Answering the Ten Most Common Job Interview Questions

You've tailored your resume, optimized your LinkedIn profile, submitted numerous applications, and now your hard work has paid off! You've been invited to interview for your dream job. Let's make sure you are set up for success! I am proud to share another excerpt of my book, Beyond the Thin Blue Line, on the critical topic of interviewing. Remember to get the full copy of the book here: https://amzn.to/4gBurHO

I am also excited to share that I am, once again, accepting candidates for my Coaching & Reverse Recruiting service. More on that at the end of this article. I hope you enjoy!

The Interview

With consistent effort and application of the strategies listed in this chapter and throughout this book, you will begin to be asked to interview with companies. Typically, most hiring processes start with a phone screening or video call before progressing to in-person interviews. Some companies conduct two to three rounds of interviews before deciding who will be hired, while others have significantly longer processes. Let’s discuss some things to remember and strategies to implement to ensure you successfully highlight your qualifications and suitability for the position.

While this probably seems like common sense to most of you, it always amazes me how many candidates fail to dress appropriately and arrive on time for their interviews. Showing up to a corporate job interview ten minutes late, wearing a t-shirt and jeans, highlights a lack of professionalism and disregard for others' time. Being punctual allows you time to relax, gather your thoughts, and familiarize yourself with the location while displaying your punctuality and reliability. Being well-groomed and well-dressed conveys professionalism, attention to detail, and your serious intent about the position. Remember, you only have one chance to make an excellent first impression.

You probably already submitted your resume when you first applied. However, I encourage you to bring additional copies of your resume and references to the interview. You may be interviewed by someone who wasn’t provided with your resume by the recruiting team. Furthermore, many companies tend to ask for a list of references during the interview process. Bringing additional copies of your resume and references showcases your preparedness and attention to detail.

Many behavioral interview questions are typically asked during a private sector job interview. These questions ask you to provide specific examples from past experiences to demonstrate your skills, abilities, and actions in certain situations. Answering these questions effectively and efficiently requires a plan of action.

One of the best ways to answer behavioral questions is by utilizing the STAR method, which stands for Situation, Task, Action, and Result. This structured approach allows you to provide a comprehensive response while also ensuring that your answer is concise and to the point. When done correctly, the STAR method will enable you to highlight your problem-solving abilities, decision-making skills, and real-world examples of your impact on your organization. ?

Begin by setting the scene and providing context for the problem you encountered. This is the Situation. Describe the exact issues you were facing, emphasizing the relevance to the question you were asked. Perhaps you can talk about a challenging recruit for whom you were responsible for training and mentoring. You can describe how the trainee failed to follow instructions, continuously forgot critical components of a criminal complaint, or struggled to navigate their way to calls for service. Another potential example of a situation you faced during your time in law enforcement was a long-term speeding issue on a residential road. You can share stories about the complaints you received from citizens and the pressure you were placed under by your sergeant and command staff to solve the issue. Paint a clear picture, allowing the interviewer to grasp the complexities of the challenges you were facing.

Next, discuss the Task assigned to you to address the situation. What was expected of you, what were the goals or objectives you were striving to achieve, and what limitations or constraints were you facing? By adequately describing the task, you demonstrate your understanding of your role and responsibilities, highlighting your ability to prioritize assignments and set measurable and achievable outcomes. Using the examples above, perhaps you were instructed by the supervisor of your training division to find a way to connect with your trainee and improve his performance so that he could be released from training on schedule. Or you were tasked with coming up with a long-term solution to address the speeding issues in your assigned sector, thereby reducing the number of severe crashes on a particular roadway or intersection. Share with the interviewer some of the challenges you faced that made the task even more difficult to achieve.

Now that you have shared the situation and the task, it is time to explain the Action you took to address the problem and accomplish the job. Explain the steps you followed, the strategies you employed, and the decisions you made to overcome the various challenges to achieve your goal. Focus mainly on your proactive and creative approach, problem-solving abilities, and the skills you used to navigate the challenge effectively. Be specific by providing examples, demonstrating your initiatives, and your ability to create and follow a plan. Talk about how you brought together several officers and developed training scenarios for your trainee, helping him improve his officer safety skills in a safe and secure environment. Discuss how you deployed sign boards at strategic locations within your sector, advising drivers to drive slower, how you worked with the media relations team to develop a social media campaign to show people the dangers of reckless driving, and the traffic enforcement you conducted to warn or ticket offenders.

