QUESTION #10 - Describe your ideal company, location and job.

TRAPS:  This is often asked by an experienced interviewer who thinks you may be overqualified, but knows better than to show his hand by posing his objection directly.  So he'll use this question instead, which often gets a candidate to reveal that, indeed, he or she is looking for something other than the position at hand.

BEST ANSWER:  The only right answer is to describe what this company is offering, being sure to make your answer believable with specific reasons, stated with sincerity, why each quality represented by this you're coming from a company that's the leader in its field or from a glamorous or much admired company, industry, city or position, your interviewer and his company may well have an "Avis" complex.  That is, they may feel a bit defensive about being "second best" to the place you're coming from, worried that you may consider them bush league.

This anxiety could well be there even though you've done nothing to inspire it.  You must go out of your way to assuage such anxiety, even if it's not expressed, by putting their virtues high on the list of exactly what you're looking for, providing credible reasons for wanting these qualities. If you do not express genuine enthusiasm for the firm, its culture, location, industry, etc., you may fail to answer this "Avis" complex objection and, as a result, leave the interviewer suspecting that a hot shot like you, coming from a Fortune 500 company in New York, just wouldn't be happy at an unknown  manufacturer based in Topeka, Kansas.

QUESTION #9 - Where do you see yourself five years from now?

TRAPS: One-reason interviewers ask this question is to see if you're settling for this position, using it merely as a stopover until something better comes along.  Or they could be trying to gauge your level of ambition.

If you're too specific, i.e., naming the promotions you someday hope to win, you'll sound presumptuous.  If you're too vague, you'll seem rudderless.

BEST ANSWER: Reassure your interviewer that you're looking to make a long-term commitment...that this position entails exactly what you're looking to do and what, you do extremely well.  As for your future, you believe that if you perform each job at hand with excellence, future opportunities will take care of themselves.

Example: "I am definitely interested in making a long-term commitment to my next position.  Judging by what you've told me about this position, it's exactly what I'm looking for and what I am very well qualified to do.  In terms of my future career path, I'm confident that if I do my work with excellence, opportunities will inevitably open up for me. It's always been that way in my career, and I'm confident I'll have similar opportunities here."

QUESTION #8 - Aren't you overqualified for this position?

TRAPS: The employer may be concerned that you'll grow dissatisfied and leave.

BEST ANSWER: As with any objection, don't view this as a sign of imminent defeat.  It's an invitation to teach the interviewer a new way to think about this situation, seeing advantages instead of drawbacks.

Example: "I recognize the job market for what it is -- a marketplace.  Like any marketplace, it's subject to the laws of supply and demand.  So 'overqualified' can be a relative term, depending on how tight the job market is.   And right now, it's very tight.  I understand and accept that.

"I also believe that there could be very positive benefits for both of us in this match.

"Because of my unusually strong experience in (               ) I could start to contribute right away, perhaps much faster than someone who'd have to be brought along more slowly.”

"There's also the value of all the training and years of experience that other companies have invested tens of thousands of dollars to give me.  You'd be getting all the value of that without having to pay an extra dime for it.   With someone who has yet to acquire that experience, he'd have to gain it on your nickel.”

"I could also help you in many things they don't teach at the Harvard Business School. For example ... (how to hire, train, motivate, etc.) When it comes to knowing how to work well with people and getting the most out of them, there's just no substitute for what you learn over many years of front line experience.  Your company would gain all this, too.”

"Most important, I'm looking to make a long-term commitment in my career now.  I've had enough of job hunting and want a permanent spot at this point in my career.  I also know that if I perform this job with excellence, other opportunities cannot help but open up for me right here.  In time, I'll find many other ways to help this company and in so doing, help myself.  I really am looking to make a long-term commitment."

NOTE: The main concern behind the "overqualified" question is that you will leave your new employer as soon as something better comes your way.  Anything you can say to demonstrate the sincerity of your commitment to the employer and reassure him that you're looking to stay for the long-term will help you overcome this objection.

QUESTION #7- Why should I hire you?

 

TRAPS: Believe it or not, this is a killer question because so many candidates are unprepared for it.  If you stammer or ad lib, you've blown it.

BEST ANSWER: By now you can see how critical it is to apply the overall strategy of uncovering the employer's needs before you answer questions.  Knowing the employer's greatest needs and desires will give you a big leg up over other candidates because you will give him better reasons for hiring you than anyone else. Whether your interviewer asks you this question explicitly or not, this is the most important question of your interview because he must answer this question favorably in his own mind before you will be hired.  So help him out!  Walk through each of the position's requirements as you understand them, and follow each with a reason why you meet that requirement so well.

Example: "As I understand your needs, you are first and foremost looking for someone who can manage the sales and marketing of your book publishing division.  As you've said, you need someone with a strong background in trade book sales.  This is where I've spent almost my entire career, so I've chalked up 18 years experience exactly in this area.  I believe that I know the right contacts; methods, principles, and successful management techniques as well as any person can in our industry.

"You also need someone who can expand your book distribution channels.  In my prior post, my innovative promotional ideas doubled, and then tripled, the number of outlets selling our books.  I'm confident I can do the same for you.

"You need someone to give a new shot in the arm to your mail order sales, someone who knows how to sell in space and direct mail media.  Here, too, I believe I have exactly the experience you need.  In the last five years, I've increased our mail order book sales from $600,000 to $2,800,000, and now we're the country's second leading marketer of scientific and medical books by mail."

Every one of these selling "couplets" (his need matched by your qualifications) is a touchdown that runs up your score.  It is your best opportunity to outsell your competition.