I recently read an article that discussed answering scripted interview questions during a job interview. I had to laugh. My worse interview experience took place when I was seated in front of six other people who were in administrative positions in the company in which I was interviewing and handed a sheet filled with scripted questions.
I knew that these questions had been asked to every other applicant that had walked into the room, and I knew that my answers would be judged according to what the other people had answered. It left me feeling intimidated and very out of sorts, as I had really hoped to be able to talk about certain things that I knew would not be covered during that interview thanks to those scripted questions.
The article I read gave humorous responses to these types of questions. I won’t go through them now, though they were quite hysterical, but I will take some time to tell you why now, ten years later, I believe that some of these questions do have a place in the interview process. (Perhaps it is because I am now a business owner that can imagine what it would be like to interview twenty people for one position and then have to sort and sift through the answers and my memory in order to figure out which of those applicants would make the best person for the job).
First of all, do they really want to know what you believe is your worse trait, and will you really tell them? They probably do, though you probably won’t. If you are habitually late, will you reveal this in a first interview? Hopefully not (and then hopefully you will set your clock back if you do get the job so that you can fix your tardiness problem!) An employer is probably hoping to figure out what you think your weaknesses are and to know that you can list at least one of them, which makes you human. If the next question after the weakness question pertains to what you can do to fix that weakness, chances are he wants to know that if you are hired and you have some issues when it comes to work-whether you are late or you have difficulty figuring out a problem and you lose your temper-you will be able to figure out a way to fix your weakness so that you can adapt, overcome and move forward in the job.
What are your salary requirements? This is an important one. I know, you want to answer it so that you don’t go in too low or you aren’t asking for too much and you lose out on the job because of that reason. However, if I were to hire someone I would have to know what they wanted to make. I ask this question when I hire contract workers for my company because I can’t pay the top wages and I don’t always want to hire the cheapest because this sometimes means that they don’t have the experience I need for them to have in that position. What someone expects to earn often gives a good indication of his or her experience.
Where do you see yourself in ten years? This question is often asked to determine the drive that you have. Do you want to remain in the current position, or will you want to make your way into upper management? While either answer is fine, the person interviewing you might want to know your aspirations to see if you would make a good fit for that business.
Perhaps a management position would be available in several years and you would be the first one considered for it. If you aren’t interested in moving up the corporate ladder, you might not be the person for the job. Or, a job may want someone who wants to remain in the same position for a long period of time, and if you have dreams of running the company while they have dreams of you staying on as a worker bee, you might not be seen as the perfect fit.
Scripted interview questions are not perfect, but they certainly can help determine who might be best for the job. Next time you walk into an interview and you are faced with a list of scripted questions, sit back, relax and smile as you answer.
Really, what else can you do?