Craziest Interview Question

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I have had some doozies for interview questions but I don't think I have ever heard of one as goofy as what was asked of my wife 15 years ago.

She was asked, "Would you kill a beautiful butterfly for $10,000?"

She said she would kill it for 10K. She got the job. Almost every person she talked with about the interview said they would not. Those interviewed asked her how could she be so insensitive and cruel. This is not a joke. There is one fact I need to mention. This was for a position at a college.

What is the most bizarre job interview question you were every asked?.
 
The reason that question was asked is about the corruption and payola for the college.

Big corporate America wants colleges and professors to come up with the results that they need.

They wanted to know if she was going to be a player.

Think big Pharma and all the Ag Chemical companies.
 
I would NOT kill for no amount of $$$$. Even the most insignificant insect. Boy, the lasting implications for those that would even pose that question.

We need to make our World a better place!
 
True story: I once had an interview that the interviewer asked me one question, and one question only. "Are you willing to shoot and potentially kill a man?"

Me- "Sure."


I got the job.
smile.gif


PS- I never did have to shoot anyone, which is nice.
 
Originally Posted by Onetor
I would NOT kill for no amount of $$$$. Even the most insignificant insect. Boy, the lasting implications for those that would even pose that question.

How do you drive anywhere then? Or walk, for that matter.
 
Originally Posted by Onetor
I would NOT kill for no amount of $$$$. Even the most insignificant insect. Boy, the lasting implications for those that would even pose that question.

We need to make our World a better place!


Are you a vegetarian? Do you have any leather jackets, belts, shoes, etc.?

Heck, I'd eat a butterfly for $10,000 (if I knew it wasn't one of those poison ones). Stick in between a few slices of ham or mix it in with some HB while making some Sloppy Joes.
I'd have my house paid off after eating half a dozen.
 
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Originally Posted by bubbatime
True story: I once had an interview that the interviewer asked me one question, and one question only. "Are you willing to shoot and potentially kill a man?"

Me- "Sure."


I got the job.
smile.gif


PS- I never did have to shoot anyone, which is nice.


It ain't over yet
39.gif
 
I had an employer ask me all sorts of weird stuff so I think it's throw you off your game and the answer isn't as important as how you react.

1) How do you take your coffee: I answered with, when do I start, a slight laugh and smile, and then at that time said Double Double.

2) If you and someone else were about to die would your save yourself or the other person: I smiled and jokingly asked if I liked the person and then followed with I would try to save both of us even if it meant I might risk my own life. Not at this job but I had a situation like this at a place of employment and we luckily both came out of it alive. (Stupid decision on my part looking back because I could have been killed)

3) Name a time in your life when you had a personal struggle (not work related), what was it and how did you resolve it? I answered with, I think it through logically and wire a pro's / con's list and then decide best way forward.

That's about it in the 21 years I have been working.
 
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I never had any crazy questions, just the general, cliche typical ones. I did have one "trick" question, which I personally liked but some of the other guys who interviewed there (I knew some of them from school) didnt like. Mostly because they didnt get hired because of it. It was super simple.

I was in aviation school to get my A&P license, we were toward the end and getting ready to take our barrage of tests to get our license, and a local airline came in and did a small mass interview for a few positions they had opening up. I interviewed along with ten or twelve other students. I went in, answered all the typical interview type questions. I thought I was doing well. After about 20 minutes of more questions, a nice, well dressed guy came in, said hello, and sat down. He reached into his pocket and laid out on the desk a 9 volt battery, clipped to a 9V battery clip, and the two wires on the clip were connected to a small light socket with a flashlight battery in it. He said "The battery is brand new and shows 9v on a multimeter, but the light wont light because it is burnt out. Fix it." He then reached into his pocket and put a spare bulb on the desk. Then he said "Let me know when you are done" and he sat there with a blank stare on his face and watched. I figured there was a trick to this, I looked at it for a second, and thought this is too easy, there is some trick or they are looking for something very specific. I stared at it for a second or two and thought, just do it strictly by the book. I picked it up, disconnected the battery from the clip, unscrewed the bulb, but the new bulb in, reconnected the battery, and handed it all back to him, light shining bright. I figured, this was so simple, I had to have screwed it up. He smiled, shook my hand, and said "Thanks for your time." A few more minutes of questions with the interview girl, got up and left. I got a phone call about an hour later with a job offer.

The next day in class all of us who were interviewed were sitting around talking, and the three of us who got offers were shooting high fives to each other, congratulating ourselves. The others who had interviewed but who didnt get offers yet were all sitting around wondering why they hadnt heard anything and wondering if they were even going to. They talked about the interviewer, the questions, the battery and the light, etc. They figured there was something they did or said that didnt go over well.

Then one of our teachers came in, said I heard some of you interviewed for open spots in maintenance down at the airport and only three of you got offers. I know why the rest of you arent going to. Everyone got quiet. He asked if everyone got their light working. We all nodded yes. He leaned in and quietly asked "Did you all disconnect the battery before replacing the light bulb?" A lot of eyes got big and eyebrows went up. He said "You all interviewed fine. But you failed the practical test. The guy who handed you that battery and light was the head of aircraft electrical systems. He said if you arent astute enough to disconnect electrical power before working on a live electrical circuit, then you dont pay enough attention to details to be working on the planes his pilot friends are going to be flying."

UUMPHFFF....
 
Strangest question I was ever asked during an interview was why are manhole covers round? I said so they can't be dropped down inside the hole...I didn't get the job so I have no idea if that was the correct answer or not...
 
Originally Posted by Gebo

Are you a vegetarian? Do you have any leather jackets, belts, shoes, etc.?
Heck, I'd eat a butterfly for $10,000 (if I knew it wasn't one of those poison ones). Stick in between a few slices of ham or mix it in with some HB while making some Sloppy Joes.
I'd have my house paid off after eating half a dozen.

This makes me think of a Wendy's salad I had once...moth instead of butterfly, though.
Saw it before I ate it...
 
Butterfly question. Phhhhffff. Stupid. No wonder our education system is effed up.

For a software engineering job I got asked "How would you measure the water flow of the MIssissippi River in cubic feet per second?

I got the job.

Scott
 
I was given a psychological profile once by a recruiter for a huge multinational company...stuff like there's a big crisis and do you want to be the hero and fix things, run away and hope it goes away, let somebody smarter tell me how to fix things, etc.
The desired answers were obvious, so I gave the desired answers...which mostly coincided with my own feelings.
I got the job and really wished I hadn't, the small office I ended up in was terrible and I had the worst boss I've experienced by a long shot. An out and out sadist...
 
I wish I could take credit for this, but I cannot.

A very good friend of mine was going through the interview process at a large company.
After one or two preliminary interviews, he then met with the president of the company in his office.

Company President: Where do you see yourself in five years?
My Friend: The other side of this desk.

Yep, he got the job.
 
I've had a few interviews where not a single technical question was asked, even though I work in a technical field. It was apparently all behavioral and mandated by the company for all interviews for positions where a college degree is needed.
 
Originally Posted by Rand
How many days a year will you miss/call off?

Laugh slightly and ask if they are willing to advance these to you at your start date and follow-up with Just kidding of course.
 
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