Behavioral job interview

A behavioral interview is intended to evaluate your future performance based on past performance in a similar situation, then, it is not based in the traditional what would you do, but in what you did. The candidates who prepare for behavioral interviews are better prepared, even for traditional interviews.

When asked simple yes or no questions, a job candidate can easily tell an interviewer what he or she wants to hear, then in a behavioral interview you can expect questions like “Tell me about a time when…” or “Give me an example of when…”. This will help to match the predetermined skills the organization require for a particular position.

To be prepared for this kind of interview, you must think about the necessary skills to do the job you are applying to, then for each, think about a real life example, detailing how you handled a situation involving that skill. If you are interviewing for your first job, you can select an experience that occurred during a time you worked on a group project, or participated in a team sport. Be aware that the interviewer may want to confirm that what you are saying actually happened, asking you, for example, time spent and results.

Examples of behavioral questions:

• Describe the most creative work related project you have completed.

• Tell me about a time when you had to use your presentation skills to influence someone’s opinion.
• Tell me about a recent situation when you showed initiative and took the lead.
• Please tell me about a time you had to fire someone.
• Tell me about a situation in which you had to deal with a very upset co-worker.

Try to be specific, and don’t describe how you would behave. Remember, you must give real life examples.

behavioral interview questions, behavioral interviewing.