Answering The Interview Question: Describe Your Best Day At Work
Most times, work can be very stressful and tiring; however, there are days that are exciting, fulfilling, and worthwhile. During the interviewing process, recruitment managers often ask applicants and candidates to describe or give an overview of their best day at work. The question isn’t meant to vilify you; rather, your potential employers are merely trying to have an idea of what excites you at work. Also, interviewers are interested in finding out the things you do at work that make you productive, as well as things that stimulate positivity and growth in your career.
When answering the question, therefore, think about your most exciting day at work; the day you went home feeling satisfied, happy, and proud of yourself. Also, recall all the activities you did on that particular day you went home thinking “I have the best and greatest job in the world”. In addition, make reference to that special day that made you love the work you do. Make reference to all the things you did on that day; be specific with your answers and maintain consistency. In addition, endeavour to highlight difficult challenges that you surmounted, that made the day noteworthy.
Most organizations ask candidates to describe their best day at work in order to ascertain and find out their main strengths and how they put them to use. Relatively, firms and companies strive to decipher the activities that make each candidate achieve a “state of flow” at work by asking this question. Also, Organizations and recruitment managers are interested in verifying the skills and expertise listed in your resume by asking you to describe your best day at work. Therefore, this article will serve as a guide to job seekers on how to describe their best day at work when asked during an interview.
Answering The Question- Describe Your Best Day At Work
The following should be put into consideration when describing your best day at work;
- Understand what the question is probing
- Don’t take the question too literally
- Tailor your answer to suit the role you’re interviewing for
- Don t make a joke out of it
- Include specifics when answering
- Be Authentic, avoid spinning epic stories
Understand what the question is probing: The first step to giving a good answer is having a good and broad understanding of what the question entails. Interviewers ask this question to test and find out what you prioritize and consider valuable at work. Also, your best day at work should encompass what you want to achieve in a short time, rather than “where you see yourself in ten years”. Therefore, don’t rush to answer, understand what the question is about and give a precise and good answer.
Don’t take the question literally: Some applicants make the fatal mistake of taking the question literally when asked. Your best day at work should encompass and include things you did on that day that made you productive and led to the growth of the company. You shouldn’t be talking about going for lunch with colleagues or making new friends at work when describing your best day. Instead, your answer should be channelled to include how you employed your I.T skills for example, in creating new or improving existing software in the company.
Tailor your answer to suit the role or job you are interviewing for: Relating your best day at work to fit in with the role you are applying for is an excellent way of answering this question. This shouldn’t be the place where you debut your fantasy career as a golf pro. If the job you’re seeking involves managing a team, you can display your leadership skills and teamwork by making reference to productive meetings you had with members of your team. On the other hand, if you are interviewing for a role as a content creator/designer, you can talk about how you made a breakthrough using a new form of digital media. This question gives you an opportunity to wave your passion points in with the skills and expertise you want to lay emphasis on during the interview.
Don’t make a joke out of it: Resist the urge of turning this question into a joke. In contrast, treat it as a legitimate question because recruitment managers are hoping to get a sincere answer from each job seeker. At times, applicants might be tempted to say their best day involves staying off work, relaxing poolside, and having drinks. Please refrain from such answers, you will look unserious in front of the interviewers, and subsequently jeopardize your chances of getting hired regardless of your qualifications and experience.
Include specifics when answering: You can use your own professional goals to create specific scenarios that would make you feel fulfilled. But then again, make sure the specifics match up to the job description of the role you are interviewing for. If you have a particular goal, that aligns and is in synergy with the job you applied for, work that in when answering the question. For instance, a candidate applying for a lecturing job can allude to using his/her problem solving and innovative skills to resolve a conflict between students, and feeling satisfied afterward. The significance of including specifics cannot be over-emphasized; it shows your interviewer and prospective employer that you really know what you are doing.
Be authentic, and avoid spinning epic stories: If you are passionate about an aspect of your career, here is an excellent chance to gush about it. The interviewer and recruitment manager are trying to gauge your personal relationship to your job, and the question is an opportunity to show your connection and commitment to the aforementioned. However, make sure to keep your answer as brief as possible, preferably 4-5 points. Also, refrain from including and mentioning characters with backstories. Relatively, always keep in mind that this is an interview process and not a mere casual conversation.
A Sample Answer
A Program Assistant in a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) may describe his/her best day at work thus;
For some time I have been working on two project plans for the next set of projects that my organization was planning to start up in the Eastern part of Nigeria. I have all the data needed from the organization’s strategic plan to the context analysis report that highlights the current issues in Nigeria and the priorities of my organization. I have to find a way to address all the feedback and comments that my line manager and the monitoring and evaluation manager have given on the drafts that I have previously submitted. Time is of the essence here as I am working with a timeline. The monitoring and evaluation bit in particular has been a problem as I have been trying to ensure that all comments and feedback are noted down. Also, since it is an international organization, there is a global framework to consider.
The Global manager of the programme I was managing was visiting country offices in West Africa to provide support in terms of programme planning, implementation, and day-to-day management of these programmes. As part of the visit schedule, I have a session with him for support. I thought this was a great opportunity to discuss the project plans I am currently working on and the challenges that have been causing delays in completion. The day is here and I shared my concerns and challenges with him and the conversation started. In fact, a larger part of the meeting was used to discuss the challenges; he offered recommendations and suggestions on how to make the project plans better.
It took me only five (5) days to complete the project plans that I have been having difficulties completing. My managers were impressed with the content. It didn’t end there, both projects went on to be successfully implemented, modelled, and adopted in other communities in Nigeria as well as used as a good practice in other country offices.
The day I had this meeting with the global manager of the programme I managed turned out to be my best day in the organization.
