Interview Question – Where Do You See Yourself Five Years from Now?

Congratulations, you just scored yourself an interview with the company of your dreams, or a pretty impressive company, and if you’re a gentleman, you probably picked out your best suit, your nice shoes, fancy shirt, nice tie, put on your deodorant, and if you’re a lady, you got your professional pants suit, or conservative suit with skirt ready, and those killer high heels, you got your portfolio all prepared, all dressed in your fineries, your resume is polished, everything is in a readable font, you’ve got your pen hopefully to write down the answers to your questions you will ask the interviewer afterwards so you can reflect and remember the interview, your phone, your keys, you practiced all night. You are about to catch a bus, or ride your car to the building, you leave bright and early, and make it on time.

You enter the building, you greet the secretary, and are extremely polite. You’re eager, but polite, calm, and professional. You’re on time, and by on time you’re fifteen minutes early. You wait to be called for your turn, and time seems to take forever in these situations, because you can already feel yourself sweating, or see yourself shaking, or you’re just simply just nervous. Relax everything will be alright, you’ve practiced the dread “tell me about yourself question,” you know your biggest weakness, and biggest strengths. You even prepared to answer the curve ball of a question, you’ve heard of it, and it really takes time for you to answer the question because you’ve got to stop and really think what you’re telling the company. The question is where do you see yourself in five years?

Do yourself a favor, as you continue reading this writer wouldn’t recommend using any of his answers, probably because they just are not safe answers but at your own discretionary caution be advised as what will be stated briefly. If asked where you see yourself in five years the writer believes and has the desire to say well to be honest “Be able to keep a job for five years, and stay in the same company to learn, grow, and be developed to become more of a marketable candidate in the future.” This seems to be a safe answer but depending on who the interviewee is interviewing with this may seem a bit odd. Is job security a thing of the past or is loyalty to a company which people may have done thirty, forty, odd years of working for maybe from the sixties to maybe eighties, early nineties, people constantly are working in new fields, and new positions, and new companies. Millennials like this writer are looking for authenticity and real jobs not some fluff, not some fancy title to do secretarial duties.

When it comes to the question of where you see yourself in five years you as the individual must be aware that a lot can happen in five years. The economy can grow, the economy can slow down, one can end up in a recession. Taxes could be raised, and taxes could be lowered, and if you happen to work in the tax industry you are constantly handling all these changes. Not to mention bank regulations are constantly changing day by day. There is an uncertainty that happens. You may have had the best two, three, four, five, even twenty years at a job, perhaps five years ago you didn’t see it coming. Suddenly with a snap of a finger, like a vapor in the wind, you’re laid off. Maybe you just found out you are going to be married, or you’re pregnant you may still have your job, maybe you’re buying a house, or a new car, expense change, life begins to change things don’t really all stay the same, sure one week every day may look the same but something gradually changes, and you age, you get older, but that’s a whole other essay. The only two things that are certain in life is death and taxes.

Employers however want a couple things, they want people to come in every day, and every day on time. They want an employee that will come in and do their work. You as the potential candidate can shine and show them when asked this question, you’re committed to being part of the team. Give the employer whatever answer that is truthful, this coming from a writer who said in the next five years he would want to be a recruiter and that landed him the job. With that question, the writer proposes another thing to do, and this is practical, this is for the next five years, before the next five years talk with God. As the scriptures say Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all things shall be added unto you.