10 Worst Job Interview Questions Ever

What was the worst job interview question you were ever asked? Good interview questions can help employers judge the technical qualifications, people skills, problem solving approach, and team fit of prospective employees. Bad interview questions do none of those. Instead, they confuse, irk, or offend the applicant (often in combination). Our ten worst job interview questions exhibit one or more of the following characteristics:


No. 10 - What interests you about our company?
“Um, I heard you were recruiting?”

No. 9 - Have you ever brought a lawsuit against an employer?
You can’t ask about this or age, race, health/marital/personal/family issues, and arrests, among other things. You have a choice of responses to this one. You can use the old, boring “I don’t think that’s an appropriate question” line, or you can allow the interviewer to save face with something like “No, but I’m always open to new experiences”.

No. 8 - Can you work under pressure?
Who is going to say no? You could answer “I’ve been tested to 12 ft-lbs per square inch”, or if you can completely change the tenor of the conversation with “If I don’t get this job I’ll lose my house, my wife, and the eight children I’ve been supporting will be doomed to starvation. How’m I doing so far?”

No. 7 - Do you ever abuse alcohol or drugs?
“I didn’t realise I had to choose

No.6 - What is your biggest weakness?
This question got serious consideration for the top spot, but it’s only the second most likely question to pop up in an interview. All the interviewing tactics books tell you to develop a response that actually demonstrates a strength. Don’t dignify an awful question with a thoughtful response. First, startle the interviewer by saying “I have two”, and then continue with “one, I have an aversion to kryptonite but it doesn’t normally affect my work, and two, you really don’t want me to work overtime during a full moon. Seriously.” You’ll be doing the parting handshake in no time.

No.5 - Where do you see yourself in five years?
Depending upon how fast you want to get out of there you can go with: “In mirrors and on YouTube. Unless I’m undead; then only on YouTube.” Or the ever-popular: “Asking you this question as you ‘reinterview for your position’ “ (don’t forget the menacing air quotes). Rubbing your hands together and cackling works nicely, too.

No.4-What would you like to be written on your tombstone?
Tombstone: “Unoccupied at this time.”

No.3 - Where do you see yourself in ten years?
Difficult to predict, the future is always in motion.
Or
Definitely hit the ground running. “Either world peace or world domination, I’d need another 30 minutes to figure out which one” might also work.

No. 2 - "And what starting salary were you looking for?"
Reaching the end of the job interview, the Human Resources person asked a young MBA, “And what starting salary were you looking for?”
The candidate responded confidently, “In the neighborhood of £75000K a year, depending on the benefits package.”
The HR person said, “Well, what would you say to a benefits package of 5 weeks holiday, private health care and a company car leased every two years — say a Porcshe 911?”
The graduate sat up, mouth agape and said, “Wow! Are you kidding?”
And the interviewer responded, “Of course … but you started it!”

No. 1 - Employer to applicant: "In this job we need someone who is responsible."
Applicant: "I’m the one you want. On my last job, every time anything went wrong, they said I was responsible."

Several weeks after a young man had been hired, he was called into the personnel manager’s office.
Bonus - “What is the meaning of this?”
The manager asked. “When you applied for the job, you told us you had 5 years’ experience. Now we discover this is the first job you’ve ever had.”
“Well,” the young man said, “in your ad you said you wanted somebody with imagination.”

SOURCE: Author: Frokem

See previous articles

 

Submit your CV to Allen and York