The Dumbest Interview Question

http://lbrandy.com/blog/2008/12/the-dumbest-interview-question/

by spydez • 18 years ago

36 47 18 years ago

andreyf2• 18 years ago

You see, this stupid question is designed to be rightly answered by someone who has carefully crafted an answer that turn some apparent weakness into a perceived strength.

Wrong. That's precisely the kind of answer it's meant to weed out. The question is supposed to show your ability for reflection on your faults (because everybody has them), and let you explain how you are going about working on them.

If you take it seriously, you can get quite deep and philosophical with that question, demonstrating your ability to express yourself, and discussing the relative merits of someone looking to fill the position.

Granted, the phrasing is very cliche, so it might be better to ask something along the lines "in the near future, how would you like to have improved yourself?".

thisisnotmyname• 18 years ago

I totally agree - and in fact I think this is one of the best interview questions. In my experience, the people who identify and actively work on their weaknesses are the most likely to succeed.

That said, I might rephrase the question to be something like "What new things would you like to learn, and how are you going about learning them?"

cchooper2• 18 years ago

I identify my weaknessess and actively work on them, but I would never answer this question honestly, because I can't assume that the questioner is someone as enlightened as you.

brk• 18 years ago

The problem is that the "weakness" question has become so predictably overused and coached that everyone has a "weakness as a strength" answer readily prepared.

I've found that textbook interview questions don't do anything other than badge the interviewer as unimaginative and 1 dimensional.

IME, the best interviews are conversations and not interviews at all.

swilliams• 18 years ago

I've asked something like this while giving an interview before: "What's your greatest weakness? And don't do the thing where you turn it around to a strength."

That just really seemed to confuse people. They weren't very good candidates though.

jcl2• 18 years ago

Interesting strategy... It's something like asking "What's the number one reason I shouldn't hire you?"

I can't see a benefit to asking it, as it would only favor dishonest applicants while irritating others, but it would be interesting to hear the answers.

copenja• 18 years ago

Weeding people out based on whether they give a "correct" answer to this question seems kinda ridiculous.

With the exception of someone admitting to a horrendous fault (anger problem), I don't see how this answer could dictate a hire or no hire.

If your interviewing someone with great credentials, great references, and then they answer this question with "sometimes I work too hard"... your not going to hire him?

What this question does is force the candidate to make a snap decision: Is this particular interviewer hoping I express an honest weakness or is he seeing if a can turn a weakness into a strength?

Guess wrong and your out?

shiranaihito3• 18 years ago

I usually restrain myself on HN, but this time I can't..

Please, oh please oh please keep in mind that "your" is not "you are".

Having to constantly be deciphering (imploded) sentences is exhausting.

"Is he talking about possession?" "Is he comparing things or putting them in chronological order?".. and so on.

shiranaihito3• 18 years ago

Anyways.. :)

I've been asked this question a lot of times.

Usually I've worked hard to dance around the issue, and I guess I've often blown it too.

Once I even voiced my concerns about the sensibility of the question, but the interviewer said I should answer it anyway!

I think I should try something like this in the future:

- What's your greatest weakness?

- Asian women.

( Unlike some people even on HN, I don't claim to see much action though :p )

bayareaguy• 18 years ago

I always respond to this one by saying "my greatest weakness is that I don't know my greatest weakness".

IsaacSchlueter2• 18 years ago

The only time I was asked that question, I responded with "That's kind of a weird question, don't you think? I mean, it's not really in my interest to answer it honestly." The interviewer agreed, and we chatted about interviewing technique for a little while. He admitted that he only asked to see what people say, and that mine was probably the best answer he'd heard.

Got an offer the next day.

jcl2• 18 years ago

It's ironic that such a vapid and well-known question still reveals useful information about a candidate -- precisely because it is vapid and well-known.

Hexstream• 18 years ago

You might have had the offer almost regardless of your answer to that question.

qqq• 18 years ago

Can you just say, "I have plenty of weaknesses, and I'll be happy to tell you about some, but I don't believe I have any that will prevent me from doing this job."

cchooper2• 18 years ago

The worst question I ever got asked was: "If your friends were here, what one word would they use to describe you?"

I mean, what kind of answer are you supposed to give to that?

ConradHex2• 18 years ago

Ugh.

I'm guessing "CHUG!" is frowned upon.

azanar• 18 years ago

Leaving. As would be my friend.

xiaoma2• 18 years ago

awesome

mikeryan• 18 years ago

Has anyone actually been asked this? When I first entered the workforce and started interviewing I remember prepping for this question (and its corresponding strengths one) and had nice prepped answers.

To date no one has every asked me this - and when hiring I've never asked it.

ConradHex2• 18 years ago

I've been asked it maybe half of my interviews. If you're going for an interview, be ready for this one. I've had at least one interviewer be very persistent about it.

There should be an equivalent question for interviewees to ask - how about "what is your company's greatest weakness?" Or "what would be the worst part about working here?"

nihilocrat• 18 years ago

Being on the other end of the table sometimes, no one has asked this question, but they really should. It is actually a much better question than asking the interviewee "What is your greatest weakness?".

I think the sorts of questions an interviewee asks is more revealing than any sort of digging you might do with the standard bullshit interview questions.

russell2• 18 years ago

I always ask that question of the interviewer in the form of "What aspect of your job is causing you the most pain?" It almost always gets a frank discussion of the problems the group is facing. I also ask about funding, profitability and business model.

strlen• 18 years ago

When still a college student I went cold into an interview for a very senior position (slated to start after graduation). I am sure I answered all technical questions correctly, but I certainly gave the wrong answer to this specific question - which (along with showing up in a suite for an Internet company interview and several other things) gave the impression that I'm too "fresh" for a position like this.

