How to Deal With 'Do You Have Any Questions For Me?' in a Job Interview

A common question among job candidates is how to deal with the “Do you have any questions for me?” question. The question seems to stress many people, but it doesn’t have to be complicated.

Why do people ask, “Do you have any questions for me?”

“Do you have any questions for me?” is commonplace in job interviews. It’s automatic, similar to asking your coworkers how their weekend was every Monday. Let’s be honest: Most of us aren’t interested, but it’s something we pretend we care about for social etiquette’s sake.

This question is the same: The job interviewer asks the question to signal that the interview is wrapping up.

How you should approach the job interview

A job interview should be a natural, organic conversation with a normal give-and-take. It shouldn’t be a robotic sequence of the interviewer asking a question, you answering dispassionately, and so on.

The “Do you have any questions for me?” question shouldn’t be awkward. If you have a few questions, since you’ve already established an open dialogue, you won’t feel uncomfortable asking another genuine question or two.

Alternatively, you should feel comfortable asking questions during the job interview instead of at the end.

If you are sincerely interested and excited about something the interviewer says, feel comfortable offering a passionate answer with specific, thoughtful follow-up questions.

The bottom line

When interviewing for an important position, you must be completely engaged. Pay close attention to all of the social cues offered by the interviewer, including their style of interviewing, mannerisms, the pattern of their speech, tone of their voice and other signs that will help you establish a rapport, build trust and enable you to effectively sell your skills and abilities.

This article was written by Jack Kelly for Forbes and was lightly edited and published with permission.