Please describe a typical day

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The question | What they are looking for | How to answer | See also

The question

Please describe a typical day.

Tell me about what you do on an average day in your current job.

What they are looking for

In this question they may be testing whether you have a mundane job or something that has constant challenges -- and of course how you meet those challenges.

They may also watch out for attitudes and how enthusiastic you are about your work and how you view your fellow workers and your customers. Criticizing and blaming others will invariably count against you.

They will also compare your answer with what you have said on your resumé/CV.

How to answer

Try to keep your answer realistic rather than describing a perfect situation. A real example of a recent day is more powerful than a generic 'typical' day. Include difficulties and how you overcome them. Show your enthusiasm and dedication. Show how you work well in a team of people. Show your leadership skills. Most of all, show the attributes that they are looking for!

Most days I get in early so I can get emails done and be ready for the project team meeting. On a typical day last week, we had a late change from the client to deal with. I got Roger to do a quick technical feasibility analysis whilst I went to see the Maria Jones, the Account Manager. She explained how important it was, so I reviewed the plan and found a way to get the change in without harming the critical path. The team weren't too happy to have to squeeze in another change, but when I explained how helpful it would be to the customer they got down to updating the specification and use cases. I bought in pizzas to keep them all happy and to let us steal a bit of space at lunchtime. We'd got it done by three and, with Maria mucking in we got everything else back on track by the end of the day.