Most people get nervous when thinking about interviews. The best way to overcome your nerves is to be as prepared as possible for the big day.
We have prepared a list of the 100 most common interview questions for you to consider. If you can respond professionally and swiftly to these top 100 interview questions then you can bat away those fears and attend your interview in confidence.
Related: Top 22 “What If” Interview Questions for Your Job Interview
The Top 100 Job Interview Questions
1. Give me an example of a time you did something wrong. How did you handle it?
2. Tell me about yourself.
3. Tell me one thing about yourself you wouldn’t want me to know.
4. How would you describe your work style?
5. How do you feel about taking no for an answer?
6. Why should we hire you?
7. What attracted you to this company?
8. Who has impacted you most in your career and how?
9. What’s the best movie you’ve seen in the last year?
10. Are you willing to relocate?
11. If you could get rid of any one of the US states, which one would you get rid of and why?
12. What kind of personality do you work best with and why?
13. What do you look for in terms of culture — structured or entrepreneurial?
14. If you were at a business lunch and you ordered a rare steak and they brought it to you well done, what would you do?
15. How many times do a clock’s hands overlap in a day?
16. How long will it take for you to make a significant contribution?
17. Tell me about a time where you had to deal with conflict on the job.
18. What do you do in your spare time?
19. What is your personal mission statement?
20. What kind of goals would you have in mind if you got this job?
21. Who was your favourite manager and why?
22. There’s no right or wrong answer, but if you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would you be?
23. How would you go about establishing your credibility quickly with the team?
24. What do you know about our company?
25. If you were an animal, which one would you want to be?
26. What are you looking for in terms of career development?
27. What’s the most difficult decision you’ve made in the last two years and how did you come to that decision?
28. Give examples of ideas you’ve had or implemented.
29. What kind of car do you drive?
30. When were you most satisfied in your job?
31. Sell me this pencil.
32. What is your greatest fear?
33. What is your favourite memory from childhood?
34. What would be your ideal working environment?
35. Why is there fuzz on a tennis ball?
36. If you could choose one superhero power, what would it be and why?
37. Tell me about your proudest achievement.
38. If you found out your company was doing something against the law, like fraud, what would you do?
39. What are the qualities of a good leader? A bad leader?
40. With your eyes closed, tell me step-by-step how to tie my shoes.
41. What’s the most important thing you learned in school?
42. Can you describe a time when your work was criticised?
43. Was there a person in your career who really made a difference?
44. What three character traits would your friends use to describe you?
45. Have you ever been on a team where someone was not pulling their own weight? How did you handle it?
46. What are your lifelong dreams?
47. Tell me about a time when you had to give someone difficult feedback. How did you handle it?
48. How would you feel about working for someone who knows less than you?
49. What’s the last book you read?
50. What do you ultimately want to become?
51. Do you have any questions for me?
52. What is your biggest regret and why?
53. What were the responsibilities of your last position?
54. How would you weigh a plane without scales?
55. What are three positive things your last boss would say about you?
56. What’s your ideal company?
57. If you were interviewing someone for this position, what traits would you look for?
58. What would you do if you won the lottery?
59. Where would you like to be in your career five years from now?
60. What is your greatest failure, and what did you learn from it?
61. If I were to ask your last supervisor to provide you additional training or exposure, what would she suggest?
62. What do you see yourself doing within the first 30 days of this job?
63. What techniques and tools do you use to keep yourself organised?
64. What was the most difficult period in your life, and how did you deal with it?
65. Who are your heroes?
66. If selected for this position, can you describe your strategy for the first 90 days?
67. What was the last project you headed up, and what was its outcome?
68. What are your salary expectations?
69. Tell me 10 ways to use a pencil other than writing.
70. What do you like to do for fun?
71. What salary are you seeking?
72. Tell me the difference between good and exceptional.
73. How do you think I rate as an interviewer?
74. How do you want to improve yourself in the next year?
75. What magazines do you subscribe to?
76. What assignment was too difficult for you, and how did you resolve the issue?
77. What are three positive character traits you don’t have?
78. What are your strengths?
79. What do you like to do?
80. What irritates you about other people, and how do you deal with it?
81. Give me an example of a time that you felt you went above and beyond the call of duty at work.
82. Why did you choose your major?
83. Why are you leaving your present job?
84. What did you like least about your last job?
85. What are you most proud of?
86. What irritates you about other people, and how do you deal with it?
87. What are your weaknesses?
88. If I were to give you this salary you requested but let you write your job description for the next year, what would it say?
89. What will you miss about your present/last job?
90. Describe how you would handle a situation if you were required to finish multiple tasks by the end of the day, and there was no conceivable way that you could finish them.
91. What do you think of your previous boss?
92. If I were your supervisor and asked you to do something that you disagreed with, what would you do?
93. What negative thing would your last boss say about you?
94. What can you do for us that other candidates can’t?
95. What do you know about this industry?
96. If you had to choose one, would you consider yourself a big-picture person or a detail-oriented person?
97. Do you think a leader should be feared or liked?
98. What is your greatest achievement outside of work?
99. Why do you want this job?
100. List five words that describe your character.
