Why are you the best person for this job?

Why are you the best person for this job?

“What makes you a good candidate for this post” isn’t on the list of behavioral interview questions.

But—

Answer it like a behavioral question, with a problem, solution, and how it helped.

See this Why are you the best candidate for this position sample answer:

right
You need a business analyst who knows how to redesign customer communication protocols and fulfillment processes. I did that at Huffman Barco when outdated systems pushed our costs up. I was able to save the company $2 million a year.

wrong
I’m a top-notch business analyst, highly skilled in future state assessment, business process re-engineering, and gap analysis. I’ve been on the job for nine years. At Huffman Barco, I was responsible for all business analysis functions.

That second example looks fine. But it doesn’t show how you helped.

Read our guide to the why are you the best person for this job interview question here.

Here’s the toughest of all common interview questions:

7

What are your weaknesses?

How can you say what you’re not good at and still get the job? You don’t need a list of weaknesses to say in an interview.

To nail typical interview questions like this, show how you’re working with your greatest weakness.

There’s a massive difference in these what are your weaknesses answers:

right
I haven’t traditionally been great at leadership. At Sintertron, the DevOps manager wanted to put me in charge of two programming pairs, and it was terrifying. I enrolled in three Dale Carnegie classes and learned a lot. It was a challenge, but I ended up enjoying it. My teams outperformed the company speed average by 5%.

wrong
I’m not very good at teamwork. Every time my last boss put me with someone else to work with, we never got along. I work better by myself.

The first of those DevOps interview questions answers tells a great story. It’s got a problem and a solution that helped the company.

Read our guide to the what are your weaknesses interview question.

8 

What interests you about this position?

How to answer why are you interested in this position:

1. Learn the job’s key skills.
2. Show how you’ve used them.
3. Say how that helped.

right
The job offer jumped out at me. You need someone who knows about app prioritization and network monitoring. At AccuRight Solutions, I used those tools to boost network performance 38%.

wrong
It looks like a good opening at a good company. The pay is right, and it’s local to me and I need a job. I’m really interested in working here.

Look at the first of those IT interview questions answers. It’s got exactly what the interviewer wants.

See our guide to the what interests you about this position interview question.

Here’s another of the most common behavioral interview questions. Watch how we link it to the job:

9

Tell me about how you dealt with a tough challenge

This is one of the top interview questions for a reason—

It shows how you deal with adversity.

right
We had a big last-minute order come in from a valued customer. I called a meeting and laid out the problem. We found a way to get it done with zero overtime. We made an extra $1.1 million in revenue that month.

wrong
A crucial machine broke down right in the middle of a big run. I called in maintenance and they fixed the issue.

That first example shows you had a major positive effect. The second only shows you know how to use a phone.

When it comes to common interview questions and answers, always add a benefit.

Read our guide to the tell me about a time you faced a tough challenge interview question here.

10 

What are your strengths?

One of these what are your strengths examples answers soars. The other flops.

Both are for a job that needs a Python programmer good at collaboration

right
I’m a strong Python programmer and I excel at collaboration. In my last job I worked closely with a team of five software engineers that turned out 10 Python projects in two years, end-to-end. We raised customer retention by 20%.

wrong
I’m an excellent Java programmer and I’ve got great communication skills. In my last job I worked with six software engineers. Our team created 11 software solutions in Java in two years. We boosted customer retention by 22%.

Those job interview questions answers are almost identical. The first wins because the greatest strengths fit the job skills.

See our guide to the what are your strengths interview question.