In a job interview, there is one question that is more important than any other.  If you are a searching for a job, you are sure to hear this question.  And if you are a CDF helping job seekers, your customers and clients will hear it. 

“Why should I hire you?”  That’s the question.

The interviewer wants to know … “What do you bring to our company that will benefit the company?”  The interviewer wants to know … “What makes you different and better than the other people I am interviewing?”  That’s where the decision to hire will be made.  And that’s where an experienced interviewer is going to take the interview sooner or later.

The best indication of the future is the past, and a smart, savvy job seeker knows what s/he has accomplished for other employers and what s/he can do for the company where s/he is now interviewing.

All job seekers should be prepared to answer this question.  Whether you hear it exactly in these terms or in a series of other (less direct) questions, that’s what the interview is all about.  The more specific an applicant can be about what s/he has accomplished in the past and how this will benefit the new company in the future, the more likely that job seeker is to get a job offer.

Are you going on a job interview soon?  Do you know someone else who is?  Every job applicant should be prepared to answer this question before going into the interview.