will you be one of the guys and do what makes the co workers happy.

hypothetical example: you are the stand in manager for the day in an office situation and it is Tues July 3 in the US - the company has given permission for employees to be allowed to leave at 2 pm with manager permission (and of course have the 4th off). . . . Currently the department has a really large project they are trying to wrap up . . .It is 1:30 - it looks like the project could actually be done by 3 pm if everyone would buckle down
your choice - be popular and let everyone go at 2 knowing that when they return on the 5th it will take some extra time because people will have to get back on track and may have a few hangovers to deal with
or - unpopular - you make it known that everyone will be allowed to leave as soon as the project is done and then you get back to it to lead by example.

That is what they are talking about

[Fera Festiva]

Can you give an example of a time you used your initiative?
What a stupid bloody question. OK, my job is one of the least taxing things I have ever had to do, and as a result is both boring and stressful. I get through my allotted tasks in about a quarter of the allocated time. Therefore, I use my initiative every day as I desperately search for websites I haven't previously viewed and that I won't get into trouble for looking at.

Where do you see yourself in five years?
Not lining some rich bastard's pockets any more.

How would your friends and family describe you?
Cynical, smart-mouthed, rude, grumpy, misanthropic and way too good to work for you, you cretin.

How important is teamwork/customer care to you?
Well, I hate people with a passion, so I'd say not at all important.

... For me that's the worst thing about job interviews. I hate the fact that in order to pay the bills I've had to lie about myself, claiming to be a nice person when I am not one. It makes me feel so dirty!

[JustADude]

Oh, here's a great pair I just remembered! I never did turn in the app, because I found out they were so eager to hire because the employees were making a mass exodus because the management was like a nice, big 'Worst Of...' album from the MiM forum here. This is what I'd be putting down if I DID put the app in.

What personality traits would you say are your greatest strengths?
My ability to maintain a calm, professional exterior under all but the most extreme duress, my tactical and logistical planning abilities, and a unique talent for talking down agitated customers.

...and your biggest weaknesses?
I'm too honest for my own good, I have a hard time keeping in 'work mode' if things drag for an extended amount of time, and I can be easily drawn into philosophical debates.

[BusyBee]

Why did you apply for this job? Well, you're looking for a new worker, and I'm looking for work. I figured we could solve each others problems. Duh.

Why do you want to work here?/Why do you think you'd like this job? I don't, I just want you to give me money. If I have to do some stuff for that to happen, I suppose I can deal with that.

What makes you think you are able to do this job? Uhh... nothing. I have zero self esteem, I don't think I'm capable of anything. Why don't you just lemme have a go at it anyway?

Where do you see yourself in X years? Jeez I dunno. I want this job in retail cos it don't require me to spend years training/studying just to start it, therefore requires no long-term planning. I'll be happy if I'm still eating regularly and have a roof over my head in 5 years.

What's your biggest weakness? I'm not gonna tell you that. Let's just say I have a soft spot for pictures of kittens and leave it at that.

(Can't quite remember the exact wording of this one, but something like) Give us an example of when you made a significant mistake. --Actually, when I got asked this, I had to think about it so long that they just decided to move along to the next question. That seemed to work well!

What words would your friends use to describe you? Honestly, "weird" and/or "crazy" would be in at least the top 5 in a list of words my friends would use to describe me. If they don't even consider those, they're probably not my friends.
On a side note, I did tell a couple of interviewers that my friends would probably describe me as weird (as well as fun and honest and etc). I doubt I would have if they were any less laid back than they were, but in the end I got the job.

Give an example of a practice or innovation that you introduced to your last workplace, that made work there better/more efficient. WTF?? There's not much 'innovation' you can do when every last detail of the store is dictated by planograms faxed through from head office. Shall I just claim that I was the first person to start actually writing down what's needed for the fill (as opposed to just trying to remember it) and we leave it at that?

Sorry, still recovering from nearly a year of looking for a job

[Gurndigarn]

"Give me an example of when you made an unpopular decision, and explain why you made the decision?"

If you've been in management, that's usually easy. "I stopped allowing <perk>, because employees were abusing the priveledge."

[Gurndigarn]

Why did you apply here?

