10 Common Job Interview Questions and How To Answer Them.

When you get that one call inviting you for an interview, you definitely want to be prepared for it. Would it not be great to know what your interviewer is going to ask? We are going to discuss and elaborate on the ten most common interview questions and how to answer them.

1.    Tell me about yourself?
The interviewer will ask this question as an ice breaker so as to allow you to calm and flow in the interview. For this you are expected to show how confident, enthusiastic, organized and easy it is for you to communicate about yourself.
Highlight information about you that is relevant ,aspects of your career history that are relevant for the job you are applying for and what about your character makes you a good fit for the job.

2.    What is your biggest strength?
Make a list of what you think you are good at and then think of reasons why you consider them your strengths and back it up with examples of how you have used them before in your previous positions. When asked this question then get the best strength and elaborate on how it can relevant for the role you are applying for.

3.    Tell me what do you consider to be your weakness?
Here you are not expected to show how poor you are at doing certain things but to show your self-awareness .Rather than giving the interviewer reasons not to hire you, think about weaknesses that will not affect your ability to do your job and what you are doing to improve on them.

4.    What do you know about our company?
Here the interviewer wants to see if you have done prior research about the company. This is an opportunity for you to impress your interviewer by letting them see that you are interested in the job and the company. Do your research by visiting the company website, linkedin profile and search on mentions in the news media about them. Make sure you know what they do, who their clients are, their mission and vision and summarize that in your answer.

5.    Why do you want to leave your current job?
If you are unemployed state your reason for leaving a previous employer in a positive context. If you are employed focus on what you want in your next job.

6.    Why should we hire you?
The interviewer wants to see how serious you are about the job you are applying for. To answer this question you need to talk about your experiences, skills and abilities and how they will be useful for this role. Match your skills set from previous roles and show your enthusiasm to succeed in the role.

7.    Where do you see yourself in five years time?
The interviewer wants to understand more about your career goals and how this position would fit into your career plan. They care about your career goals because they want to hire someone who is motivated, proactive, and likely to stick around and work hard if hired.
An example answer for this would be;
“My goal right now is to find a position at a company where I can grow and take on new challenges over time. Ultimately, I’d like to assume more management responsibilities and get involved in product strategy. But most importantly, I want to work for an organization where I can build a career.”(Source-google)

8.    What are your salary expectations?
It is to your advantage if the interviewer tells you the salary range. However, not all will be willing to give out that information therefore do your research on the salary range for people doing the same job as you so that you are well equipped for this questions. Use tools like Salary data to compare on salary ranges in Kenya. However, also let the interviewer know that you are open to negotiation on this.

9.    What do you consider to be your greatest achievement?
The interviewer is questioning your ambition and attitude towards achievements; not only are they looking to understand the achievement but also how you got to it. Make sure the answer you give is relevant and warrants the interviewer knowing about it. State why you think something is an achievement and how you got to do it.

10.    Do you have any questions for us?
It will be bad show if at the end of the interview you have no questions to ask; therefore list down questions you think will be relevant for the role you are applying for and consider which to ask if given an opportunity. Avoid questions that touch on the perks that come with the job as this will show the interviewer you are more motivated by the benefits of the job hence leading to you losing the job.

Bottom line: dress smart, be early and come confident to answer all the questions asked.