The most asked question in an interview and the best way to answer

One of the most common questions that Six Degrees ask when we interview talent is for a snapshot of their career history.

TL;DR
The most common interview question about your career history requires a succinct, two-minute narrative focusing on key progression points, rather than a detailed list of past responsibilities and KPIs.

Key Takeaways:

• The most common interview question is for a snapshot of your career history.

• Interviewers seek a succinct, sharp overview of your career progression, not a detailed list of responsibilities and KPIs for every role.

• Your response should ideally take no more than two minutes in total.

• Avoid rambling tangents by skipping deep dives into past responsibilities; those details will be covered in later, structured questions.

• Prepare by identifying three to five key development periods in your career.

• Shape your answer into a narrative that tells a story of where you've been, focusing on your motivations and passions, and where you are logically headed.

The response that we get to this question can vary massively from a short 30 seconds to 20 minutes of tangents and rambling. Our clients also give us the same feedback.

To address this, we thought we would lift the lid on this question. What answers are interviewers looking for, and how can you prepare your ideal response?

What are we looking for?

A succinct, sharp overview of your career. This doesn’t include responsibilities and KPI’s for every job, just a general overview of how your career has progressed. It should take no more than two minutes in total.

Why don’t we want to know about your responsibilities and KPI’s?

If you have been working for more than a few years and in a number of different roles with several businesses, going into this level of detail means it is far easier to get distracted from your key points.

But don’t you need to know those things?

Yes. Absolutely. But we will have a structure to ask you within the interview questions as we progress.

So how do I prepare?

Look over your CV and career. Pick three to five key development periods and then practice how to discuss the impact they had on your career progression. Think about these in regards to your motivations and passions. Shape your snapshot in a way that tells a story that shows where you have been and where you are logically going.