I've been on the receiving end of "I want money" before. That's not a bad answer, even if they do act embarrased about it. OTOH, "I love video games" is a bad answer. I don't want game players, I want employees who will work.

What's you're greatest weakness?

Yeah, I know this is where I'm supposed to exaggerate a strength to the point where it becomes a liability. It's a cute question, but all it really determines is how fast I can lie. The honest truth is that if I see a great weakness in myself, I try to do something about it. Do I have weaknesses? Yeah. My greatest one? Well, that changes from time to time. Most recently, I've been working on making sure I slow down and do a thorough job anyway, despite being on salary with a boss who rarely shows up.

What animal do you see yourself as?

I don't. I mean, seriously, why should I see myself as an animal? I'm a human, and I'm quite content with that fact.

[Bagga]

I was once asked at an interview "Can you tell me one of your bad points"

I looked him straight in the eye and said "I don't suffer fools gladly"

I was amazed that 5 minutes later he offered me the job.

[Reyneth]

I hate, hate HATE the "salary requirements" thing. You don't want to undersell yourself and end up in debt because you can't afford your bills, but you don't want to put too high and end your chance at that job. And in most cases, you are doing this *blind* because unless you've worked in that industry or company before, you have no friggin clue what that position actually pays! Seriously, it's a no-win.

For the "Why did you apply here" I was told a great technique by a family friend. He teaches biz classes and even one on interviewing. If the job is important to you, go on that company's website and find their mission statement. Even if there is only one thing in there that you agree with, remember it. Work your answer around that - you were at their website to learn more about the company and came across the mission statement and was impressed that "blah blah blah" was very important to them because "blah relate it to your life or experience blah blah."

I did that in my interview last week, and I swear the guy's eyes lit up when I mentioned I had looked for the mission statement and I knew what was in it.
I'm still waiting to hear (pins and needles!!!!) but I've had a good feeling.....of course the more I wait, the worse things seem to be!

[nick1091]

Tell Us One Instance Where You Went Above And Beyond The Call Of Duty For a Customer

Well, there was the time I spent two hours on the phone tracking down a long out of print big band record for a sweet woman who assured me money was no object. After miraculously finding a supplier willing to sell for $60 (a steal for an OOP record of that vintage), the ladily cheerily scoffed and hung up, only after telling me to go f___ myself.

[Gurndigarn]

I hate, hate HATE the "salary requirements" thing. You don't want to undersell yourself and end up in debt because you can't afford your bills, but you don't want to put too high and end your chance at that job. And in most cases, you are doing this *blind* because unless you've worked in that industry or company before, you have no friggin clue what that position actually pays! Seriously, it's a no-win.

Assuming this isn't a job where the pay is relatively fixed, try "I'll need to find out more about the job before I can answer that properly." It puts you back in control, somewhat. Then ask pointed questions about the position, responsibilities, company, and so forth. Assuming you know what your personal "need to survive with a bit of comfort" level is, you then know how much to jack up your price based on how much assholery you're going to have to put up with.

[Reyneth]

Assuming this isn't a job where the pay is relatively fixed, try "I'll need to find out more about the job before I can answer that properly." It puts you back in control, somewhat.

That's a good idea. Unfortunately, all of my recent experiences with such were in an online form where there is no such option. I'll keep it in mind for the future, though!

[SuperDan]

For the "Why did you apply here" I was told a great technique by a family friend. He teaches biz classes and even one on interviewing. If the job is important to you, go on that company's website and find their mission statement. Even if there is only one thing in there that you agree with, remember it. Work your answer around that - you were at their website to learn more about the company and came across the mission statement and was impressed that "blah blah blah" was very important to them because "blah relate it to your life or experience blah blah."

I did that in my interview last week, and I swear the guy's eyes lit up when I mentioned I had looked for the mission statement and I knew what was in it.
I'm still waiting to hear (pins and needles!!!!) but I've had a good feeling.....of course the more I wait, the worse things seem to be!

I'm in the process of applying for a new job now (nothing wrong with the current one, just looking for the possibility of moving on to something better) and I can't find--even after a thorough search of three of the company's websites--a mission statement.

The company in question is a certain cable company that rhymes with "domdast" by the way. If anyone happens to know the mission statement or has any advice for things I can throw into my cover letter, please feel free to PM me.