Interview Answers - Find Them Here!

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These interview answers are much more valuable than just reviewing a list of questions you might be asked on your next interview. Knowing the interview questions to expect is helpful. Getting some ideas on how to respond? Priceless! One of the best ways to challenge yourself is to formulate your answer before reading our advice, and then see if your answer tracks with our suggested responses. Unfortunately, we can't answer these questions for you. We don't know the details of your experience unless you've done a mock interview with us, or we've critiqued your resume.

But what we can do is give you a road map and some tips for interview answers in a way that will showcase your background and give you an edge over your competition.

TELL ME ABOUT YOUR MOST CREATIVE IDEA.

Think about thinking out of the box. When's the last time you did this? Are you a creative problem solver? Or, are you just creative in an artistic sense? People who are familiar with Myers-Briggs will understand this...if you've got TJ tendencies, creativity doesn't often come naturally. Unless you're trying to solve a problem. So, answer this question in a way that plays to your strengths. Problem solving; product development; crafting proposals; getting your foot in the door...whatever works for you!

WHAT ASPECTS OF YOUR CURRENT POSITION ARE MOST STRESSFUL? HOW DO YOU HANDLE STRESS?

We think about stress as a negative motivator, but in reality, all professional positions come with a certain amount of stress built into the job description. You need to balance your response so that the interviewer comes away thinking that you handle stress well while not painting a picture of a frenetic work environment where everything you do creates a stressful situation.

From a sales perspective, what creates stress in your day to day work life? Is it meeting quota? Is it getting appointments? Is it handling the paperwork that supports the sale?

Whatever the trigger is for you, the second part of this question is really the most important -- how do you handle the stress of your position? What strategies do you use to cope with stress? Maybe you keep the pipeline full, regardless of where you are relative to your quota. Or, you over prepare for big presentations, knowing that you can fall back on this preparation when the pressure is on. Have some tangible strategies in hand for how you handle stressful situations and you can't go wrong on this question.

HOW DO YOU DECIDE AMONG COMPETING PRIORITIES?

Time management is important in most jobs. How often have you been told that 4 or 5 things on your "to do" list are equally important? With a finite number of hours in the day, and deadlines looming, how do you decide what to do first? In a sales interview, I would expect to hear a response that addresses what's "closest to the money," followed by what's next closest, etc. Keeping customers happy is always important. Activities that lead to revenue should always receive priority. It's the application of the 80/20 rule -- only 20% of the things on your "to do" list are really important...ignore most of this list and you can still have a great year!