We have all heard or read the stories about crazy or nerve-wracking interview questions. I have asked a few of those questions myself. In the past, I would say to job candidates, "If you were a Snickers bar, what part of the bar would you be, and why?" Some of these questions have a point. Others are just a way to make the experience a bit more interesting. Should you spend time preparing for interview questions? Yes. Should you be anxious about these odd questions, to the point where you get stressed out? No.
Why do they ask them?
There are several reasons why organizations choose to ask these sorts of questions. Job interviews can be incredibly boring, and sometimes interviewers will ask strange questions because they want to spice up the conversation. Some interviewers ask strange questions because they want to see if the person has a sense of humor, or if they can adapt to an unusual query. The answer is not always as important as how people respond. In some situations, the person might have a particular reason for asking a strange question, but that may be difficult for the applicant to discern.
Solid preparation
While a job seeker can't anticipate every oddball question, they can certainly prepare. When you go for an interview, there is standard research that should be done. The organization should be examined, including culture, products, services and history. This should be done both on the Internet and through anecdotal perspectives. In addition, job seekers should go over lists of standard interviews questions and think about their responses so that if they are asked, they have at least thought through their content and in some cases actually rehearsed their responses. It can also help to review certain types of technical information about the field so that the applicant can demonstrate their knowledge if asked.
Some things to keep in mind
Ultimately, you cannot prepare for every single question. If an interviewer throws you a "curve ball," you are either going to have the quick wit to answer, or you won't. One thing to consider is the organization that asks these types of questions. If the interviewer's goal is to trap you and play mind games with you, do you really want to work for that type of organization? In a tough economy, professionals may not have a lot of choices and may be forced to take jobs with undesirable entities. However, rather than stressing over certain questions, remember that the interviewer will either like you or they won't. Your overall personality, skills, experience and education will determine whether you get a particular job. At least, it should.
Perhaps you should think about which part of the Snickers bar you would be.
*Note: This was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Do you have a careers story that you'd like to share? Sign up with the Yahoo! Contributor Network to start publishing your own finance articles.
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