Three to four months later (and two or so months before graduating - much closer time-line) I sat down with a hiring manager at a big-co and went over such stock questions and their purpose and interviewed for a different position at the same company which required the same skill set and level - and got the position.

I would say my answer to this question is always honest, but I'll never ask the question myself.

gaius• 18 years ago

I ask it to every candidate, because I have a form from HR with a list of questions I have to ask that's one of them. I tick the box and move swiftly on.

My own stock answer is "sometimes I have trouble delegating".

jmtame• 18 years ago

Sorry, don't have many. Why don't you tell me about some of yours?

jwesley• 18 years ago

This is a great interview question. The point isn't the actual answer, but the way an interviewee responds. It's a mind game to see how the person will react. Will they deny weakness? Will they confess a horrendous flaw? It reveals a lot of character. Plus it is just plain fun to ask people ridiculous questions with no correct answer.

mattmichielsen• 18 years ago

One of my previous coworkers and I were interviewing a guy together, and I believe his was one of the most ridiculous questions ever:

"If you could get rid of one of the United States completely, which would it be and why?"

gruseom• 18 years ago

It's ridiculous, but no more so than the brain-twister puzzle type that used to get so much attention.

Actually, it would be fun to conduct an interview consisting of nothing but ridiculous questions like this, while acting as though the interview were completely normal. I don't think I could pull it off with a straight face though.

dcminter• 18 years ago

Paraphrased from my fuzzy recollection of some random interview with a recruitment guru:

"The best question to ask is 'What would your mother say was your greatest weakness?' - it's like truth serum. People start babbling about how she thinks that they're always late, or procrastinating, or unreliable and so on."

"What would you say if someone asked you this?"

"'You never call.'"

Apologies that I don't have a better source for this - anyone recognize it?

russell2• 18 years ago

I always answer that I am not very good at direct sales, that's why I became a programmer. It's even the truth.

snprbob862• 18 years ago

I once had an interviewer ask me my greatest weakness, stop me before I started to speak, and added "don't even try to give me an strength dressed up as a weakness because I'll keep rejecting your answer until you give me one I like." Upon hearing my response, he asked me what I was doing to combat that weakness. Upon hearing that response, he asked me how progress was and to project how long it would be before it was no longer a weakness. That line of questioning was far more effective and a whole lot more fun.

ardit332• 18 years ago

Can you just say "can't say no to pretty girls"? So, you reveal a maybe real weakness, but it is totally outside your work field and yet doesn't affect your hiring.

So, I still think this question is dumb.

snprbob862• 18 years ago

I'm pretty sure he would rejected that answer...

keefe• 18 years ago

I think it's better to give an answer directly related to your skills in your field. None of us is perfect, and we should all have some particular things we are working on. If you get the job, your actual weaknesses will become apparent soon enough. I could say, for example, that I tend to focus on functionality vs readability in code, but after a few years in commercial software development I see that maintainability of the code is of paramount importance so I am working to better present my code so that others can use it.

brentr• 18 years ago

I am a perfectionist. I always meet deadlines, but that is because I am willing to work many extra hours to satisfy my need to be perfect. It's good for the company, but bad for me.

njharman• 18 years ago

My greatest weakness is that I'm old, experienced and been around enough that I'm unwilling to put up with bullshit such as clueless interviewers and usually lack the tact to hide it. It's very liberating once you realize the company needs you more than you need them.

ideamonk• 18 years ago

My greatest weakness is that I have to come to you and get interviewed before you five me this job.

[:P - haven't yet faced an interview - merry christmas]

geebee• 18 years ago

It's a horrible question.

I never ask it, but I've been part of interview committees where someone else asked it. I finally realized what it's good for.

It tells you how a candidate handles a completely inappropriate question that shouldn't have been asked, and most definitely should not be answered honestly.

Now, whenever it comes up (which is rarely), that's how I take it: as an invitation to show how insincere I can be without letting on.

known• 18 years ago

An interviewer should assess a candidate for.

1. Can Do

2. Will Do

A good interviewer should filter a "Can Do" candidate by seeing his CV and should interview whether the candidate "Will Do".

Otherwise the interviewer is absolutely clueless about the job you are being interviewed.

ashleytowers• 18 years ago

I have always wanted to say 'my greatest weakness is Chocolate Cheesecake, can't get enough of it'. Seriously though, things I would consider weaknesses in one context are strengths in others. Integrity is generally a strength, but sometimes it can cost you a sale! I guess, as annoying as this question is, it tests your ability to recognise these things in yourself.

xiaoma2• 18 years ago

The problem is that for a lot of people, the answer wouldn't really be about business. If they really dug down to think about what their greatest weakness was, they might find it was an issue of character. And those don't go over well in an interview.

What company or government would hire someone who said their greatest weakness was sex addiction, alcoholism, sexism or a vindictive streak? And yet, men such as Bill Clinton, Winston Churchill, Richard Feynman and Thomas Edison have done great work and great things despite those weaknesses.

shiranaihito3• 18 years ago

Another nasty interview question is something like: "How well do you work under pressure?"

When you hear that, you could interpret it as: "We want you to work your ass off under unrealistic deadlines caused by our incompetent/greedy salespeople and bad management".

cstef• 18 years ago

One time I told an interviewer was my biggest weakness is my unwillingness to repair my relationship with my father. I did not get the job, but I got a good laugh. I guess making the interviewer uncomfortable is bad.

The Dumbest Interview Question

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