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 Q. How Do You Manage
Your Time?

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TIP #1 – Unless you can clearly explain to the

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interviewer how you MANAGE YOUR TIME, you will

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not get hired.

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TIP #2 – In your answer, talk about having a
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SCHEDULE and setting realistic TIME LIMITS for each
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task you are responsible for.
HERE’S MY EXAMPLE ANSWER TO HELP YOU!
 Q. How Do You Manage Your Time?
“I manage my time by planning in advance the duties and tasks I am
responsible for.
I calculate how long each task is likely to take me to complete, and I always

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consider any potential problems that might occur, and factor these into my

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time.

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For regular workplace tasks, I will create a daily schedule. The more I

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complete the schedule, the faster I become which then frees up time

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for me to assist my co-workers, and carry out professional

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development training.
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To manage my time effectively, I consider the priorities of the team or
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company I am working for, I set reasonable time limits for each task, and I
am not afraid to say no when needed so as to reduce distractions.”
 Q. How Do You Prioritize
Your Work?

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TIP #1 – This a very common time management

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interview question that comes up during most

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interviews. Make sure you prepare an answer to it.

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TIP #2 – In your response, talk about using a COLOR
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SCHEME to prioritize urgent and non-urgent tasks.
HERE’S MY EXAMPLE ANSWER TO HELP YOU!
 Q. How Do You Prioritize Your Work?
“I prioritize my work based on the needs of the company.
I draw up a list of daily tasks and then decide which ones need
to be completed first.

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Level one, or red tasks, need my immediate attention.

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Level two, or orange tasks come next.

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Finally, level three or green tasks can be completed when I

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have more time available.
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I also make sure there is flexibility in my working day so I can
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respond to urgent tasks or work requests from my manager.”
 Q. Tell Me About A Time When
You Had To Manage A Stressful,
Time-Pressured Situation.

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TIP #1 – This is a time-management behavioural

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interview question where you must give a SPECIFIC

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SITUATION you have been in.
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TIP #2 – Use the S.T.A.R technique to structure your
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answer.
LET ME EXPLAIN THE S.T.A.R TECHNIQUE!
 S.T.A.R TECHNIQUE
SITUATION – Start your answer by explaining the

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SITUATION you were faced with.

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TASK – Give details about the TASK that needed doing.

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ACTION – Next, give in-depth details about the

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ACTION you took to complete the task.
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RESULT – Finally, tell the interviewer the RESULTS of
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your actions.
HERE’S MY EXAMPLE ANSWER TO HELP YOU!
 Q. Tell Me About A Time When You Had To Manage A
Stressful, Time-Pressured Situation.
SITUATION: I was working on a project with four team
members when two of them went off sick unexpectedly

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seven days before the project deadline.

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TASK: I wasn’t prepared to extend the project deadline, so

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it was my task to find a solution to this time sensitive

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problem.
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ACTION: I assessed the outstanding project tasks and
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decided some of them could be reassigned to the
remainder of the team.
 Q. Tell Me About A Time When You Had To Manage A
Stressful, Time-Pressured Situation.
ACTION: However, there were still some technical duties that
needed completing that nobody in the team was qualified to

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undertake.

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I searched online and managed to find a suitable freelancing

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website where I could hire people with the relevant technical

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qualifications and expertise to carry out the tasks.

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After interviewing one of them via Skype, I hired him to
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complete the remaining technical duties.
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RESULT: By remaining calm, by thinking outside the box and
working extra hours myself in the evening, I was still able to get
the project completed on time for my employer.
Q. If You Were Assigned A Large
Project, How Would You Make
Sure You Completed It On Time?

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TIP #1 – This is a tough time management interview

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question to answer. It is assessing your task and completion

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capabilities.

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TIP #2 – In your answer, talk about creating a PLAN OF ACTION
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for the project, and also setting yourself MILESTONES to reach
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to ensure you achieve your objectives.
HERE’S MY EXAMPLE ANSWER TO HELP YOU!
 Q. If You Were Assigned A Large Project, How Would You Make Sure You Completed It On Time?

“I would first obtain a thorough brief of what I was responsible for, and
the project deadline I must meet.
I would ask questions to make sure I fully understood the project

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requirements. I would then create a plan of action, assess each area of the

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project to decide how much time to allocate to each task, and then set

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definitive milestones I had to achieve.

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I would also determine the potential threats to the project completion

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and put contingency plans in place if needed.
I would clear my diary to make sure I had the time to complete the project,
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inform my co-workers that I would be working on the project and respectfully
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ask them not to distract me, and then set to work.
Finally, I would periodically assess my progress against the project
milestones to make sure I was on track to achieve success.”
 Q. Tell Me About A Time
When You Missed A Deadline.

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TIP #1 – The interviewer is assessing what you did to learn

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from the experience of missing a deadline. BE HONEST!

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TIP #2 – Again, give a SPECIFIC SITUATION you have been

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in where you missed a deadline but you took positive action to

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learn from the experience so it never happened again.
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Don’t forget to use the S.T.A.R technique to structure your
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answer!
HERE’S MY EXAMPLE ANSWER TO HELP YOU!
 Q. Tell Me About A Time When You Missed A Deadline.
SITUATION: When I first started work, my supervisor
gave me an important task to complete by the end of
the working day.

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TASK: The task involved carrying out a stock check of all

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company products and then determining their total value.

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My supervisor needed the information for a

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management team meeting she was having the
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ACTION: Unfortunately, I went head on into the task
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without first considering what I was going to do, and how I

was going to do it.
 Q. Tell Me About A Time When You Missed A Deadline.
ACTION: As a result, I ended up missing some of the
products from the stock take which resulted in me finishing
the task an hour late.

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As soon as I realized I was going to miss the deadline, I informed

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my supervisor, apologized, and rectified the issue.

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RESULT: Moving forward, I never made the same mistake

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again.

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Now, whenever I have responsibility for time-sensitive tasks, I
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create a plan of action which determines the exact amount of time
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it will take me, and I make sure there are no distractions.
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I am pleased to say that I have never missed a deadline since.

 Q. How Do You Maintain A
Healthy Work-Life Balance?

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TIP #1 – Again, this time management question

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comes up often during job interviews so please

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make sure you have an answer prepared.

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TIP #2 – In your response, talk about what you do
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both inside and outside of work to maintain a
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healthy work-life balance.

HERE’S MY EXAMPLE ANSWER TO HELP YOU!
Q. How Do You Maintain A Healthy Work-Life Balance?
“I maintain a healthy work-life balance by following several simple
rules. I always make a list of tasks I am responsible for, and I tick them
off as a I go.

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This makes me feel good because I can then see the progress I am making

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against my responsibilities. Whilst at work, I always focus on what I need to

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do, and I block out any distractions.

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I also take time outside of work for physical activities. Early in the

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morning, I go for a brisk walk for 30 minutes and this sets me up for

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the day. Several evenings during the week, I visit the gym.
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Maintaining an active personal life helps to improve concentration levels at
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work, and increases positivity. Finally, to maintain a healthy work-life
balance, I find time to relax at home, and I practice mindfulness several
times a week.”