Common Behavioral Interview Questions & How to Answer Them

What are Behavioral Interview Questions?

This kind of interview question has less to do with your previous roles and experience and more to do with how you do or may behave in certain situations or contexts. The interviewer is trying to understand how you behave and how you might act while in the role for which you’re interviewing.
Soft skills aren’t easy to quantify, so behavioral interview questions—and their answers—can help interviewers understand your grasp of soft skills, how you logic your way through problems, and how well you can explain the path from a challenge to a solution.

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Behavioral Interview Questions By Topic

There are a few different categories into which we can organize behavioral interview questions—and the kind of answers interviewers are looking for.

How You Work in a Group

How you talk about working with others speaks volumes about how you approach teamwork, handle conflict, and find your role in a workplace.

• “Share an example of a time you motivated a colleague or team.”
• “Tell me about a time you made an unpopular decision—how did you implement it or get buy-in?”
• “Tell me about a time you made a mistake that effected a colleague. How did you rectify things?”
• “What do you do when you have a disagreement with someone on your team?”

How You Work with Clients

Clients aren’t always on the outside of a workplace. Sometimes your client is whomever you’re preparing work for. Don’t be thrown by client-related questions if you haven’t worked directly with an outside client in a traditional sense.

• “How do you help a client figure out what they want when they’re not sure?”
• “Share an example of a time a client reacted poorly to something. What happened and how did you resolve it?”
• “Tell me about a time you went above and beyond for a client.”
• “When does your responsibility to a client end?”

How You Work with Yourself & Manage Your Time

Actions speak louder than words, which is why simply stating that you have excellent time-management skills isn’t enough. Interviewers want to get a clear sense of how you manage your time—and yourself.

• “Give me an example of how you’ve handled a challenge.”
• “How do you handle making a mistake in your work?”
• “Tell me about how you balance deadlines with day-to-day responsibilities.”
• “Tell me about a time you worked effectively under pressure.”

How Flexible & Adaptable You Are

Being able to pivot is an important skill to bring to the workplace. Being able to share concrete examples of pivoting is key in an interview.

• “How do you take on learning a new role?”
• “Let’s say a deadline has been moved up—how do you handle it?”
• “Tell me about a time you knew you were right about something but had to do or say something differently than you otherwise would’ve.”
• “What’s an example of creative problem solving you’re proud of?”

Your Professional Ethics & Goals

Questions like these give interviewers insight into how you approach work and working as a concept.

• “Can you tell me about a time you felt as though you weren’t doing your best work?”
• “How do you set and work toward your goals?”
• “Tell me about a goal you achieved.”
• “Tell me about a goal you didn’t achieve.”

How to Give Effective Answers to Behavioral Interview Questions

Understanding what your interviewer wants insight into is a good first step to effectively answering behavioral questions. Keep these points in mind while practicing your answers:

• Be honest. Don’t invent a story or situation that you think your interviewer wants to hear—just share a truthful example. You can—and should—craft your answer to be appropriate for the context of the role for which you’re interviewing, but don’t lie.
• Go step by step. The beginning is a very good place to start. If the question is about steps you’d take to do something, start with the first and detail each one until the end. If the question asks you do share an example situation, offer a brief overview of the situation before laying out your involvement in it—start to finish.
• Prepare for follow-up questions. Be thorough, but don’t try to cram too much into an answer—there will likely be follow-up questions, such as, “How did they respond?” or “What happened next?” or “What did they do?”

When you’re well versed in your answers to behavioral interview questions, you’ll be more confident during your interview. Paired with a well-written cover letter and an appropriate resume, your interview will be the right kind of head-turning.