Remember that many interviews start with a question like: “Tell me about yourself.“ You don’t have to start telling memories about your childhood or insignificant details, but you’ll have to be concise and clear and refer only to those skills that the interviewer would be interested in. Learn to improvise the rest depending on who you’re talking to.
You might be asked to describe problems you’ve faced in the past and how you handled them, or you’ll be given a hypothetical situation and asked what you would do. They’ll basically want to know how you’ll perform when faced with obstacles. Be able to give honest, detailed examples from your past, even if the question is hypothetical (e.g. “I would contact the customer directly, based on my past experience in a different situation in which the customer was very pleased to receive a phone call from the supervisor”). You might find yourself listing facts — if so, remember that in this kind of interview, you need to tell a story.
Some other questions you might be asked are:
- “Describe a time you had to work with someone you didn’t like.”
- “Tell me about a time when you had to stick by a decision you had made, even though it made you very unpopular.”
- “Give us an example of something particularly innovative that you have done that made a difference in the workplace.”
- “How would you handle an employee who’s consistently late?”
