5 Interview Questions Designed To Trip You Up

No matter how well you prepare for an interview, there are some questions that are challenging. They might catch you completely off-guard because they just seem too random or they might actually be designed to trip you up. Here are 5 interview questions that are usually used to trick you, so during your interview prepping make sure you are prepared for how you can answer these in the right way.

Something like “How’s the Weather?”
This question will catch many candidates off guard and it´s a trick question because the majority of candidates thinks their answer doesn´t matter since it has nothing to do with the position. For example, if you complain a lot about the weather and how much you hate this city´s climate, you will give the impression that you are very negative or pessimistic. Or, if you try to skip over this question by simply replying “It´s ok” you might come off as arrogant or insecure. Therefore, the challenge for you will be to answer such random questions in the same professional matter as you would answer a work-related question.
Why do you want to leave your current job?
Here the interviewer is looking for any negative patterns and this will especially be interesting for them if you have had several short-term positions at different companies. The goal for them is to find any red flags, such as that you are getting bored quickly in a job or that you are having issues working with others leading to getting fired. So, with this question, it is all about how you phrase it. Hiring managers and recruiters are most likely hoping for no red flags but that you are excited at the growth opportunity at their specific company. You will have to treat this question sensibly because if you leave your reply very vague it will most likely raise more questions.
If you could work for any company, where would you work?
Hiring managers and recruiters want to check how badly you want to work for them and what your level of loyalty will be like. Although this company might not be your dream company per se, stay focused on the interview at hand because the interviewer wants to hear they are your first choice. Therefore, try to not get yourself caught up in long discussions and show that you have done your research by indicating why this company is your employer of choice.

Have you ever thought about starting your own business?
This question is two-fold, on the one hand, the interviewer wants to know whether you have an entrepreneurial mindset, whether you can think out of the box and whether you are innovative, which could all be qualities they might be looking for. However, on the other hand, they want to know whether you are likely to abandon the place in the near future to start your own company. And of course, no employer wants to feel like they are wasting their valuable time and money on someone that will leave soon to become an entrepreneur. Even if you are thinking about starting your own business in the future, don´t get tempted to talk about this because for many recruiters this will be a red flag. You might want to tell them that you did once consider entrepreneurship or that you have tried it out but that it´s not for you.

How did you get along with your previous manager?

With this question, the interviewer wants to check how you speak about your previous boss. If you only talk negative about him or her and don’t attribute anything to yourself, this will definitely not leave a good impression.

What are some other questions you have heard in interviews that are designed to trip you up? How did you deal with these questions? We would love to read about in the comments section!

 

 

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