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Let's talk about weird questions in a job interview. In addition to questions about your motivation, personality, strengths, weaknesses, work ethics and character, HR managers surprise applicants with curious interview questions. At first glance these weird interview questions have nothing to do with the job-but there has to be something more behind them!
10 weird interview questions
What would you serve if you invited us over to your house for dinner?
Imagine you are sitting alone in the office. What are you thinking about?
What songs best describe your work ethics?
The boss comes into the office and offers you one million euros for your best idea. What is it?
If you could be another person, who would you be?
How would you fit an elephant into a fridge?
Imagine it is 15:15. At what angle are the minute and hour hands?
What options are there for transporting water from a lake at the foot of a mountain up to the mountain's summit?
What do you think about garden gnomes?
Car, desk or room-what do you clean first?
How to deal with curious questions
Most of the time there is a lot more behind weird interview questions. Depending on the question, the interviewer may be looking for a ready wit or an analytical answer. Is there a relation between the company's areas of operation and the question? Can you creatively apply relevant professional knowledge to the answer? Are mathematical skills required?
Often, HR managers test your ability to think outside of the box and your creativity with weird interview questions. Generally, there is no single right answer to strange interview questions. Most of the time, the point is to check your ability to think analytically and to get to know your worldview and method of thinking.
Take the people asking the questions into consideration when answering. A calm and convinced tone of voice allows the interviewer to follow the individual steps of your solution. Even a humorous answer is possible, provided it is coherent. The ability to seriously pull apart such a crazy interview question impresses your potential employer.
A brief history of time – an example
Let's take the example with the angle of the clock hands at 15:15. Someone who instantly says 0 degrees has not given the question enough thought. At 15:00 the hour hand is precisely on the three, but 15 minutes later it is three-fourths of the way to the four. If you want to get a job based on your math skills, your answer should be precise:
The hour hand takes 12 hours to make a full rotation: 360° / 12 hours = 30° per 60 minutes = 0.5° per minute
The minute hand rotates 360° in 60 minutes, i.e. 6° per minute.
At 15:15 the calculation is as follows: (3 x 30 + 15 x 0.5) - (15 x 6) = 7.5°
Results: The angle between the two clock hands is 7.5°
Unfortunately, applicants cannot follow all strange interview questions, and some questions are probably just nonsense. Do not be distracted and try to find a creative answer.
