5 Lame but Common Interview Responses

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Having been a manager at a major company and having hired roughly 80 people over the time I was there, I'd say the author of the article is spot on. I wasn't interested in people's egos and how wonderful they thought they were-I wanted to know if the actually KNEW anything. Saying "I'm a perfectionist" makes you sound rigid, uptight, and completely unreasonable-expecting perfection from your coworkers is even more unreasonable. I got sick of interviewing people who knew nothing about the company or the position they wanted, and were so spectacularly uninvolved that they had no questions at all for me at the end. Overconfidence and/or a sense of superiority or entitlement generally come off as obnoxious, and would ned up being a subject of derision in the end.
But hey, what do I know, I was just the hiring manager.

MsG of CA 6:34PM April 28, 2010

Confidence and ego are not the same thing. Idiot.

Kristin of CA 6:33PM April 28, 2010

Personally, when going for an interview I try to have already researched the company as much as possible and the interviewer typically answers any remaining questions specific to the job itself without me even asking so no, I don't normally have any questions to ask at the end of the interview.
Also, I *AM* a perfectionist at work and expect it of my coworkers. You're basically saying I should lie in order to not sound like I'm lying? Here I thought I've been having problems finding a job because of the lousy job market when I just needed to lie at my interviews.

GB of GA 6:03PM April 28, 2010

I think the point is that the hiring manager hears these answers all the time and can tell when they are not genuine. If you can follow up "I am the best person for the job" with "because.." then outline actual accomplishments, then that is ok. If you are just saying I am the best and leaving it at that, then it comes across as fake and unprepared.

Chris of IL 5:57PM April 28, 2010

this article is dumb as sh*t..seriously, who's NOT gonna say, hey Im the best person for the job? no sh*t your gonna say that...what the hell are they supposed to say...well, no actually, im not the best person for the job, but I know how to try...like thats freakin lame if you ask me...CONFIDENCE and EGO are a BIG PLUS in getting hired!!!!!!!!! IDIOT

Jenny of WV 5:26PM April 28, 2010

My greatest weakness is that when someone asks me that question, I tell them that my greatest weakness is that when I'm asked what my greatest weakness is I repond that that's a horrible question. You want my greatest weakness? How about alcholism? Great enough for you? Or major depression? Or I beat my wife? Or I cheat on my taxes?* Here's a better question: what are you working on now to make yourself a better _____ (person, accountant, coworker, professional, baker, etc.)?
*None of these apply, thank you; for illustrative purposes only.

Doc of VA 5:16PM April 28, 2010

I think interviewers should stop asking "What do you have that other candidates dont", as it only leads to "I'm the best qualified person for the job." Interviewees are not provided with the resumes of their competition, so the initial response for most is "I'm the best qualified person for the job.", which may or may not be true, but what kind of answer do you really expect to get?
Also have to agree with the Greatest Weakness question, as answering it honestly cant affect you as negatively as answering it positively. Would you hire the person that says "My greatest weakness is that I tend to be disorganized from time to time"?

Andre E of CA 3:46PM April 28, 2010

Constance: I disagree that your second question is much more useful. They are essentially the same question and should elicit the same response. Framed your way, however, it spoon feeds the interviewee. Managers generally aren't interested in people that they need to babysit on the job.
The bottom line is, any professional interviewee should be prepared for this question (and about 150 others). If your answer to it is "I'm a perfectionist" or "I'm too meticulous" then I know you didn't put any thought into your response (i.e. You're not prepared). Turning a negative into a positive is not the same thing as taking a "strength" and pretending it's a "weakness" by putting "too" in front of it. That's a lazy response and easily identified as BS.
"I once had the habit of being to deep in the details of a project to realize that the project as a whole could be falling apart." (from C'7 of NJ) This is a much better response but would be even better if you included your reaction to the situation: "so I took a class on thinking strategically and it really helped my ability to step back and look at the entire project regularly." This sort of response tells me 1) C'7 thought about this; 2) is capable of identifying problems and; 3) is willing to take action.
Maybe some managers have time to play games in interviews but most don't. Questions aren't asked to "eliminate" candidates but to identify the right candidate for the job. That's a very hard decision to make based on a sheet of paper and 2 hours or so of conversation.

Ed of MO 2:05PM April 28, 2010

Surprisingly so, I have been asked this question at nearly every interview I've been to. Yes, it's so old and overused that it shows a lack of genuineness on behalf of the interviewer. In my experience, I usually give an answer that pin-points an area of growth that may or may not be gained through the company. My real greatest weakness is I procrastinate way too much in my personal life. However, on the job, I do everything right away. Therefore, I have never given this answer, because I do things differently on the job in contrast to my personal life. I would suggest that people go in to the interview knowing about the position they are applying for, as well as the company. If this question is asked, then give an answer that doesn't even apply to the company or the position you are applying for. If you decide to go the second route and give an answer that could be overcome by working for the company, make sure you expand on how you are improving this greatest weakness so far. This shows that you have an initiative to "be all you can be."

Danielle of NC 1:53PM April 28, 2010

Constance,
Thank you for providing the perfect beginning to answering the question "What is your greatest weakness?"! I agree that the question should not be asked, but when it is, I hope that my answer is above and beyond the level of the question. My answer would begin with: "An area I need to improve on is (fill in the blank), and these are the steps I have taken (fill in the blank).

Carole of NC 12:51PM April 28, 2010