3 Important Interview Questions That Dig Deeper

When it comes to interviews, we all know the most common questions:

"Why do you want to work here?"

"What are your strengths and weaknesses?"

And then there are the typical scenario questions:

"Describe a situation where you had to deal with a difficult customer or team member."

"Describe a situation where you motivated your team."

While these are all fine, each of us can read those questions and instantly respond with the perfect answer every interviewer would like to hear. Let's break away from this and dig deeper into the minds and personalities of those we interview. The following questions are sure to have the wheels in your potential employees heads turning as they reach inside themselves to answer more honestly, instead of responding with only what you'd like to hear.

"What book would you like everyone here to read?"

Why would a book be relevant to a job interview? This question gets candidates talking about something that’s important to them, while also giving a glimpse into how they think. An interesting non-fiction book response tells the interviewer this potential employee has a thirst for knowledge and finds reading to be a useful tool to share with others. Don’t discount candidates whose favorite books are novels, however, as this can show imagination and depth.

"Are you weird? Why or why not?"

This is a more fun interview question, but it will instantly show your candidate's true personality. When asked this question, you may notice your future employee crack a smile, or even laugh a little. This is a surprisingly important reaction to this question, because it shows that they're in touch with their true personality and are able to be authentically themselves even in a professional setting.

"If you could change one thing you did in the past, what would it be?"

Time to dig deep into your interviewee's hindsight. This question is important and tests your candidate's ability to apply past wrongdoings to their future actions. What we're looking for with this question is an in-depth answer that tells us the interviewee has the ability to be objective about themselves and their mistakes. If someone claims to have never messed up, they may not have much self awareness or humility.