Do you consider yourself a patient person? How do you increase your patience level in challenging situations?

Interviewers want to hire FBI Special Agents who are patient and can remain calm in challenging situations. Focus on letting the interviewer know that you are patient and professional and can increase your patience level during difficult times.

Avoid saying you are not a patient person. If you are not a patient person, you might want to work on developing patience before your interview. Instead, you can admit that patience is a weakness you are working on and describe what actions you are taking to improve. The interviewer will be impressed that you identified an area you could improve upon and have a plan to do so. If the interviewer feels you have a short fuse or are prone to anger issues and are not doing anything to change, they may reconsider you for the position.

Remember to answer both parts of the question the interviewer asked. When there is a two-part question, many candidates forget to answer the second part. The interviewer notices this and decides that you either do not listen well or do not pay attention to detail.

"I am extremely patient with other people. I tend to be impatient with myself if I am not finishing a project as fast as I think I should be. But, I am learning to be patient with myself as well. I find that breathing exercises and counting to ten in my head can help me regroup and increase my patience level in challenging situations."

"I do consider myself a patient person. I would rate myself an eight out of ten for patience because I certainly have room to grow, but I do have a very long fuse. If I need a boost of patience in a challenging situation and I can take a step away, I will take a quick break, count to 10, and then return to the situation. I recently read a book, 'The Power of Patience' by M.J. Ryan, which also gave me some excellent new methods for coping with stress."