Why should I hire you ?

If you are job-hunting these days. You'd better think about your answer to the question - "Why should I hire you for this job?" because it is one of the staples of the traditional interview script. Believe it or not, there are people out there who still ask this question during interviews.

This question is a great opportunity to sell yourself and your accomplishments. First thing which comes to your mind - How on earth could I tell you without having spent more than 30 minutes in your building, without ever having worked here and without meeting the other applicants, why you should hire me? Here are a few offbeat answers that might just do the trick for you.

1. Answer with required Skills/Experience.
   
   Read the job description twice.  Good job descriptions usually add the exact role you'll be doing at the company. Show that you have the required experience/skill-set to do the job. Use evidence to back-up your claim. Ex If you're applying for a position as an Engineer, give an example of how you tried to improve the efficiency of Electric vehicle Batteries, the problems you faced etc.
   
2. Prove that you are a good Fit.
   

   Employers like to know that you have taken the time to understand their product/team. So take this time to co-relate things you've done in the past with the things the company is trying to achieve. Also relate on a personal level, after-all we're all human beings. Do you believe in the values of the company etc.

   
   
3. Highlight your Unique Qualities.
   

   My English major has given me the necessary writing skills and helped me broaden my outlook. I started out writing content for websites, answering questions on Quora and being generally curious. I've improved over the years. I think there's nothing like a perfect role but this position/Job comes quite close to my dream job. I've been closely following your Organisation.

   
   
4. Honest Answer.
   

   Honestly I can’t say that you should hire me — I haven’t met the other candidates and I won’t, while you’ve met them or will meet them and you know a lot about what the company needs — intangible elements that don’t translate well into a job ad. I can say that if you and I are meant to work together, we’ll both know it. What do you think?

Now Some Best Interview Stories From IITs

1. This happened with a Guy during Flipkart interview at IIT Madras 2014.
   Interviewer: Why should we hire you?
   
   Answer: Sir, you see this shirt? It's size 41. I ordered it on Flipkart. I wear 39. Returned it twice, got the same shirt back. So either change your system, or take me to change it! Because clearly it's not working. 
   
   
   Got the job!
   
2. This happened with a Guy during an interview at one of the IIT.
   Interviewer: So, Mr. X, tell me the number of trees in your campus? Answer: Do you want the exact number? I : What?
   
   Answer: If you want I can tell you the types as well? Would you like that? You see I am part of an organisation called Prakriti which keeps track of all these things. You see those markings on the trees? We did that. 
   I (poker faced) : Well in that case let's move forward. 
   
   He had absolutely no clue how to solve that problem. It was a complete bluff! He had never been part of Prakriti nor had ever been part of the team counting these trees.
   Confidence baby.
   *put on sunglasses and exit to the tune of Smooth Criminal*
   
3. This happened in IITG last year. 
   
   Scenario : One Guy cleared four rounds of a company X and only HR round is remaining.
   HR asked various questions for 30mins and is still confused whether to recruit him or not. Then came the decider
   HR: What are you good at?
   
   Answer: I am very good at telling lies and that's what I have been doing from half an hour.
   And Yes, he is recruited.
   
4. This story is of one of students at IIT Roorkee who was recruited this placement season in Indus Insights, a consultancy firm which is blacklisted in almost all IITs because it hardly recruits anyone. I am not very sure but due to the bad placement season, the company was called to recruit from campus.
   
   
   After two tests 12 people were shortlisted for interviews. He was one of the two who cleared all the interviews and then reached the final HR interview. It started very light but then moved on a high pitch slowly. Just before the conclusion the HR asked him " Why should we recruit you when you have done technical interns while other people have done interns in companies like GS?"
   Him: " Mam, even after that they have already been rejected and walked back to their hostels!"
   HR: "Do you think you will get away with a statement like that?"
   To which his mindblowing reply was " You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain."
   HR smiled and left. After a while she returned and offered him the job. :)
   
   
   After all this he came back and updated his FB status giving Batman the credit for his job. :D
   
   
5. Interview at Facebook.They asked "Why Should we hire you, you don't match your competitors at all?"He replied "Sir, I may not be the best but if you don't hire me now then in the next few years there will be a new Facebook born"- Got rejected.- Founder of Whatsapp.
   
6. Infosys visited our college for campus placements, and a friend was eligible for it. He cleared all the rounds before interview, and his interviewer was a middle-aged man with a deep knowledge of IT industry. My friend didn't believe in the current education system, and he argued with the interviewer over the need of a change, and that was followed by some more arguments. At the end, Interviewer asked the question that mattered the most. 
   
   Interviewer: You are a critic and a rebel. Why should we hire you? Friend: I think it's always good to have a critic/rebel between people who follow 'Yes Sir, Yes Sir' rule. Interviewer: You can leave. 
   To his surprise, he got hired.

Be Smart Not Over-smart.