TJN Interview Questions Why are you looking for a new job

TJN Interview Questions Why are you looking for a new jobWhen youre prepping for a job interview, you are trying to play defense before the other team is even on the field. Before you shake hands, sit down, and make small talk with an interviewer, you need to anticipate (at least a little) of whats coming up in the heart of the interview. Many of those questions will be about your specific qualifications and skills. But you also need to be ready for the more personal, reflective questions, like, Why are you looking for a new job? Lets look at some tips for making sure you have your answer ready to go. googletag.cmd.push(function() googletag.display(div-gpt-ad-1467144145037-0) ) Be honestIf youre looking for a job because you lost your previous one, its okay to say so. Its true that the stats are with people who already have a job when they start looking for another, but if youre cagey about whether youre leise employed and it comes out in a background check that youre not, well, tha t makes you look dishonest (even if youre only trying to avoid looking desperate).If you lost your job due to a layoff, you can tell the interviewer that your previous company was downsizing or reorganizingmost people have been through that at one time or another and they get it. If you left your previous job for personal reasons, its okay to say that tooalthough you dont want to go into too many details, given that the interviewer is technically not allowed to use your family status or other protected personal details against you. In a case like that, its fine to say that youve taken some time off to deal with personal/family issues, and that youre ready to take your skills and experience and get back in the game.but not too honest.If you were fired, its a little trickierbut you can still finesse it a bit. You can spin it as a lessons learned situation where you emerged stronger and smarter, with renewed career goals. The words it just wasnt a good fit for me is a solid baseline, a nd then you can use that to pivot into a list of the positive reasons why a company or job like this one would be a better match for the assets you bring. But again, remember that if things ended badly at your last job it may come up during the vetting process. Its better to keep things a little vague rather than offer details that could be seen later as dishonest.Dont talk smack about your previous job/employer.When an interviewer asks you why youre on the hunt for a new job, they know the answer isnt going to be because I love my current job and anfhrer so very much. However, resist the urge to use this as an opportunity to vent your frustrations. If you hate your job, think about the core reasons why. Is it because you werent given enough challenging projects? Were there not enough opportunities for growth and development? Was the companys culture not a good fit? See this as an opportunity to underline why this job would be a better application for your skills and how you see you rself growing into the role.When you prepare to talk about why youre looking for another job, the most important part is finding the right tone somewhere in the middle of I want more money and if I dont get out of my current job, Im going to lose my mind. The interviewer is looking for red flags, true, but theyre also looking to see if youre able to end one phase of your career and start a new one gracefully and professionally.