How to Answer Why Do You Want to Work Here

How to Answer Why Do You Want to Work HereHow to Answer Why Do You Want to Work HereWhen you go in for a job interview, youre bound to be asked a bunch of garden-variety questions about your previous work experiences, education, and skills. You might also be asked those challenging interview questions that are designed to trip up any potential job candidate (i.e., What would you do if I died?)Seriously, how are you even supposed to answer that?But of all the job interview questions that can keep you on your toes- and possibly turn a stellar job interview into something sour- the question, Why do you want to work here? is one of the big ones.Answer it correctly, and chances are the job can be yours. Tank it, and you might not ever hear back from the employer. If youre faced with the interview question, heres how to answer the Why do you want to work here? question.How toAnswer Why Do You Want to Work Here?1. Know the company inside and out.Employers are a particular bunch. They dont w ant to hire just any old employee who has the qualifications and skills to fit the job.No, they want to hire someone who eats, sleeps, and breathes their business. So just skimming the surface and reading the companys About Us page or doing a quickie Google search isnt going to be enough.If this is a job that you really want, you should have a working knowledge of the companys history, its major milestones, where it stands today, andany breaking industry information about the company. (It also helps to follow the company on social media, too)By knowing all this, youre showing a potential employer that youre not just applying to any and every position that you find, regardless of whether you want the job or not.2. Show how your interests align with the position.Every company has a message and a mission, and its up to you as a job seeker to show how your beliefs align with those of the companys. Maybe the company has a strong humanitarian outreach or donates to a charity that you are passionate about.Whatever the cause is, make sure that when you answer the question, Why do you want to work here, you help show a potential boss how your interests, education, and trajectory of your career path all connect you to this one job. Pinpoint particular parts of the position that you feel strongly about so that the employer feels, aprs interview, that this is the one and only job for you.3. Make it personal.Its easy to regurgitate your resume and cover letter during an interview to show how your previous work experiences make you a perfect candidate for the position. But thats not going to be enough if you want to win over a hiring manager.Instead, make it personal. Tell a story or relate how working for the company would be meaningful to you on both a professional andpersonal level.During an interview with a womens interest magazine, one of my interviewers (a working mom) talked about how to help working moms make connections to their kids during the workday. Immediately I lifted up my sleeve to show her a gummy bracelet that my daughter had given me for good luck during the interview and said that welches how I was connecting to her.My potential boss eyes lit up, and I was offered the job the next day. Was wearing a gummy bracelet the sole reason I was hired for the job? No, of course not, but it definitely showed that I understood the company as well as its demographic, and how it all personally related to me.4. Know what not to say.Equally as important as what to say is what not to say. Even if youre desperate to ditch a painfully long commute- and the company is one that has a strong remote work policy- you dont want to tell an employer that.Employers want to feel that they are more than just a paycheck and the potential to work in PJs all day to you. Ditto for admitting that youve been job searching for so long and youre just desperate to get hired. While honesty has its place in job interviews, you want to make an employer feel special.As a g ood job seeker, you want to nail every job interview question correctly. Knowing exactly why you want to work for a specific company can help you answer the question, Why do you want to work here? knowledgeably, accurately, and make you memorable to the employer so that youll eventually get a job offer.Readers, how have you answered the Why do you want to work here? question? Have you ever goofed it, and what happened? Let us know in the comments below