Have you ever been in an interview and found that the interviewer was asking very similar questions over and over again? The questions may sound different, but in fact, what the person is asking is essentially the same.

This is why consistency, clarity, and integrity are an important part of your job interview. Interviewers are often seeking to understand a personal fully, and to listen to any inconsistencies.

For example, if you said you left an employer for better employment opportunities (very general answer), yet you bring up a conflict with your manager in your interview, you’ll be sure that the interviewer will pick up on this. They will then ask more questions that will come back around to finding the real answer. Interviewers know that people are going to give the best answers they can in an interview, but when asking a question repeatedly it generally makes the interviewee drop their defenses and get to a more honest answer.

Consider this, if you were asked a question and then were repeatedly asked to dig deeper, how would you respond? What happens is that you are given a chance to really think about your answer as you reflect on the reasons behind your actions. This is where consistency, clarity and integrity come into play.

It’s actually a great topic to think about prior to your interview. You can ask yourself questions such as:

• What do I stand for?
• What are my values?
• What’s really important to me?

Then, when you start your interview you can have a clear direction and focus for your answers. As the person digs deeper, they shouldn’t get a different answer because your first answer will be in alignment with your integrity.

What do you think? Have you been in a situation like this before?