common interview questions and answers

I had been interviewing staff for my companies. I include some common interview questions I had been using and include the possible answers.

As an interviewer, I keep on comparing the interviewee against the specific mental image of the ideal worker for the specific position. I had to admit, most of the time, the mental image is not very clear, it is always based on the experiences and prior knowledge that I had had.

These are some of the questions:

1. Tell us about yourself.
It is a very open question and many of the interviewee would be tempted to show the positive points about himself. However, please remember that what we want is to know more about you and to check whether you are the suitable candidate for the post. This mean that you have to  do some research to find out about the company, the job you are applying and the required skills.

As I had mentioned earlier, I want to know the interviewee and try to match him/her to the mental image of the ideal person. Please avoid talking about your unrelated achievements.
2. Tell us about your strength and weakness.
This is a direct question of your own perception of yourself. You may have to justify you answers, as the interviewers may opt to drill deeper into the matter.

About your strength, please be prepared to state and explain a few strength that you think can help the company.You can talk about your character, your education or your experiences. For example, if you are applying for a position of a trainer, you may say ..." I enjoy watching people grow and successful, this is because I feel my work as a trainer has help them. In fact I had set this to be my goal in life, that is why, I pursued the MBA in HR Development. In fact my previous position was as a training manager. It was too bad that my previous company was bought over by the competitor and I had to leave".

Talking about weakness can be a bit difficult. It is natural that most people do not like to talk about weakness. When you talk about your weakness, show the interviewer that you know about it and tell them how you are going to solve the issue

3. Where do you see yourself in five years?.
Be tactful to answer this question. Never tell them that you would like to be the boss of the interviewer, and  at the same time avoid giving them the idea that you are a dead wood.

Getting the correct answers for the common interview questions can be the factor that determine whether you get the job or not.