Page 42 - 301 Best Questions to Ask on Your Interview, Second Edition

W H Y YOU H AV E TO QU E ST ION

With all the set-aside programs for minorities and people who weren’t
even born in this country, what progress can a white American man
hope to have in your company?

Questions like these reveal your biases, often unintentionally, and
will not advance your candidacy.

11. Avoid Veiled Threats

Interviewers hate to be bullied, and they will send you packing at
the first hint of a threat. That means if you have another job offer
from company A, keep it to yourself until after company B has
expressed an interest in making you an offer as well. Unfortunately,
candidates have abused the tactic of pitting employers against each
other by brandishing genuine or, as is more likely the case, fictitious
job offers. A few years ago, this tactic created an unreasonable and
unsustainable climate for hiring. Don’t test it with today’s crop of
interviewers; they will wish you luck with the other company and
never look back. For example:

I’m considering a number of other offers, including a very attractive
one from your main competitor, and need to make a decision by Friday.
Can I have your best offer by then?

This question smacks of bullying and desperation. It’s hard to come
up with alternative wording, but this is more effective:

Everything I know about your company and the opportunity you
described leads me to believe that I can immediately start adding value.
I would very much welcome an offer. Another company has made me an
attractive offer to join them, and I said I would give them my decision
by Friday. If my application is receiving serious consideration here, I
would very much like to consider it before then. Is that possible?

12. Avoid Questions That Hint of Desperation

There is a line from the movie Broadcast News that applies to job
seekers: “Wouldn’t this be a great world if terror and desperation
were attractive qualities?” Unfortunately, job interviewers, like part-

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