te on what was important. I expect to do the same thing here. Since I won't be going to school now, I plan on putting in extra time after regular work hours to learn anything this job needs."

- Question 3: What Are Your Major Strengths? -

This is a direct question with a little hidden meaning. These are the skills employers are most concerned about. Here is one answer from a person who had little prior work experience:

"I think one of my strengths is that you can depend on me. I work very hard to meet dead­lines and don't need a lot o f supervision in

Here are the 6 most commonly asked job interview questions I've gathered from my own experience and the ways to answer them:

- Question 1: Why Don't You Tell Me About Yourself? -

The interviewer does not want to know your life history! Instead, he or she wants you to explain how your background relates to doing the job. Following is how one person might respond:

"I grew up in the Southwest and my parents and one sister still live there. I always did well in school, and by the time I graduated from high school, I knew I wanted to work in a business setting. I had taken computer and other business classes and had done well in them. The jobs I've had while going to school have taught me how many small businesses are run. In one of these jobs, I was given complete responsibility for the night operations of a wholesale grocery business that grossed over $2 million a year. I learned there how to supervise others and solve problems under pressure."

This answer gives a brief personal history and then gets right into the job seeker's skills and experiences. A different job would require you to stress different skills. Your per­sonal history is unique, but you can still use the three steps to answer the question for yourself.

- Question 2: Why Should I Hire You? -

This is the most important question of all! If you don't have a good reason why someone should hire you, why will anyone? This question is not often asked so clearly, but it is "the" question behind many other interview questions.

The best answer shows how you can solve a problem for the employer, help the business make more money, or provide something else of value that the company needs. Think about the most valuable thing you can do for an organization. You should probably include that information in your answer. Here is a sample re­sponse from a person with recent training but little work experience:

"I have over two years of training in this field and know about all the latest equipment and methods. That means I can get right to work and be productive almost right away. I am also willing to work hard to learn new things. During the entire time I went to school, I held a full-time job to help earn the tuition and support myself I learned to work hard and concen­trate on what was important. I expect to do the same thing here. Since I won't be going to school now, I plan on putting in extra time after regular work hours to learn anything this job needs."

- Question 3: What Are Your Major Strengths? -

This is a direct question with a little hidden meaning. These are the skills employers are most concerned about. Here is one answer from a person who had little prior work experience:

"I think one of my strengths is that you can depend on me. I work very hard to meet dead­lines and don't need a lot o f supervision in

setting. I had taken computer and other business classes and had done well in them. The jobs I've had while going to school have taught me how many small businesses are run. In one of these jobs, I was given complete responsibility for the night operations of a wholesale grocery business that grossed over $2 million a year. I learned there how to supervise others and solve problems under pressure."

This answer gives a brief personal history and then gets right into the job seeker's skills and experiences. A different job would require you to stress different skills. Your per­sonal history is unique, but you can still use the three steps to answer the question for yourself.

- Question 2: Why Should I Hire You? -

This is the most important question of all! If you don't have a good reason why someone should hire you, why will anyone? This question is not often asked so clearly, but it is "the" question behind many other interview questions.

The best answer shows how you can solve a problem for the employer, help the business make more money, or provide something else of value that the company needs. Think about the most valuable thing you can do for an organization. You should probably include that information in your answer. Here is a sample re­sponse from a person with recent training but little work experience:

"I have over two years of training in this field and know about all the latest equipment and methods. That means I can get right to work and be productive almost right away. I am also willing to work hard to learn new things. During the entire time I went to school, I held a full-time job to help earn the tuition and support myself I learned to work hard and concen­trate on what was important. I expect to do the same thing here. Since I won't be going to school now, I plan on putting in extra time after regular work hours to learn anything this job needs."

- Question 3: What Are Your Major Strengths? -

This is a direct question with a little hidden meaning. These are the skills employers are most concerned about. Here is one answer from a person who had little prior work experience:

"I think one of my strengths is that you can depend on me. I work very hard to meet dead­lines and don't need a lot o f supervision in

Your per­sonal history is unique, but you can still use the three steps to answer the question for yourself.

