Can You Think Outside the Box? Real Interview Scenarios That Test Your Wit and Creativity

Excellent! Candidates for the Indian Army were asked, "What is the color of the wall behind you?" Almost all turned around to see the wall behind them and were disqualified. The smart ones looked at the wall in front and told the color because in most cases, all four walls are of the same color.

My uncle was asked at an interview: "Does your mother stay with you?" He replied: "No, I stay with my mother." Presence of mind!

Question 1: You are driving along in your car on a wild, stormy night. It's raining heavily when suddenly you pass by a bus stop, and you see three people waiting for a bus:
- An old lady who looks as if she is about to die.
- An old friend who once saved your life.
- The perfect partner you have been dreaming about.

Which one would you choose to offer a ride to, knowing very well that there could only be one passenger in your car?

This is a moral/ethical dilemma that was once actually used as part of a job application.

- You could pick up the old lady because she is going to die, and thus you should save her first;
- Or you could take the old friend because he once saved your life, and this would be the perfect chance to pay him back;
- However, you may never be able to find your perfect mate again.

The candidate who was hired (out of 200 applicants) had no trouble coming up with his answer. Guess what was his answer? He simply answered: "I would give the car keys to my old friend and let him take the lady to the hospital. I would stay behind and wait for the bus with the partner of my dreams."

Sometimes, we gain more if we are able to give up our stubborn thought limitations. Never forget to "Think Outside the Box."

Question 2: Again in an interview, a candidate was asked, "What will you do if I run away with your sister?"

The candidate who was selected answered, "I will not get a better match for my sister than you, sir."

Question 3: Interviewer (to a student girl candidate) - What if one morning you woke up and found that you were pregnant?

Girl - "I will be very excited and take a day off to celebrate with my husband."

Normally, an unmarried girl will be shocked to hear this, but she managed it quite well and was selected. "Why should I think of it in the wrong way?" she said later when asked.

Question 4: Interviewer ordered a cup of coffee for the candidate. Coffee arrived and was kept on the table in front of the candidate, the Interviewer asked, "What is before you?"

Candidate: Instantly replied, "Tea."

He got selected. Now most of us would be wondering why did he say "TEA" when he knew very well that coffee was kept before him and why was he selected?

Answer: The question was "What is before you 'U' - the alphabet. Reply was 'T' - the alphabet.

Question 5: Interviewer to the Candidate: "This is your last question of the interview. Please tell me the exact position of the center of this table."

The candidate confidently put one of his fingers at some point on the table and told that this was the central point of the table. The Interviewer asked how did you get to know that this is the central point of this table?

The candidate answered quickly, "Sir, you are not to ask any more questions, as that was the last question that you promised to ask."

And he was selected because of his quick-wittedness. This is what Interviewers expect from the candidates. "Think Outside the Box."

Excellent! Candidates for the Indian Army were asked, "What is the color of the wall behind you?" Almost all turned around to see the wall behind them and were disqualified. The smart ones looked at the wall in front and told the color because in most cases, all 4 walls are of the same color.

My uncle was asked at an interview: "Does your mother stay with you?" He replied: "No, I stay with my mother." Presence of mind!

Question 1:

You are driving along in your car on a wild, stormy night. It's raining heavily when suddenly you pass by a bus stop, and you see three people waiting for a bus:
- An old lady who looks as if she is about to die.
- An old friend who once saved your life.
- The perfect partner you have been dreaming about.

Which one would you choose to offer a ride to, knowing very well that there could only be one passenger in your car?

This is a moral/ethical dilemma that was once actually used as part of a job application.
- You could pick up the old lady because she is going to die, and thus you should save her first;
- Or you could take the old friend because he once saved your life, and this would be the perfect chance to pay him back.
- However, you may never be able to find your perfect mate again.

The candidate who was hired (out of 200 applicants) had no trouble coming up with his answer. Guess what was his answer? He simply answered: "I would give the car keys to my old friend and let him take the lady to the hospital. I would stay behind and wait for the bus with the partner of my dreams."

Sometimes, we gain more if we are able to give up our stubborn thought limitations. Never forget to "Think Outside the Box."

Question 2:

Again in an interview, a candidate was asked, "What will you do if I run away with your sister?"

The candidate who was selected answered, "I will not get a better match for my sister than you, sir."

Question 3:

Interviewer (to a student girl candidate) - "What if one morning you woke up and found that you were pregnant?"

Girl - "I will be very excited and take a day off to celebrate with my husband."

Normally, an unmarried girl would be shocked to hear this, but she managed it quite well and was selected. "Why should I think of it in the wrong way?" she said later when asked.

Question 4:

Interviewer ordered a cup of coffee for the candidate. Coffee arrived and was kept on the table in front of the candidate; the interviewer asked, "What is before you?"

Candidate: Instantly replied, "Tea."

He got selected. Now most of us would be wondering why did he say "TEA" when he knew very well that coffee was kept before him and why was he selected?

Answer: The question was, "What is before you 'U' - the alphabet. Reply was 'T' - the alphabet.

Question 5:

Interviewer to the Candidate: "This is your last question of the interview. Please tell me the exact position of the center of this table."

The candidate confidently put one of his fingers at some point on the table and told that this was the central point of the table. The interviewer asked, "How did you know that this is the central point of this table?"

The candidate answered quickly, "Sir, you are not to ask any more questions, as that was the last question that you promised to ask."

And he was selected because of his quick-wittedness.

This is what the interviewer expects from the candidates. "THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX."

Some of the questions are indeed fantastic, which compel the candidates to think. At the same time, I have my reservations about questions such as "What is in front of U?" A natural answer would be Coffee. But if I want to outsmart the guy who interviews me, I can certainly give 10 answers. However, the problem here is, the moment we try to exhibit our extra smartness, we might end up hurting the ego of the interviewer. So, I feel we just need to be careful by adding a pinch of humility. Basically, we need to read the mind of the interviewer. Most people don't even know how to conduct an interview.

All the best. Mushtaq