How do I answer "Tell us about a time you......." when I have no examples.

[Newjobadvice]

I took voluntary redundancy last year, had some time out and started looking for work towards the end of the year. I got a good settlement and could afford to be fairly picky with what I was applying for so I’ve only applied for about 12 jobs so far, out of which 2 were withdrawn after closing date, probably due to a recruitment freeze, 2 I never heard back at all, 4 were rejections and I’ve had 4 interviews.

I felt all the interviews went well but none have resulted in an offer, I’m still waiting the outcome of the last one but the interview was over a week ago and they said they’d make a decision by the end of last week.

I think where I’m struggling is when they ask questions like “tell us about a time when…..” and I kind of go blank and start waffling. Now I know what they’re looking for, they want an example of a problem you faced and how you resolved it or alternatively when things didn’t go so well but what lessons were learned and plans put in place for the future.

My problem is I simply can’t think of examples, I’ve spent the last 20 years in admin/customer service in the public sector. I don’t think “I remember the time the Director had an unexpected VIP visitor and I had to make them tea but we’d run out of milk so they had to have it black but after that I always made sure we had some UHT in” is the sort of example they’re looking for. To be clear I have NEVER actually used that but that’s the level of problem I encountered. I literally used to type, file and compile spreadsheets. My line management structure was very top heavy e.g. Supervisor<Team Leader<Assistant Manager<Manager<Senior Manager and responsibilities at each level were jealously guarded so I never really had much opportunity of contributing to problem-solving (did I mention it was Public Sector).

I could probably think of a few examples from my personal life but I’m not comfortable discussing that with strangers.

Does anyone have any advice of the sort of things I could say?

TL:DR I struggle to give examples in job interviews of problem-solving etc because I was basically a minion allowed no responsibility..

I think it’s helpful to remember that your examples don’t have to be big life-changing things. They can be really small, everyday stuff- the aim is to demonstrate how you approach the problem rather than to show that you’re the one who saved the day, if you see what I mean. So it doesn’t have to be VIP visitors etc. You must have some example of problem solving from your customer service work, surely? Eg customer was having a problem filling in a form so you took the time to talk them through it methodically and in doing so discovered that they’d actually downloaded the wrong form (or whatever) and you were able to explain that they needed X not Y etc.

Once you’ve got your examples, chat gpt is very good at putting them into STAR format. Definitely worth getting all this stuff on paper, then you can look at it before the interview. Don’t try and wing it.

You could always use examples from real life too?

I interview and sometimes the most basic answer is a really good one and shows full understanding of the competency. The example you mentioned is fine if you talk about company reputation, impact of the VIP taking his business elsewhere, how a simple solution can solve the issue and you learned from it

Ime admins are actually often the problem solvers!

Have you done calendar management a for example? High level meeting clashes, etc might give you something. As pp said you can use personal life too. Customer service, as if you never had to deal with problems😂 Customers are one big walking problem half the time.

Remember one thing. You always did more than you think. Ask someone around you kf they can think of example, like partner, former colleagues. You will be well surprised.

If you struggle to come up with stories on the spot do make sure you prep them in advance. Put the essential criteria and job description into chat GPT and ask it to give you example questions so you can prep the stories that you can choose from on the day.

Also, if you really really don't have an example, then answer how you WOULD approach the scenario instead.. not as good obviously but better than nothing.

Which specific questions are you stumbling on as you missed out the crucial bits with ....!

Tell us abut a time you...
Worked well as a team?
Solved a problem?
Went above and beyond?
Mentored new colleague?
Something else?

You need to think of 5 examples and then tailor them to each question.

You can make them up if you need to. Hi can use examples of what other people have done and pass them off as your own

I agree it’s ok for you to use hypothetical examples as part of your answer. For example, if you feel that your answer is a bit small, you can always talk through using the STAR format, but then conclude with reflections about what you took from it, and what you would do differently next time, including in situations relevant to the role you’re applying for.

Have a generic, true story of when you did something great, that isn't too niche. e.g. I completely reprioritised the teams work to meet a tight deadline. Then, embellish it with some made-up detail to cover the thing they're after.

e.g. "Tell us about a time you dealt with an unhappy customer"

"The customer deadline was looming and they could see that we were unlikely to complete on time. I took an honest approach and explained the reason for the delay, and that the team would be focussing all their efforts on getting this done on time. I then looked at the team's workload, delegated and reprioritised tasks where possible to ensure my commitment to the customer was upheld".

Generic stories of "good stuff" are quite easily moulded to something extra, and it's easier than thinking of a whole new story on the spot.

@fatgirlswims

All of the above, I did mean to be quite generic as the exact wording differs e.g. from the last interview I think it was "tell us about a time when something went well and also a time when things didn't go so well" and I struggled to find actual examples and tried to explain my thought process. I thought it had gone OK but I think I'd have heard by now if i'd been successful.

I'm a very practical, down to earth person and I would actually say I am good at problem solving but because my way of working is if I encounter an issue, I sort it and move on and don't give it another thought, I can't think of specific examples. Anything that needed brought to the attention of a supervisor would get "taken over" and I'd be told they'd deal with it. I've previously had suggestions for improvement either knocked back or, if implemented taken completely out of my hands (did I say I worked in the public sector).

