42 Most Common Job Interview Questions (and How to Prepare for Them)

Most Common Interview Questions (and How to Prepare for Them)

42 of the Most Common Job Interview Questions (and How to Prepare for Them)

So – you’ve done the hard work of applying for a job and securing an interview. The good news is: the worst part is over! You’ve made your way out of a stack of resumes, and now you have the chance to show you’re fit for the job, your expertise, and your flowing personality through an interview.

Questions are an integral part of every job interview. Your interviewer’s job is to figure out if you’re the right fit for the role, the company, and their long-term goals. Your job is to do your homework to be as prepared as possible, so when the time comes for you to conduct the interview, you are at-ease, confident, and ready.

To help you feel prepared for your job interview, here is a list of some of the most common interview questions, including hints on how to answer them. We’ve included templated answers for the top four questions below, but you can download the full list here.

1. “Tell me a little about yourself”

Inevitably, every job interview or introductory conversation will start with a question or ask something similar to this. Job interviews are inherently a bit awkward to get started, so this opening statement is a nice way for the interview to open up and get you to start talking about yourself right off the bat.

It’s not that they don’t already know this information – at this point, your interviewer has likely reviewed your resume, your cover letter (if you sent one), your LinkedIn profile, and even a few more resources – but they want to hear it from you.

It’s important how you answer this common interview question because the facts and stories you choose to include in this opening answer are going to signify to your interview what your “big defining moments are” – your proudest achievements, your values, and you self-defining qualities. So, it is important that you answer it well (and concisely!)

How to Answer “Tell me about yourself.”:

Here’s a template for the right way to answer this question. In more or less the order listed below, answer these-mini questions:

What’s your name?
Where are you from?
Where did you go to school?
What do you currently do for work now? Or, what have you been up to, professionally, for the last 6 months?
What’s a 30 second overview of your work history? What’s a common theme of your work history?
How did you find out about this job/company, and why are you interested in it? What brought you here today?

All in all, this answer should take about 1 to 1.5 minutes. That’s it. Think of it as your personal “interview elevator pitch.”

ACTION ITEM: Take 15 minutes now to jot down answers to each of these bullets. Practice reading through them, and as you say each statement out-loud, pay attention to what feels authentic to you. Don’t say things that don’t feel honest, just because you think it might be what your interviewer wants to hear.

2. “What are your goals for the next five years?”

The reason that interviewers ask this question is because they want to hear that you have ambition. They want to ensure you have goals that you are working towards in life (as well as in your career). Your answer – what you say- is important, but even more important is that you are able to answer, and repeat back some important goals.

Interviewers know that people who have goals, and are able to share these goals, are self-motivated, driven, big-picture people. In fact, numerous studies have shown that less than 3% of Americans have written goals, and less than 1% review and rewrite their goals on a daily basis. So if you are able to quickly recite back some of your top goals with your interviewer, you are instantly putting yourself in the top 3% of all people! That’s why this question is so important.

How to Answer “What are your goals for the next five years?”:

The best way to be prepared to answer this question isn’t a shortcut – it’s to actually have set goals for yourself, and be working toward them, every day! Ideally you should have at least 3 goals that you are working towards. A great rule of thumb is to have a: health goal, a family/relationship goal, and a career/income-based goals.

ACTION ITEM: If you need some help determining your goals, download our free 9-page Goal Planner and get started on setting (and achieving) meaningful goals today.

3. What are your strengths? What are your weaknesses?

Another one of the top job interview questions is the classic, “What are your strengths/weaknesses?” combo. Rarely will you ever be asked one of these without the other – if your interviewers ask you, “What are your strengths?” just know that, “What are your weaknesses?” is likely coming up next.

These questions are useful to interviewers because they help them understand what YOU consider to be your strengths and weaknesses. Again, they can see some of this information by looking at your resume, and likely already have an idea of how qualified you are for the position in question, but hearing answers from you will either confirm or deny their suspicions.

How to Answer “What are your strengths/weaknesses?”:

A great way to be 100% prepared to answer “What are your strengths?” is to come up with 2-3 Hero Stories, which are short, 1-2 minute anecdotes that provides a real-life example of how you solved a problem, ideated a solution, “saved the day” – and ultimately demonstrated a particular strength.

Another great strategy is to tailor your answers to these questions, specifically your “weaknesses” to the job you are interviewing for. For example, if you’re applying for a marketing job, and don’t have as much experience with a specific channel as you think the position might require – address that! There’s no harm in stating a weakness as it relates to the job itself – just make sure you also present counteracting evidence that shows how strong you are in other areas, and also list any experience you do have with said “weakness,” and how you plan to improve it.

The key in general to answering “What are your weaknesses?” is not just listing your weaknesses, but presenting how you’ve been working to overcome those weaknesses – how you are proactively making yourself a better, stronger person.

Want to get insider access to more of the most common job interview questions? Download our Ultimate List of Interview Questions here – and get a head start on 46 of the most common interview questions (taken from actual job interviews). Plus, when you download this list, you’ll also get access to 4 of the best interview questions that YOU can ask in your interview.