9 CEOs share their favorite interview questions

These are the questions CEOs ask to find out what kind of an employee—and person—you might be.

Asking about a candidate’s work history may give an interviewer insight into their greatest accomplishments, but learning how an prospective employee thinks on the fly, or what it might be like to work with them, will require digging a little deeper. That can mean asking questions that get at who a person is, or how they handle moments of failure.?

Whether you’re a CEO or job candidate about to be interviewed by a CEO, here are the questions CEOs like to ask potential hires.

WHO OR WHAT HAS SHAPED WHO YOU ARE?

“What?is your superpower, and what superpower would you like to have?”) These questions can launch the sort of conversations that help her determine if a candidate is a good fit. which we define in part as people with integrity, a sense of gratitude, and confidence in showing their vulnerability without ego, “So I love questions that help reveal those qualities, as opposed to those solely focused on job qualifications.”

WHAT ARE WE DOING WELL, AND WHERE IS THERE OPPORTUNITY TO GROW?

always asks potential employees to offer constructive feedback on his business. “I want complete honesty, even if it is uncomfortable,” he says. “What is their perception, who are we as a business? What are we doing well, and where is there opportunity to grow? The more diversity of perspectives, opinions, and inputs we get, the better we become.”

WHAT HAVE YOU FAILED AT?

“This question highlights the ability to rebound and learn.” Failure, Stein believes, is short-term. What she’s interested in is resilience—how someone can bounce back from a misstep.

WHAT WOULD YOUR BEST FRIEND SAY THEY LIKE THE LEAST ABOUT YOU?

“I usually get some pretty honest and insightful answers that help me understand what it might really be like to work with this person day-to-day,” she says. Another things Bernard likes to ask about is a candidate’s favorite day at work. “This helps me get at what really motivates people and how passionate they are about the work they do,” she says.

HOW MANY DEGREES SEPARATE THE MINUTE AND HOUR HANDS OF A CLOCK AT 3:15?

If this seems like a surprising question, well, that’s sort of the point.?“I want to understand how somebody thinks about a very new problem in a difficult situation, and how they respond to that under pressure,” .?Questions like this one are often less about the answer?and more about how a candidate thinks through the question or problem-solves in an interview setting.

WHY ARE YOU PASSIONATE ABOUT WHAT WE DO?

“I ask this question both to gauge their passion on the topic and to get a sense of their maturity when it comes to the subject matter,” she says. “Working in the sexual wellness industry requires a high level of emotional intelligence—a candidate must have the ability to show empathy and vulnerability without making the other person uncomfortable.”

CAN YOU TELL ME ABOUT A TOUGH DAY YOU HAD AT WORK AND HOW YOU PUSHED THROUGH?

“I’m always interested in what people have done to improve themselves or how they’ve expressed vulnerability in a way that helped them grow professionally or personally,” he says. Asking someone to talk about a tough day they had—or even a shortcoming they’ve tried to improve upon—can show a range of qualities, he says, from a candidate’s adaptability to their willingness to collaborate and learn from others.

WOULD YOU RATHER BE RICH OR WOULD YOU RATHER BE KING?

tries to understand if they’re a team player but also how they might handle autonomy. This particular question gives Hughes insight into how the candidate thinks about power. “There’s no wrong answer between rich and king,” he says. “What’s more important is the reasoning. If the response is to be rich but they use their new wealth in ways to help others, that speaks to their empathy and compassion. If they choose to be king, I’m interested in their views on impacting power structures.”

COULD YOU TELL ME ABOUT A TIME YOU GOT TOUGH FEEDBACK?

“My belief is that the best people I’ve ever worked with have the right balance of humility and intelligence,” he says. In asking those type of questions, he usually shares an example from his own life—when he was almost fired earlier in his career.

“When it comes to interviewing,?you are trying to get to know the ‘real version’ of who you are going to be working with,” he says. “To do that, you need to create trust in a very short amount of time. If they feel anxious, they may start answering questions?based on what they think you want to hear.” Sharing his own story.