- Question 2: Why Should I Hire You? -

This is the most important question of all! If you don't have a good reason why someone should hire you, why will anyone? This question is not often asked so clearly, but it is "the" question behind many other interview questions.

The best answer shows how you can solve a problem for the employer, help the business make more money, or provide something else of value that the company needs. Think about the most valuable thing you can do for an organization. You should probably include that information in your answer. Here is a sample re­sponse from a person with recent training but little work experience:

"I have over two years of training in this field and know about all the latest equipment and methods. That means I can get right to work and be productive almost right away. I am also willing to work hard to learn new things. During the entire time I went to school, I held a full-time job to help earn the tuition and support myself I learned to work hard and concen­trate on what was important. I expect to do the same thing here. Since I won't be going to school now, I plan on putting in extra time after regular work hours to learn anything this job needs."

- Question 3: What Are Your Major Strengths? -

This is a direct question with a little hidden meaning. These are the skills employers are most concerned about. Here is one answer from a person who had little prior work experience:

"I think one of my strengths is that you can depend on me. I work very hard to meet dead­lines and don't need a lot o f supervision in

most valuable thing you can do for an organization. You should probably include that information in your answer. Here is a sample re­sponse from a person with recent training but little work experience:

"I have over two years of training in this field and know about all the latest equipment and methods. That means I can get right to work and be productive almost right away. I am also willing to work hard to learn new things. During the entire time I went to school, I held a full-time job to help earn the tuition and support myself I learned to work hard and concen­trate on what was important. I expect to do the same thing here. Since I won't be going to school now, I plan on putting in extra time after regular work hours to learn anything this job needs."

- Question 3: What Are Your Major Strengths? -

This is a direct question with a little hidden meaning. These are the skills employers are most concerned about. Here is one answer from a person who had little prior work experience:

"I think one of my strengths is that you can depend on me. I work very hard to meet dead­lines and don't need a lot o f supervision in

te on what was important. I expect to do the same thing here. Since I won't be going to school now, I plan on putting in extra time after regular work hours to learn anything this job needs."

- Question 3: What Are Your Major Strengths? -

This is a direct question with a little hidden meaning. These are the skills employers are most concerned about. Here is one answer from a person who had little prior work experience:

"I think one of my strengths is that you can depend on me. I work very hard to meet dead­lines and don't need a lot o f supervision in doing so. If I don't know what to do, I don't mind asking. In high school, I got a solid B-plus average even though I was very involved in sports. I always got my assignments in on time and somehow found the time to do extra credit work, too."

- Question 4: What Are Your Major Weaknesses? -

This is a trick question. Most job seekers don't handle this one well. If you discuss what you don't do well, you may not get the job. If you say you have no weaknesses, the inter­viewer won't believe you. Ask yourself what the interviewer really wants to know. He or she wants to know that you are aware of your weaknesses. The interviewer wants to know that you have learned to overcome them so that they don't affect your work. Us­ing the second step of the three-step process would result in a response like this:

"I do have some weaknesses. For example, in previous jobs I would get annoyed with cowork­ers who didn't work as hard as I did. I sometimes said so to them, and several times I refused to do their work when they asked me to."

You have answered the question, but the response should not end there! Using step three of the three-step process would result in a statement like this:

"But I have learned to deal with this better. I still work hard, but now I let the supervisor deal with another worker's problems. I've also gained some skills as a supervisor myself I've learned to motivate others to do more because they want to, not because I want them to."

Did you notice that this weakness isn't such a weakness at all? Many of our strengths be­gan in failure. We learned from them and got better. Your answer to any interview ques­tion should always present your positives.

- Question 5: Why Are You Looking for This Sort of Position and Why Here? -

Employers know that you will do better in a job you really want. Employers want to make sure you know what you want. They also want you to tell them what you like about the job, and what you like about doing the job in their organization. The closer you come to wanting what they have, the better.

The best answer for this is the truth. You should have a clear idea of the type of job you want before the interview. You should also know the sort of organization and the type of people you wa