subject: Intelligent Questions To Ask During A Job Interview That Show You Mean Business [print this page] Looking for a job is something you only do a few times in life. Because you don't do it so often, you are likely not very good at it. Imagine if you only played basketball about five times in your life. How good of a player do you think you'd be? Just like any other skill, the more you do it , the better you get. And the more tips you learn along the way, the easier it gets.
One way to show you are a better candidate than everybody else is by the questions you ask. Most people ask questions about the salary, the vacations, and the benefits. They come across as somebody who just wants to show up and collect a check. You need to come across as somebody different. In this article, you'll learn how.
One good question is to ask about the long term plans of the place your interviewing for. This presumes you've got your own long term plan, and you are looking for a suitable company that will match your goals. People that are only out to collect a paycheck are only interested that the company they work for won't go bankrupt.
Another question to ask is what happened to the previous holder of this position. You want to find out if they were promoted, if they quit, or if it's a new position. Getting promoted is good because the job has upward potential. This shows you are eager to learn new skills and improve your career. A new position means the company is expanding, which is also good.
If they say the last person quit, or was let go, try and find out why. You want to show that you are interested in not making the same mistakes that somebody else made.
Asking about the companies main competitors is also a good question, because it shows you are concerned with the bottom line. If you are concerned about their profits, and how much market share they can take away from their competitors, it shows business insight that not many job applicants have.
One more question to ask, if you are feeling particularly bold, is ask the interviewer why they decided to work for the company, and if they think they made a good decision. Ask them what some of the drawbacks are to working for the company. This will show that you value your own skills, and you wan to work somewhere where they are best put to use.
When you ask these questions during an interview, you will definitely stand out above the rest. When you combine these with some other basic job hunting skills, you'll truly shine.
