Seven terrible interview questions and why I hate them: Part 2/2

The exciting second half of my hot takes on lukewarm interview questions. Get caught up on part one HERE.

4. ‘Why do you want this job/why should we hire you?'

Wait, maybe this is the ultimate garbage question. Because we definitely already answered the question in our cover letter, and doesn’t it kind of go without saying that we want the job because it’s either interesting or because we’re qualified? And you should hire us because … we are interested and also qualified … right?

I think you’re unlikely to get this question in most professional settings, because it's just so unsophisticated. Just in case, though, it doesn’t hurt to think about how to respond effectively. A basic response might be a brief restatement of why you’re interested and how you’re qualified - and the handy thing here is that you have already developed those as part of your elevator pitch.

5. ‘Why are manhole covers round?'

So the cover doesn't fall in the hole. Next question.

6. ‘Where do you see yourself in five years?'

This question can be hard in at least three ways; one, we don't always know what we want to be doing in five years. Two, we don't necessarily want to share our actual plans with a given interviewer. Three, we don’t really know why they are asking, so all we can do is to try to cover as many assumptions as possible.

I suppose a best case scenario is when you are applying to a dream job and can authentically say that you hope to be working with that company in five years! In that case the decision is whether you want to present yourself as 'wants to stay in the same position indefinitely' or 'wants to grow within the company'. Either way, of course, we have no way of knowing if they’re looking for someone who wants to stay or someone who wants to grow, so it's pointless to guess.

Realistically, though, how often are we applying to dream jobs? All too often our goal is just to get any dang job, already - and ‘no clue, I just need to pay bills’ would be a truthful but not terribly effective response to the question. The approach I recommend here is to find a balance between authenticity and telling them why you are a good fit for the job you're applying for.

I also think it can be effective to leverage authentic uncertainty in your favor, and to share the broad strokes of your personal goals - or at least a version of your possible personal goals that is in alignment with the role.

Note: It’s absolutely fine to have multiple versions of what you might want and to tailor the version that you share in an interview to the specific role. It’s also fine to not have a super-specific sense of what you want, and I’d be hard-pressed to believe that interviewers really expect you to. They’re human, and they know how life goes.

It is important, though, to present yourself as having a growth mindset, a sense of direction, and a framework for how you make decisions. In other words, show that you have a broad sense of yourself and what you want, without necessarily needing to know what that might be. While keeping the focus on how you would be valuable to the job, you can also give them a glimpse of how this role would be personally valuable to you.

As an example: ‘I’m not sure I know enough about the possibilities of this role to be able to answer specifically, to be honest. I really like that this role focuses on equity and inclusion, I am 100% on board with the goals and objectives of the unit, and I like that the projects would be on a larger scale than I’ve had the chance to work with in the past. I am excited to see how my career might evolve, whether it's growing in this role or whether this role prepares me for something else. I definitely want to work for a university that values my contributions, is committed to inclusivity, and supports my personal and professional growth, however that might look. I can also admit that I would like to buy a home in this area and I have personal connections here as well, so I was really excited that this role was available.’

7. ‘What's your favorite bridge?'

This is definitely an example of a type of terrible interview question, but I picked it because it's also Hank Green's favorite conversation-starting question**. I wanted to hate it but realized about ten seconds later that I actually have a three part answer to this stupid question!

I have a favorite bridge, a favorite series of bridges, and a favorite old brick building in the vicinity of bridges.

I really liked this old bridge leading out of my town in Oregon that was recently torn down in capitulation to the reality that two lanes just wasn't enough for the amount of traffic. I really hope they reused the cool steel girders somehow! My favorite series of bridges is in Portland, Oregon; when I was a kid one of my grandmothers lived in Portland, and to visit her we'd drive across the river, so the view of all the other bridges is really nostalgic and lovely to me. There's an old abandoned brick fire station in the vicinity of the train station in Portland, and since I'm an absolute sucker for an old abandoned brick fire station, I have this whole concept of turning it into a restaurant and bar called Bridgeview Station, with rooftop seating and a tradition that whenever a train goes by and honks its horn, everybody raises their glass in salute.

I pity the fool who might hypothetically ask me this question in an interview. For one thing, I will definitely tell them that it's Hank Green's favorite icebreaker question even though they almost certainly won't know the delights of the Dear Hank and John podcast and absolutely do not care. For another, they probably aren't expecting a three part answer that gives them way too much information about my orientation to bridges but basically zero information about how I would perform in a job.

If you get this, or a similarly ridiculous, question in an actual interview, I offer the following thoughts: they might be hoping to get a sense of your personality, how well you think on your feet, how creative you are, or literally anything else. So, don't worry about what they want to hear, just repeat the question, make a brief remark that’s somewhat related to the subject matter in literally any possible way, and smile composedly, ready for the next question.

For example, a perfectly fine response could be something like 'Favorite bridge? I don't think I have a favorite bridge, but as a child I remember wondering how the heck they built the legs of the bridge into the water. To be honest, I am still not sure how they do that'.

As always, if after reading this (and everything else that’s floating around the internet) you feel 100% confident that you’re ready for anything in your next interview, fantastic! There’s no need for you to schedule a free call with me to explore whether working together would help you achieve your goals!

However, if this article feels like a good start but you’re not getting quite what you need from the internet to achieve full interview confidence, please be in touch - it’s entirely possible that working with me would help get you where you want to be. You're invited to drop me a line at michelle@aequitascoaching.com - or skip the formalities and book a free call!

**For reference: Dear Hank and John episode 391: High Priest of Beef Days.