The Real Reasons Candidates Give You Stupid Answers

Not all interview questions are created equal. Some are just stupid. As a hiring manager, do you really care to hear about a perspective candidate’s “former” weaknesses that they’ve since fixed that were not really weakness to begin with…”I tend to work too much” or “I’m too honest”! News flash to candidates: why would your next employer perceive your problem of working too much as a weakness? Remember, stupid gets stupid.

Think before you speak. Stephen Covey encouraged leaders to “begin with the end in mind”. Do your questions drive you closer to your goal of hiring someone or drive candidates screaming out the door? Interview questions should be designed to uproot answers that will help you hire the right match for your open position. They should be developed to help you understand the candidate, not to trick or confuse or make the candidate feel uncomfortable. You should strive to maintain a conversational tone throughout the interview. Your goal should be to allow the interviewee to feel free to be themselves. Set aside time before every interview to review the candidate you will be interviewing and have questions prepared to ask. Maybe it’s a template or maybe you develop questions each time. Either way prepare questions for the interview.

Ask questions that relate to something pertinent. Why do you ask the questions you ask? Is it to learn more about the candidate, to make you feel more comfortable, to help you make the right decision? The interview questions that you use should be related to the position you’re planning on hiring for. Ask open ended questions to create conversation. Don’t ask questions that aren’t related to the position. Stupid questions are questions you already know or should know the answer to or that don’t pertain to anything in particular. Formulate questions to allow candidates to calm your fears about hiring them. Keep in mind, you want to hire them that’s why you requested an interview. Right?

Remember you’re not Google. You may want to be Google, but you’re not. Why do you ask questions like “If you could be any animal, which animal would you be”? Know why you’re asking what you’re asking. And why you care about the answers candidates give. Also, please stop asking questions you’re not prepared to answer yourself.  Silly questions achieve silly results.

Overall, have a plan prepared for every interview and be a professional. Preparing questions to achieve a specific result with an interview is fair and considerate of everyone’s time. Begin by knowing what you want to know about a candidate at the conclusion of the interview. End by reviewing the pertinence of each question for this interview so that each question drives you closer to your desired result.

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Happy Hiring!