❓Top Interview Questions Revealed
Hello! Adam Thornhill here. ‘The Podcast Guy’ saving you 10 hours a week.
ICYMI, Christmas came early yesterday.
I sold Podup AI to The Deep View! You can read the full story here.
Why did I sell Podup AI?
Unfortunately, I don’t have the bandwidth to write 3 times a week anymore.
What does this mean for you?
Nada, you’ll still get the best business insights from the world’s leading podcasts!
Now, for today’s post.
Enjoy the 128th Podup where we’ll steal the best ideas from Lenny’s Podcast.
Lenny Rachitsky is a broken record. In a good way. He asks every guest: “What’s your favorite interview question?” This repetition has helped him build a rich repository of interview questions.
In this episode, he shares a list of 17 top picks. In true Podup style, I’m zeroing in on the best takeaway for us all. Here are my favorites, along with a hot take on why one particular question format wins the day.
What’s the hardest thing you’ve ever done?
I ask that because working at Ramp is hard, and I want to understand what hard means to them. Why was it hard? How did they overcome that difficulty? How did they work with others to overcome that difficulty?
Geoff Charles
What’re you most proud of and why?
I ask this because you can learn about a person’s motivations, their work ethic, what they care about, and what good looks like to them. These are all really important things to understand about a person if you’re going to work with them closely.
Camille Hurst
What’s the most impactful thing you’ve done?
I ask this because I want to understand how they define impact and what it means to them. A good answer for a growth practitioner is intrinsic motivation about having an impact on the business.
Lauryn Isford
Why it matters
The ‘one most’ question - be it the hardest, proudest, or most impactful moment - is easier to answer as it follows the ‘one thing’ question technique. This interview style not only eases the interviewee into a more relaxed state, but also encourages more thoughtful, revealing responses.
Remember, the goal isn’t to trip candidates up. You want to create an environment where they can comfortably showcase their best selves while being vulnerable. I pride myself on doing exactly this by leaning on ‘one most’ questions, as well as sprinkling in two personal favorites:
If I gave you a $100 budget, how would you turn this into $1,000 in 24 hours?
Good candidates ask questions to clarify expectations and limitations. Great candidates offer a creative idea that displays their business acumen.
How lucky are you out of 10 and why?
I ask this to see if a candidate is optimistic or pessimistic. Great candidates typically say 7 or more (showing positivity) and offer introspective reasons why.
Next steps
Personalize your approach. While these questions are a great starting point, tailor them to suit the specific role and your personal interviewing style. Authenticity is key.
Craft your own questions. Blend in a few custom questions that reflect your personality and values. This helps in establishing a genuine connection with the candidate.
Contextualize questions. Adapt your questions based on the candidate’s background and the role they’re applying for.
Practice active listening. Pay close attention to their answers and repeat back snippets of what they say to show you’re listening and build trust.
Create a safe space. Set a tone that encourages open and honest communication. Interviews are as much about them getting to know you as it is about you evaluating them.
Your thoughts?
Thanks to ChatGPT Consulting for making this post possible…
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Quotes were pulled at different points of the episode. Sentences were left out to make the narrative more concise. Podup is not associated or affiliated with any podcast.