Finally, discuss the Result of your actions, emphasizing the positive impact your efforts had on the situation and your agency. Be prepared to highlight any quantitative and qualitative improvements, achievements, or successes directly resulting from your actions. Share how your trainee made remarkable improvements in his performance, lowering the number of corrective actions against him by over 70%, which allowed him to graduate from the field training program on time. This also helped the agency by adding another officer to a patrol shift, lowering the daily average calls for service per officer by three. Highlight how your actions regarding the speeding issue led to an 80% decrease in speeding complaints from the public and a 50% reduction in crashes on that roadway. This resulted in overall citizen satisfaction while reducing the number of crashes dispatched to officers, allowing them to continue patrolling neighbors and deter criminal activity.

Incorporating the STAR method into your interview responses will help you provide a structured and systematic answer to behavioral questions set by the interviewer. It will allow you to highlight critical parts of your experience and achievements while ensuring you stay on topic and provide a brief answer.

Common Interview Questions

While every interview process is unique, and it is impossible to predict every question you may be asked, there are some common ones you can expect to hear throughout your job search process. Here are ten questions I have asked or been asked throughout my career, along with some suggestions on how to format your response.

1.???? Tell me about yourself.

This has been the first question I’ve been asked in nearly every interview process I’ve ever taken part in and one you will surely get during your transition to the private sector. A mistake I often hear candidates make when answering this question is going off on long-winded tangents about every detail of their life, including where they were born, their dog's name, and their favorite color. Focus on keeping your answer to three to five minutes. Highlight your professional achievements, starting with your current role and working backward from there. Next, articulate your key experiences, skills, and accomplishments, particularly those that best align with the job you are interviewing for. If time permits, consider adding information about your career goals and how they align with the company’s mission and values.

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2.???? Why do you want to work for this company?

This is another very common interview question you can expect to hear. Fortunately, you conducted company research both before you applied and in the days leading up to your interview. Use your answer to this question as an opportunity to show the effort you have put into the process and your knowledge about the company. Talk about their mission and values, the services or products they provide their customers, and specific objectives you would have if given the chance to work for the organization. ?x

3.???? Describe a challenging situation you faced in your career and how you handled it.

This is a perfect question to utilize the STAR method to formulate your response! Think of an issue you had at your agency that required an innovative or creative solution. Don’t mention how you hated your coworker, so you just stayed away from him. Instead, think about a time when you were given multiple projects at once and had to prioritize, when your agency was implementing a new technology that consistently had issues, or a significant and complex call for service that required you to think and act quickly and decisively. Remember, describe the situation, share the task you were given, explain what actions you took, and then highlight the results of your actions.

4.???? What are your strengths?

This is another classic interview question. Use this question to highlight your critical skills and qualifications, particularly those that best align with the job you are applying for. While it may be interesting to share that you are excellent at field sobriety tests, that would probably not be very useful when interviewing for a sales specialist position. Instead, focus on your communication skills, work ethic, and ability to connect with strangers. Be sure to give examples from your professional experience to support the areas you describe as your strengths.

5.???? What are your weaknesses?

I’m sure you knew this question was coming next. This is a tricky and challenging question to answer as you want to come across as sincere but also present yourself in a positive light. However, with proper preparation, you can answer the question honestly while showing some positive qualities. Firstly, be sure to share a real weakness. Avoid cliches such as “I’m a perfectionist” or “I care too much.” These are used so often that they come across as insincere. Sharing an actual weakness shows you are self-aware. In addition to providing a weakness and how it has impacted your work in the past, highlight your efforts to overcome it. This shows personal growth and a commitment to further improvement. Finally, explain to the interviewer why your weakness will not hinder your ability to perform the job you are interviewing for and how your strengths are ideal for this position.

6.???? Why are you leaving your current job?

When answering this question, focus on the future and where you want to go in your career. Describe your career aspirations, your desire to grow, and how this opportunity will give you the challenge and experience needed to make those things happen. Avoid speaking negatively about your current employer; that is an immediate red flag to a recruiter or hiring manager. It is entirely acceptable to note areas that can be improved at your agency; however, do not use this question to vent about your department, your supervisor, or the work itself. Turn this question into a positive by focusing on your long-term goals.

7.???? Where do you see yourself in five years?

