By: Reem Hussein
Ever been to an interview and received an awkward question and thought to yourself “how the hell do I respond to that?” You become particularly self-conscious when you’re so desperate to land that job; we feel you. You are not alone in this. We compiled for you some of the most troubling questions that have made us struggle to come up with an answer.

1. What can you add to our company?

This is exactly how we feel when we’re asked this question. Of course, “one person can make all the difference” and you can go ahead and be the most enthusiastic person out there and list all your successful qualities. We do believe this is a positive approach. However, it’s kind of difficult to predict what YOU in specific will add to the company because let’s face it, this is based on so many factors combined: your boss, the work environment, and the tasks you’ll be assigned etc.

2. Why should I hire you?

Uh…because you posted an announcement for a job vacancy and you need employees? And don’t even think of saying the cliché: “Because I’m a hard-worker and a fast-learner”. No seriously, we believe that you should have intra-personal (inner) smartness and a very clear understanding of your passion in order to really know what you can add to the company. We’ve seen people talk about things they’re really passionate about and believe us it can easily be detected.

3. Can you function under stress?

Egypt is a big bundle of stress and we’ve pretty much survived most of our lives. “Does this question imply that I am too delicate for this job or what?” This is what crossed the mind of one person we contacted. If you think deeply about this question, you will probably recall a challenge that you bravely overcame and you can state this past experience as a reference of your ability to handle tough situations.

4. Where do you see yourself in five years?

We don’t even have a pla… . We know it’s not always easy to have a future vision of yourself but don’t think in terms of specific goals like don’t even say I want to achieve xx position in xx field. This will make the answer more difficult. Think in terms of the broader outlines of your future and this allows you to be flexible with your goals as well.

5. Would you like to ask me anything?

No honestly, it’s time to flee this awkwardness and go buy myself a McDonald’s to get myself back into my comfort zone.

Interviews are always nerve wrecking, but remember to try as much as you can to remain calm, take your time before answering and never volunteer too much information because you’ll seem like you’re rambling on and on without a purpose. And always be CHEERFUL!