Why Some Interviewers Ask Weird Questions

Every now and then an interviewer will throw a curve ball at you. You know the type, one of those off-the-wall questions that make you wonder what in the world they could possibly be fishing for. A question like, "If you could be any animal, what would you be and why?" is sure to make you squirm in your seat, but that may be exactly what the interviewer is watching for. My best explanation as to why someone would ask such a seemingly irrelevant question is that he or she is looking to see how you react to stressful situations, or how well you can think on your feet.

Chances are, if you've prepared for an interview correctly, you've already planned out your answers to the common interview questions. So, an interviewer may ask you one of these questions to try and learn a little about your personality instead of how well you can rehearse your answers.

Now, you can beat them at their own game by preparing for the unexpected.
Here are some "irrelevant" interview questions to look out for:

• What is your biggest weakness?
• If someone wrote a biography about you, what should it be titled?
• What would you do with your winnings if you won the lottery?
• Who do you admire most and why?
• What kind of car, soup, food, etc. are you?
• If you had six months to live with no constraints, what would you do?
• If you could be a superhero, what powers would you have?
• If you could be any character in fiction, whom would you be?
• If Hollywood made a movie about your life, whom would you like to play your role?
• Name three people from history that you would like to have dinner with.
• Name anyone in the world that you would like to trade places with.
• If you were abducted by aliens and they offered you any job you wanted on your new planet, what would you choose?

This list just scratches the surface of potential crazy questions. The important thing is to remember that there really is no right or wrong answers, but don't blurt out the first thing that crosses your mind. Take a breath, think about it for a second and give a calm, composed response. You can be funny and creative, just be sure you don't say something really dumb like a friend of mine who told an interviewer, "If I could be any FISH, I would be a killer whale."