Imagine this scenario that you walk in for the interview. And after some initial small talk, the interview begins. Now, assuming that I am the interviewer, and you're the candidate, the first question that I asked you go something like this, please share a brief background about yourself starting from your educational background and then moving towards your work experience. And while doing so, try to relate everything that you have done to this specific job role. You have 60 seconds, and Your time starts now. So I used to love asking such questions because back in the days when I used to conduct interviews for call center staff, this was a type of question which was very relevant to that job role.

Because the context center job is a very stressful job, and you have to operate under strict timelines. At the same time you're dealing with your customers over the phone, and you cannot lose your temper or be aggressive at any cost. As interviewers, why we conduct such a test is because we feel that the real person inside of you only comes out when you are addressed with a stressful situation. And you have to perform under tremendous amount of pressure. Such interview questions are basically designed to get under your skin so that we can somehow or another, get a response or reaction from you. So no matter what happens, please do not take this bait and stay calm at all times.

If you take the same 62nd example that I just shared, 60 seconds is enough time to think of an answer and give it properly. But the way I made it sound, I'm sure you became nervous. And if you did, so, you basically fell for it. You must understand that this is exactly what I want you to do. So don't fall for it. Instead, stay calm, and try to take the initial five to 10 seconds to think of an answer, and then share it with the interviewer in one flow.

While you are giving this answer. The first thing as an interviewer that I will observe is your facial expressions, then your body language, and then finally, your overall communication flow. So if you've practiced your initial pitch, or if you have practiced all the success stories that I've mentioned many times before, you will be able to clear the stage. In a relatively easy manner. The next point that I would like to share here is that you must look at your resume objectively. And this is something that you have to do before you appear for the interview.

While you're doing so, you should look for awkward points, for example, whether or not you are a job Hopper, whether the degree that you got is relevant to the job roles that you've applied for, or whether you have been stagnant in a role for a long period of time. And then finally, if you've been fired or not, and so on. So these are things that interviewers will pick up even before the interview starts, and we'll be ready to fire these questions at you once you have paid for the interview. However, if you have prepared for these kind of questions beforehand, I'm sure that you will be able to handle them in an appropriate manner. The next point that I would like to convey is that during such a test, do not add stress, try to be yourself. When the interviewers fire such a question at you, you should slow down.

Try to relax, formulate your answer in your brain and then speak clearly and fluently. While doing so you can speak slowly as well so that you can use the pace of the interview according to your liking. So when such a question pops up, please do not panic. Don't fidget with yourself or move your neck in a way that you are being electrocuted. Instead, focus on the question that is being asked and try to answer it clearly. Remember, the most important thing over here is not the question, but how clearly and precisely you answered that question.

So concentrated on the quality of your answer rather than losing control of yourself. The next thing that I would like to share with you is that you should try to dominate everyone present in that room. Now, you must be thinking that as a candidate, this must be something which is impossible to do, but no, it is possible. And if you feel that while answering such a question, you need a piece of paper, or maybe if you can stand up or maybe draw something on the board, please do avail this opportunity. If by any chance you can stand up during an interview to present. This is something that will go in your favor.

Right now I would like to share another relevant example. By personal example. So in one of my interviews, I was a candidate and I was addressed with a panel. Now this job role was basically offered trainer. So the question was that they wanted to determine how I generally start my training sessions. So I told them that I start off with an icebreaker, ask a couple of questions, then we move on to the introduction.

And then we start off with the overall body of the training program. The next question that they asked me was that why don't you demonstrate what you just saying right now in front of the panel, considering that the panel members were the participants of that training, so I said, Fine. So what I did was that I thought about five or 10 seconds, and a very simple icebreaker popped up in my mind, and why I use this example is because I knew that in the end, I will get a chance to dominate that room. Now there were about five panel members present in that room. But what I did was that I told them that in order to start this session, I would like each one of you to please stand up, share a brief history about yourself, and then share one statement which basically tells what is your purpose in this organization.

Now you can imagine that thinking of a purpose in a matter of seconds is very difficult, especially if your boss is sitting across the table as well. So what happened is that all of the consultants panicked, and they didn't know what to do. And for the next couple of minutes, while they were thinking of their introduction and their purpose, I felt in absolute control, and I was dominating that room at that moment. So try to come up with similar examples that you can use when you are addressed with a panel interview or a stress question, because this will show that you are someone who does not shy down when such a challenge arises, and you are able to convert a challenge into an opportunity, like I just shared with you. In the end, the last point that I would like to share with you is that you should know when to push back, you will at times come across a totally absurd and illogical question as well.

So instead of just saying yes to everything and trying to justify it, you should know when to take a stand. If you feel that something that have been said is wrong, you must take a stand because the interviewers have asked that question for this very reason. They don't want to hire a yes man who says yes to everything that they say even if it is wrong. In ideal circumstances, they want someone who can question what they're saying and give justifications and try to improve upon the ideas that have been shared by the management. Now I agree that this is a very risky thing to do. But trust me, it is worse if they start toying with you during the interview.

So you must not allow that and be ready to take a stand when you think it is appropriate.