| In an economic recession like we find ourselves today, | | | | made a mistake and learned from it. Sometimes, the |
| finding a job is more important than ever. Unfortunately, | | | | best experience comes from things going wrong. Be |
| more people are looking for those same jobs. | | | | truthful and focus on what you learned and not what |
| Therefore, it is important to be thoroughly prepared | | | | went wrong. |
| when interviewing. Sometimes the difference between | | | | Don't - Do not pass the buck. Blaming others will only |
| landing the dream job and walking away empty | | | | make you sound irresponsible. Additionally, do not list |
| handed is not stumbling on the hard to answer | | | | more than two projects unless specifically asked. |
| questions. | | | | Have you worked with a difficult manager/team? |
| Here are three tricky questions you need to nail. | | | | The interviewer is trying to access your ability to work |
| What did you like least about your last job? | | | | with others. It is important to give an honest yet |
| The interviewer is hoping to determine if this is the right | | | | somewhat limited answer. |
| job for you. Ideally, you know enough about the job | | | | Do - While you do not want to come right out and say, |
| details to not say anything derogatory about the | | | | "My last boss was a tyrant," you also don't want to |
| position you are applying. | | | | pretend you got along with everyone. What you want |
| Do - What you want to do is list one or two things you | | | | to say is, "If you mean difficult by ___ then yes." Fill in |
| didn't like about your last job that you won't find at this | | | | the blank with a general difficult trait. You may say |
| job. Be concise and honest. Everyone has things they | | | | something like, I had a boss or client that continuously |
| do not like about their job, so pick one thing that won't | | | | changed products midstream or something to that |
| apply to your new job. | | | | effect. Then, tell the interviewer how you overcame |
| Don't - Whatever you do, do not list a more than three | | | | the difficult situation. |
| things. This will make you sound disgruntled and | | | | Don't - What you don't want to do is describe a |
| unfriendly. | | | | personal trait. Steer clear of my boss blamed me for |
| What project went wrong on your last job and how | | | | his mistakes, my co-workers were lazy, and how your |
| would you have changed things? | | | | boss demanded overtime. |
| While you may feel uncomfortable admitting a failure, | | | | Take your interview seriously. Prepare for it and you |
| interviewers know that failure is part of the job. They | | | | will do fine. Remember, the more you practice the |
| are looking for your ability to admit a mistake and your | | | | "tough" questions, the more natural you sound. The |
| ability to learn from them. | | | | interview is not the time to come up with answers to |
| Do - The best answer is a truthful recall of a time you | | | | tricky questions. |