11 Interview Questions Asked by the World's Top Bosses. 

We have witnessed over the last few years a trend for interviewers to ask more and more 'off the wall' and 'interesting' questions. They want to try and test the interviewee with things that are outside of the box, a little bit of a break from the norm. Why? The most obvious reason is to try and see if they can get people away from their comfort zone and being more honest. The more of an insight into a persons personality a CEO can get, the easier it will be for them to make the right decision. For those looking for a job, this doesn't need to be a bad thing, you just need to be prepared and get focusing on your ability to think quickly and inteligently about a range of subjects.

Let's have a look now at 11 of the best. 

1. Are you the smartest person you know?

A popular question by a number of the world's top CEO's but made popular by Larry Ellison head of Oracle. 

Answer 'No' and Mr. Ellison was apparently then of a mind to ask you 'who is', your answer would then lead Mr. Ellison to seek that person out and interview them instead. Say 'Yes' and you are still in with a chance of getting the job. 

2. On a scale of 1 to 10, how weird are you?

A question whereby the CEO is looking to find out if you answer truthfully and also sense your trepidation as to what the required answer may be. If you start to think that an answer of 9 or 10 out of 10 is the right one, then you either think the company is looking for incredibly weird people or you yourself are borderline psychotic, either way it isn't appealing to the company.

Likewise if you are 1 out of 10, then you are not going to be someone pushing any boundaries. Thus, it becomes a question that requires a sensible response, one that shows you have thought logically about your answer.

3. You are standing on the surface of the Earth. You walk one mile south, one mile west, and one mile north. You end up exactly where you started. Where are you?

Tesla and SpaceX CEO, Elon Musk riddles candidates with this one to test their intelligence. 

The point of the question is to test people's logical thinking. In the majority of places around the earth to get back to where you started is impossible, in fact on 99.9% of the earth's surface it would be. So, logically, you have to find certain instances, quickly in your mind, that differ from the obvious answer that applies 99.9% of the time.

The only real anomolies therefore are the North and South Pole's, because they sit at the top of the earth where the impact of the earth's spherical surface is at is most intense, which would have a direct impact on the direction you walk despite you heading directly south. The Earth's curvature, in effect, makes you walk in a slightly curved line, despite you heading directly south, directly west and directly north, leading you back to the same point in only three moves rather than the usual four.  

4. What was the last costume you wore?

A lot of companies in the modern age want to see how much fun their employees are and also to see if someone is willing to laugh at themselves. This is however a fine line between being fun, and being silly or offensive. This is a question that drills down into this, can you laugh at yourself and are willing to have a good time, or do you go too far and end up crossing the line.

5. If you were an animal, which animal would you be?

Stormy Simon, President of Overstock, American internet retailer told the publication: “The animal kingdom is broad, and everyone can identify with a specific animal they think embodies their own personalities and characteristics.

"One time an interviewee said they identified with a red panda because everyone thinks they are so cute and approachable, but it turns out they're just really lazy. We hired the candidate anyway despite that answer, but we parted ways within three weeks. It just goes to show how important the question is."

6. What would the closest person in your life say if I asked them, 'What is the one characteristic that they totally dig about you, and the one that drives them insane?

This is a question that tests your ability to be honest. A seasoned interviewer will be able to spot a disingenous answer very quickly, especially if they have asked this question hundreds of times before. So, be careful.

Think about your answer, think about the person that is most close to you and don't give stock answers like 'my perfectionism' for the thing that 'drives someone insane'.

It is a fallacy that interviewers only want to hear positive things, they would far rather hear honesty than an answer they have heard 50 times before. If you drive your family insane because you sing at the top of your lungs whilst they are watching television, then tell the interviewer. At least it shows them you have confidence in yourself and are not afraid to be honest!!

7. Tell me something that's true, that almost nobody agrees with you on.

This was a question posed by PayPal founder Peter Thiel, he wanted to find out how people can think for themselves. The majority of people would say something like, I believe in God, but others don't. The problem with such answers is that probably at least 50% of the worlds population believe in some form of god, so it would be wrong to say that almost no people agree with you. 

Extreme views are invariably ones that people don't agree with you on. Most people would then counter that extreme views are unpopular ones, perhaps even racist or radicalist in some way. However, step back in time and there are many people who at one time or another could have easily answered this question. 

Steve Jobs in 1990 could have answered 'I believe that in ten years time over 90% of the population will be listening to music via a downloadable audio storage system that gives you the ability to carry hundreds of cds around with you at once'. Or in simpler terms, the Ipod will go crazy. Even those who worked with him at the time thought he was mad. 

What Peter Thiel wanted someone to do was dare to think out loud, to suggest something insane that could potentially take off and not be afraid to suggest it. The key is, never hold back in an interview, be bold, be brave. 

8. What would you do in the event of a zombie apocalypse?

How do you handle pressure? And would you look after yourself and run for the hills or look after those around you as well? Is your gut instinct to be selfish or selfless?

This question gets to the heart of who a person is and what they are going to bring to a team. Think carefully about the job you are applying for and if the interviewer is looking for a lone ranger or a team player. 

9. A hammer and a nail cost blog_post_details.10, and the hammer costs one dollar more than the nail. How much does the nail cost?

Jeff Zwelling, COO of job search engine ZipRecruiter, says this math question often trips up candidates, but if the answer was obvious he wouldn’t be asking it. "Some candidates will instantly blurt out 10 cents, which is obviously wrong," he explains. "They don't have to get the exact right answer, which is a nickel, but I want to see them at least have a thought process behind it."

10. What is your favourite quote? 

Mainly this question is about being reasonably well read, and also judging the environment you are in. If you are going for a football managers job, then citing David Beckham as your favourite quote might well go down well, but if you are pitching it at a senior lecturer in astro physics, he probably isn't the best source material. 

The lesson here is judge your audience and pick well, also be able to justify why it is something you appreciate, an inteligent answer could quickly backfire if you are unable to back it up with any evidence. 

11. How would you make money from an ice-cream stand in Central Park?

My immediate query to this when it was first posed to me was "at what time of the year would this be?". 

The question is a loaded one, in many ways the answer is pitch up, make sure you're near a crowd, hopefully it's a hot day and the rest will happen for you. 

However, this may be the case when it is 36 degrees in August, but not neccesarily when it is -15 in December. New York has dramatic seasons and as such it would make an ice cream stand a very difficult proposition over a 365 day period. The answer might be to diversify, to alter the offerings of the stand over the course of the seasons, to maybe change pitch at the same time, or opening hours to appeal to differing types of park users. Coffee or hot drinks in winter and Ice cream in the summer perhaps. 

What the interviewer wants to see is you thinking on your feet. 

For further career advice or interview advice why not call me today on 020 3005 9990, we are here to help you at Newton's, so whatever your job query we can help.