Boost Your Interview IQ

BOOST YOUR INTERVIEW IQ......Page 4
Contents......Page 8
Acknowledgments......Page 9
Foreword......Page 10
A Breakthrough System forShowing That You Are theBest Person for the Job......Page 12
Selling Yourselfas a Product......Page 13
How to Improve Your Interviewing Skills, Particularly with Behavioral Questions
......Page 14
Behavioral Question......Page 15
Exercise: A Sample TextQuestion......Page 16
The Interview IQ Test......Page 18
PART 1
The Interview IQ Test......Page 20
IQ Test Instructions......Page 21
General Interview Questions
......Page 22
1. “Let’s begin with you telling me about yourself.”......Page 24
2. “Why did you leave (or why are you planning to leave) your lastposition?”......Page 26
3. “Why do you want to work here?”......Page 28
4. “What are your goals?”......Page 30
5. “What are your strengths?”......Page 32
6. “What is your greatest weakness?”......Page 34
7. “When have you been most motivated?”......Page 36
8. “How would you describe your personality?”......Page 38
9. “Have you ever been fired?”......Page 40
10. “Why has it taken you so long to find a job?”......Page 42
11. “What experience do you have that qualifies you for this position?”......Page 44
12. “How would your current or last boss describe your job performance?”......Page 46
13. “What do you know about this company?”......Page 48
14. “What do you think are the key qualities for a support person?”......Page 50
15. “Describe your leadership or management style.”......Page 52
16. “In what ways has your current or last job prepared you to take onmore responsibility?”......Page 54
17. “What do you value most in a teammate?”......Page 56
18. “What are the most important things for you in any job/company?”......Page 58
19. “How do you stay current and informed about industry trends andtechnology?”......Page 60
20. “Do you believe you’re overqualified for this position?”......Page 62
21. “If I asked your coworkers to say three positive things about you,what would they say?”......Page 64
22. “Why should we hire you?”......Page 66
23. “If I remember only one thing about you, what should that be?”......Page 68
24. “What are your salary expectations?”......Page 70
25. “Do you have any questions?”......Page 72
Behavioral Interview Questions
......Page 74
26. “Tell me about the biggest project you’ve worked on from start tofinish.”......Page 76
27. “Tell me about a time when you had to overcome obstacles to getyour job done.”......Page 78
28. “Tell me about a time when you had to handle a stressful situation.”......Page 80
29. “Your résumé states that you’re a ‘hard worker.’ Can you give me anexample of a time when you worked hard?”......Page 82
30. “Tell me about a time when you had a disagreement or confrontationwith a boss or coworker.”......Page 84
31. “What was the most difficult problem you’ve handled? How did youdeal with it?”......Page 86
32. “Tell me about a time when you had to adapt quickly to a change.”......Page 88
33. “Can you give me an example of working in a fast-paced environment?”......Page 90
34. “Have you been able to sell your boss on a new idea? How did youdo it?”......Page 92
35. “When was the last time you changed your personal style to adaptto someone ? Describe the situation.”......Page 94
36. “Give me an example of a time when you did more than the jobrequired.”......Page 96
37. “Give me an example of a time when you had to sacrifice quality tomeet a deadline.”......Page 98
38. “What has been the most difficult training course or class you’veever taken?”......Page 100
39. “Give me an example of a marketing strategy you’ve used.”......Page 102
40. “Tell me about a time when you helped in the development of acoworker or subordinate.”......Page 104
41. “Tell me about a time when you coordinated a project or event.”......Page 106
42. “Describe a time when you had to make an unpopular decision.”......Page 108
43. “Tell me about the most creative project you’ve worked on.”......Page 110
44. “You say you have good customer service skills. Tell me about atime when you used good customer service skills in your job.”......Page 112
45. “Tell me about a time when your communication skills made a difference.”......Page 114
46. “Describe the assignment that required you to take care of thegreatest number of details.”......Page 116
47. “Give me an example of taking care of business day to day but alsothinking long-range.”......Page 118
48. “Give me a specific example of a time when you took the initiative.”......Page 120
49. “Tell me about a time when you were driven to achieve and succeed.”......Page 122
50. “Tell me about the most difficult sale you had to make. What didyou do to get the sale?”......Page 124
What’s Your Interview IQ?:Scorecard......Page 126
Rate Yourself: PointEvaluation......Page 129
PART 2
The Surefire Way to Boost Your Score......Page 130
What Is BehavioralInterviewing?......Page 132
A Brief History of BehavioralInterviewing......Page 133
Using Behavioral Answers......Page 134
Your Ability to Show ThatYou Can Do It Again......Page 135
Listening to the QuestionWill Give You the Clue......Page 136
Stories Demonstrating YourSkills......Page 138
The Elements of Your Story......Page 139
Exercise: Putting Your BestStories Forward......Page 142
You Are the Interviewer......Page 144
Stories to Fit the KeyFactors of the Job......Page 152
Using Acronyms as a Guide......Page 155
The Proportions of a Story......Page 157
Examples of StoryProportions......Page 159
Exercise: Identifying Skills......Page 160
Exercise: Your Stories......Page 162
What Not to Say......Page 164
Preparation......Page 166
Practice, Practice, Practice......Page 167
Feeling Prepared =Improved Confidence =Successful Interviews = JobOffers......Page 169
Index......Page 172
About the Author......Page 176