Best Answers to “why are you looking for a new job?” Question in an Interview

Why are you looking for a new job?  This can be a difficult question to answer in a job interview without speaking negatively about your current job or employer.  You already know that it’s never a good idea to dump your boss or tell the interviewer or recruiter that you can’t stand working with your team, right?  What do you say?

  Avoid talking negatively about others, talk positively about yourself.  This allows you to implement a more valuable focus: discussing how your experiences and qualifications can benefit the company.  Keep in mind that every potential business owner wants to know, regardless of the outward question.  They want to be able to imagine you doing a great job if they hired you.  Make sure they can.  This requires some strategic thinking, so be sure to develop your answer to this potential question in advance.

  Expanding based on the actual reason for responding to the job posting has an additional benefit.  It will ensure that your answer is correct and truthful.  Although you don’t have to tell the whole truth about a toxic or negative situation, you also never want to come up with an answer to the “why are you looking” question that is completely devoid of honest elements.  You risk ringing false when discussing it with your employer if you do.  For example, perhaps your previous workplace had no room for growth or was consistently denied promotion opportunities.  You can turn this into an answer about how you are looking for a new job because you are looking for opportunities to grow, or you are excited to take the next level in your career.

  Why do employers ask why are you looking for a new job?

  During the interview, it is usual to be asked why you are considering new job opportunities.  Employers can ask this question because they want to know if you have considered your decision to look for a new job.  They can also use this question to understand why the job is attractive to you and whether you are a good fit for the company.  Providing a reliable answer will help you appear as a reliable and honest person and help interviewers better understand your professional history.

ALSO CHECK: JOB POSTINGS

  How to explain why are you looking for a new job?

  It is important to provide the interviewer or hiring manager with a solid answer detailing why you are searching for a new job.  When preparing your response, follow these guidelines:

·         Stay positive

Whatever your reasons for looking for a new job, be sure to focus on the positive aspects of your career change and the reasons that led to it.  You might also consider explaining why the role you are interviewing for is a good fit for you, rather than why your current role might not be.

·         Be honest

  Although you don’t want to be negative, you do want to be honest in your response.  Explain that you are looking for new challenges, that the company you are interviewing with has a mission that matches your personal beliefs, or that the position you are looking for will help you advance in your career.  Honesty can help you impress you during a job interview.

·         Focus on your strong skills

 Use your answer to indicate the unique abilities you have that can help you meet the job requirements.  Describe in detail how characteristics such as ambition and hard work helped you acquire these skills and how you can apply them to help the company succeed.

·         Link what you say to the job responsibilities

  Explain how the skills you acquired through your previous work experience distinguish you from others.  Link your capabilities to the requirements of the job you are looking for and prove that you are the best candidate for the job by demonstrating how your skills can help solidify the work already being done in the company.  It can help with some basic research and get to know the vision, mission and goals that the company has set out and usually found on the business website.

·         Consider using STAR technology to respond to the interview

 STAR Interview Response Technology provides easy-to-remember format and provides a way to help you provide a complete and informative answer.  STAR is an acronym that stands for Situation, Mission, Work, and Result.  Coordination helps describe important details about the situation, clearly define tasks and responsibilities for you, demonstrate actions taken, and reveal the impact of your actions through results.  By using this, you can provide tangible and measurable ways in which you can positively influence the company through your work.

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Best Answers to “why are you looking for a new job?” Question in an Interview

  I am looking for a bigger challenge and advancing my career, and I just didn’t feel I could pay the same amount of attention to looking for a job and full-time job responsibilities.  It wasn’t ethical to quit my previous job in order to do a job search, so I quit the company.

  BOTTOMLINE:  When you interview for a job, the interviewer will ask you why you are looking for a new job.  This job interview question can be a minefield unless you are prepared for it.  Your answer should balance not bashing your past or current job with conveying information to the interviewer about your desire to find another job.

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