Interview Questions #9

Where do you see yourself five years from now?

This is a litmus test for loyalty and ambition.

The question gives you an opportunity to demonstrate how much you know about the organisation and the career line the organisation offers from low level management to mid / top level management.  It shows how much interest you actually have for the organisation or if you have actually done your homework.

Recruitment is expensive hence most employers want to do less of it especially for the same position. Hence, the interviewer wants to know if you would stay as long as 5 years. Many employers know that only ambitious workers seek to drive the short / long term ambitions of the organisation. Complacent workers are just okay with their salary without pushing for their growth or that of the organisation – show some ambitioun

Let’s hear from the experts

TRAPS:  

One reason interviewers ask this question is to see if you’re settling for this position, using it merely as a stopover until something better comes along.  Or they could be trying to gauge your level of ambition.

If you’re too specific, i.e., naming the promotions you someday hope to win, you’ll sound presumptuous.  If you’re too vague, you’ll seem rudderless.

BEST ANSWER:  

Reassure your interviewer that you’re looking to make a long-term commitment…that this position entails exactly what you’re looking to do and what you do extremely well.  As for your future, you believe that if you perform each job at hand with excellence, future opportunities will take care of themselves.

Example:  “I am definitely interested in making a long-term commitment to my next position.  Judging by what you’ve told me about this position, it’s exactly what I’m looking for and what I am very well qualified to do.  In terms of my future career path, I’m confident that if I do my work with excellence, opportunities will inevitable open up for me.  It’s always been that way in my career, and I’m confident I’ll have similar opportunities here.”

POINTS TO NOTE & THINGS TO DO

1. You must see yourself already working in the organisation 
2. Identify two steps above the current position you are applying for if it’s a low / midlevel management position.

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Interview Question #10 – Describe your ideal company, location and job

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