Employers ask this question to understand your long-term career goals and if they align with their organization. Recruiting is a timely and costly effort. Companies don’t like constant employee churn, so they prioritize finding candidates they believe will stay and grow with the organization. This is another question where you can highlight the information you have learned about the company. Share how your ambitions align with the company’s values and goals. Demonstrate your ambition by emphasizing your desire to grow into more senior and leadership roles and help the company, highlighting a clear vision for your career. Talk about your current skills and the new ones you hope to achieve as you continue to advance, expressing a commitment to the company and the desire to contribute to its success.

8.???? Can you share an example of when you demonstrated leadership?

This is another excellent question to utilize the STAR method! Companies love asking this question as it allows them to assess your skills and experience, gives them a sense of how you will behave in the future, and to see if you’d be a good fit for the company’s culture. Consider a time you led a long-term project or initiative, when you took primary on a very complex call for service that required delegation and other leadership abilities, or when you mentored and coached a younger officer to help him improve his performance on a specific type of call. When answering the question, emphasize your problem-solving, decision-making, communication, and teamwork skills. Even if you never held a supervisor position with your agency, that doesn’t mean you weren’t a leader.

9.???? How do you handle stress or pressure?

As a current or former law enforcement officer, your answer to this question should be an absolute homerun. Employers want to see that a candidate can handle multiple projects at once, be able to work on tight deadlines, and not get overwhelmed by ever-changing priorities. Fortunately, we have come from a profession where no two days are alike and where we face the possibility of bodily injury or death numerous times throughout our careers. Share examples of stressful situations you encountered while in law enforcement and the strategies and techniques you utilized to deal with them, including prioritization, time management, delegation, and the ability to think clearly during high-stress environments.

10.? Do you have any questions for us?

You won’t believe how many times I have asked this question to candidates and received nothing but a blank stare in return. When applicants fail to have any questions for the hiring team, it raises some serious red flags in the minds of recruiters and hiring managers. Is the candidate not interested in us? Did he not take the time to prepare questions? How can they have no questions about such a life-altering decision? These things will cross the decision-makers' minds when you fail to ask questions at the end of the interview.

Come prepared with three to five questions to ask your interviewer. Consider questions such as “What are your projected milestones for the person hired for this position in their first six months?” Or “How will you measure the success of the person hired in this position?”. One question I always recommend my candidates ask during an interview is, “Do you have any concerns about me as a candidate, and is there any information I can provide to alleviate those concerns?” This is an excellent question as it may allow you to clarify an answer, expand on the part of your experience, or address any other concerns the interviewer may have had about your qualifications.

While interviewing for a new career can be stressful, remember that you have accomplished fantastic things throughout your time in law enforcement and would be an asset to any organization. You have prepared for this moment and are ready to confidently highlight your experience and qualifications. Stand tall, keep excellent eye contact, shake hands firmly, and articulate why you are the best candidate for the role. Finally, thank your interviewers for their time and consideration of your application. Do this as you leave the interview and again via email later in the day. ?Express your gratitude, make a short statement reconfirming why you feel you are the right candidate for the role, and let them know that you are available for any follow-up questions they may have. This extra step, so often missed by candidates, is absolutely noted and appreciated by recruiters and hiring managers.

Throughout your job search process, it is important to remain positive and confident in your abilities. Some interviews will go very well, while others may feel shockingly bad. Treat each interview as a learning opportunity and a chance to refine your skills. You may get turned down for a job, even after an interview where you felt you performed exceptionally well. In this extremely competitive job market, minor details can be the deciding factor. Some of these may be completely out of your control. Don’t take these rejections personally. Instead, use each experience as an opportunity to learn and grow. With consistent effort and patience, you will soon receive an exhilarating phone call or email letting you know you have landed your dream job!

I hope you enjoyed this excerpt from Beyond the Thin Blue Line! Remember to get your full copy of the book here: https://amzn.to/4gBurHO

Career Coaching & Reverse Recruiting: I am excited to share that I am accepting law enforcement officers and military veterans to my Career Coaching & Reverse Recruiting service. This service is designed for American Heroes who are ready to transition to the private sector and feel stuck and unsure of where to start. You may have already submitted dozens or hundreds of applications without success. Together, we will write you a professional resume, optimize your LinkedIn profile, help you network, prepare you for interviews, and so much more.

This is my most comprehensive candidate service and I only take on a small number of candidates at a time. The service is $599 per month or $1499 for three months (Save $298!). If you are interested, please contact me here on LinkedIn or at [email protected] .

Thank you!

-- Colin