How to Respond to Interview Questions You Don't Know How to Answer

It’s not a secret that job interviews can be nerve wracking. Yet no matter how prepared you are, sometimes the interviewer hits you with unexpected questions that you don’t really know how to answer.

Nowadays preparing for a job interview can be easy enough. You can conveniently find lists of generally asked questions or mock interview videos on the internet. However, sometimes things don’t work out how you want it to be, despite your best effort to prepare yourself.

Sometimes the interviewer will ask you surprising questions that leave you stunned. A lot of jobseekers dreaded this situation, afraid it can affect their performance. It can disturb the pacing of the conversation and even dampen your confidence.

This kind of circumstance is indeed scary, yet it doesn’t mean it isn’t manageable. Here are some approaches that will help you deal with tough interview questions.

How to Answer Questions You Don’t Know

The general rule when you don’t know the answer to a question is don’t panic. Of course, this is easier said than done. Yet if you can do it well, you can turn this awkward situation into an opportunity to showcase your soft skills.

Take Your Time

Upon hearing the question, you might feel that your brain freezes for a bit. In this situation, take your time to calm yourself and take a breath. Maintain a calm posture, so you will show the interviewer that you remain collected despite being caught off-guard. Don’t rush yourself to answer the question right away, you can say something simple like “that’s an interesting question. Could I take some time to think it over?”

It Doesn’t Always Have to be the Right Answer

Sometimes, your thought process in handling a question is more important than the actual answer. Thus, it’s okay to say that you are not familiar with the question. You can direct the conversation to an adjacent topic you’re more confident with. You can start with “I’m not very familiar with that concept, but…”

Be Honest, Don’t Fake Your Answer

It’s better to say that the question is beyond your comprehension than to lie about it. Again, the purpose of some tricky questions is to find out how you work through a problem. If you pretend to know what you’re talking about, it can possibly reveal your weaknesses. You wouldn’t want the interviewer to think bad of you.

Take the Opportunity to Follow Up

If you don’t know how to turn the conversation into a related topic, you can always offer to get back to them after doing some research. By doing this, you show that you have commitment and are actually interested in the role. You can also use this opportunity to do a follow up on the interview. You can send a thank you email, followed by something like “I thought about your question, and I think…”

Conclusion

In the end, just try to be your best self during the interview. The purpose of the hiring process is to find out whether the candidate has the needed skill and interest the company needs. The interviewer is not there to judge you and your inability to answer. Instead, if you can use that opportunity to show your problem-solving skill.

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