60 Toughest Interview Questions and Recommended Answers
If you were to search “sample interview questions and answers” on the Internet, you would get over six million
results. That’s six million different opinions about what the most common interview questions are and how to
answer them. That’s a lot to absorb. So where do you turn and which are correct? Truth be told, it’s difficult to say
and it will vary by person and by interview. However, you can certainly prepare for the interview by looking at the
most common type of questions that come up and writing down your potential answers so that you can be prepared.
Using our experience and additional research, we’ve compiled a list of 60 tough interview questions that could come
up in your interview. We have added ideas suggesting the interviewers’ issues, and then your best answers for each
question. These, of course, are general questions. You will likely get some specific to the industry, occupation and
position for which you are applying.
Toughest Interview Questions PDF
The pdf is likely to contain a list of challenging interview questions that job seekers may face during their job interviews, along with tips on how to answer these questions effectively.
Contents
- Tell me about yourself
- What are your greatest strengths?
- What are your greatest weaknesses?
- Tell me about the greatest mistake you ever made in your life.
- Why are you leaving (or did you leave) this most recent position?
- Why should I hire you?
- Aren’t you overqualified for this position?
- Where do you see yourself five years from now?
- Describe your ideal company, location and job.
- Why do you want to work at our company?
- What are your career options right now?
- Why have you been out of work so long?
- Tell me honestly about the strong points and weak points of your (former or present)
- boss (company, management team, etc.).
- What good books have you read lately?
- Tell me about a situation when your work was criticized.
- What are your outside interests?
- How do you feel about reporting to a younger person (minority, woman, etc)?
- On confidential matters
- Looking back, what would you do differently in your life?
- Could you have done better in your last job?
- Can you work under pressure?
- Who has inspired you in your life and why?
- What was the toughest decision you ever had to make?
- Tell me about the most boring job you’ve ever had.
- Have you been absent from work more than a few days in any previous position?
- What changes would you expect to make if you came on board?
- I’m concerned that you don’t have … (“x” college degree/ “x” certification or licensure/
as much experience as we’d like in “x” area….) - How do you feel about working nights and weekends?
- Are you willing to relocate or travel?
- Do you have the stomach to fire people? Have you had experience firing people when
necessary? - Why have you had so many jobs?
- What do you see as the proper role/mission of…
- What would you say to your boss if he’s crazy about an idea, but you think it stinks?
- How could you have improved your career progress?
- What would you do if a colleague at your level wasn’t pulling his/her weight…and this
- was hurting your department?
- You were with your former employer a long time. Won’t it be hard switching to a new
company? - May I contact your present employer for a reference?
- Give me an example of your creativity (analytical skill…managing ability, etc.)
- Where could you use some improvement?
- What do you worry about?
- Could you be considered a workaholic? (or) How many hours a week do you normally
work? - What’s the most difficult part of being a (your job title)?
- The “Hypothetical Problem”
- The Behavioral Question (“Tell About a Time When….”)
- What was the toughest challenge you’ve ever faced?
- Would you consider starting your own business?
- What are your goals?
- What do you look for when you hire people?
- Sell me this stapler (or this pencil…this clock…or some other object on the desk).
- Looking back on your last position, have you done your best work?
- What was the toughest part of your last job?
- How do you define success…and how do you measure up to your own definition?
- Tell me something negative you’ve heard about our company. (A variation on “What do
you know about our company?”) - Why should I hire you from the outside when I could promote someone from within?
- The Illegal Question
- The Unasked Illegal Question
- “The Opinion Question” – What do you think about …Abortion…The President…The
Death Penalty…(or any other controversial subject)? - If you won $10 million in the lottery, would you still work?
- “The Salary Question” – How much money do you want?
- On a scale of one to ten, rate me as an interviewer.
Nu Of Pages
23 Pages
