Acing the Interview: How to Ask and Answer the Questions That Will Get You the Job

If I’ve learned one thing since I got into this business, it is that the candidates who get the best jobs and make the best opportunities for themselves are the candidates who ask the best questions. They ask questions of the right people and ask them in the right way. It often has been said that the difference between average people and the most successful people is in the questions that the most successful people ask.

Most every book or program about finding a job will address the kinds of questions you should ask during the interviewing process. The list of questions can be endless. Teaching you the questions to ask isn’t difficult. However, the difference between candidates who get the best job offers and negotiate the best opportunities for themselves and those who don’t isn’t the questions they ask. The difference is knowing whom to ask the questions of, when to ask the questions, and how to ask them.

The timing of asking the right questions during the interviewing process can make a difference of everywhere from either getting the job or not to a $15,000 to $20,000 increase in salary over what a prospective employer wants to pay. The key isn’t just asking questions, it is the timing of those questions and asking them in a manner that catapults you ahead of your competition.

Asking even the right question of the wrong person can destroy your chances of successful interviews. For instance, if you ask a Human Resources representative or a third party interviewing authority a question like, “What is the most prominent deficiency in the department I will be interviewing

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