I'm probably coming across as a bit whiny here but this is partly a MN rant and it's not at all what I'm like in interviews. I'm just frustrated as the last interview was for a job I really wanted.

Thanks everyone for the advice so far.

I used to do design work for a company and my clients were a chap who managed global projects for said company and his deputy who managed the uk offices. One day they looked particularly stressed and it was all due to the CEO visiting London and there not being any bananas in the office, apparently it had kicked off. So don't underestimate the importance of a correct brew being available!

Make it up!!!

So you've made suggestions for improvements that have been implemented?

Tell us about those. I bet they'd be good for an example, even if you didn't do the implementing!

I would make it up if I couldn't think of anything. You know the format

Situation
Task
Action
result

Then it's simple - a time you triumphed over adversity

At University I was studying xxxx, we had to yyyy, my part in this was that I zzzzz resulting in Kkkkk.

In my last job a target I had was aaaaa in order to achieve it I had to cccccc. I chose to do ddddddd and the result was I exceeded the target two months into the year and increased productivity by ccc pc

Definitely think about possible examples and stretch the truth if need be. And write them out in star format above.

Referring to a supervisor is decision made could both a time something went well or not so well

Suggesting plans to be implemented is a success

Staying late/ covering colleagues is team work

Following instructions in a timely manner is a success.

Being reliable and on time

Finding something out and getting back to a third party is using initiative

Reflecting on past problems (eg prep for meeting) and ensuring they don't occur again-

Now for each of these actions think of the situation, the task, and the result.

What impact does this have?

Slightly off topic, but I recently had an interview and was advised that at the end of the interview when you are asked, 'Is there anything else you would like to know?' or similar, you should ask something like 'Do you have any reservations about whether I am suitable for this job?'

If they say yes, then it gives you the chance to expand on a previous answer or give additional information. If they say no, then you can assume you are in with a fighting chance of getting it.

I think you have to be quite brave to ask though!

It’s all about preparation. Most companies will ask the same/very similar questions so you need to have your answer and examples prepared in advance. Have them written out in STAR format as has already been said and put them on notecards that you can take to an interview with you so that you can refresh your memory on the way/whilst waiting.

Are you going for civil service jobs? They'll be looking for the STAR method in all your answers. You need to have examples of these questions prepared before interviews

If you have genuinely never had anything very significant in terms of responsibly, I'm assuming the roles you're applying for are similar - in which case why would you think they would be looking for a killer 'I single handed saved the day' example? So your milk example would be perfectly sufficient.

And seriously, if you can't spend an hour interview prep writing down half a dozen examples of working in a team, helping a colleague, calming a stressed customer, turning around emails within 24 hours, do you really deserve the job?

I realise that's arsey, but saying this isn't how you do interviews is irrelevant - this is how interviews are. They're not not peculiar, and they are easy to deal with as long as you do some very basic prep. TLDR - stop whinging and get on with it!

Anything that needed brought to the attention of a supervisor would get "taken over" and I'd be told they'd deal with it.

This demonstrates you have an understanding of your own level of responsibility and when to refer to others. A key part of problem solving and decision making.

Thanks again for all the replies.

@titchy
You're right, in fact I abhor responsibility and have never aspired to have any. In fact, in my last job my Team Leader tried to convince to apply for the Supervisor post but managing people is my idea of hell. I am happy in my mediocrity and I suspect many employers just want someone who can get on with the job without fuss, which is me all over.

The last person we employed is a very practical person. The examples she gave were very prosaic - organising things slightly differently in the office, managing potential meeting clashes, suggesting a different way of laying out a standard letter to make it clearer.

None of it was earth shattering. But we were impressed by her calm and no nonsense approach, just as you said, she was obviously someone who just got on with the job without any great drama.

She's great.

But yes, you do need to practice. If you can find someone who has ever conducted interviews - from a former life maybe - then ask them for a coffee and a chat. I've happily done that for people and given some pointers.

Unless the jobs you're applying for are also in public service, I think you should include the part where you say "Anything that needed to be brought to the attention of a supervisor would get taken over...I've previously had suggestions for improvement either knocked back or, if implemented taken completely out of my hands."
You should give some examples of the problems you suggested improvements to.
You should also say you're looking to increase your level of responsibility and scope for collaborative and effective problem solving and that the lack of that and the resulting inefficiency was a frustrating aspect of your previous job.

Most of HR interview qs are so vague neither the line manager or applicant know where they stand.
I worked in few big companies and we had the same set up to 80% from most junior to people on 6 digits where they all had to go through the same qs.

If you are happy with your level point it out. Tell them how happy you were to solve some issues (ordering office supplies, getting new milk man on time, resolving calendar schedule clash, resolving room booking clash - hope I did not misdinterpret your role!)

Tbh the worst experience is when you interview someone and in these questions you already see the candidate wants to be two posts up by yesterday.
Use it to your advantage ;)