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Southwest Airlines Mock Interview

Question 18 of 39 for our Southwest Airlines Mock Interview

Southwest Airlines was updated by on January 14th, 2024. Learn more here.

Question 18 of 39

Tell us about a time you didn’t see eye-to-eye with another co-worker. How did you handle this?

"Not long ago, I worked with someone who had a different way of doing things. It wasn't that their way of doing things was wrong. It was just what worked for them. However, they could be a bit overbearing and often argued that what works for them should be the way everyone should do it. At first, I felt a little bullied by this individual and tried doing it their way, but since their approach wasn't my style, it didn't meet my standards. Eventually, when we would share a joint task or project, I would ask them how they wanted to divide our tasks rather than how we should approach the project as a whole. Then I would tell them how I would handle my tasks, according to my nature, and eventually, we got this approach to work where we could complement each other rather than clash."

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How to Answer: Tell us about a time you didn’t see eye-to-eye with another co-worker. How did you handle this?

Advice and answer examples written specifically for a Southwest Airlines job interview.

  • 18. Tell us about a time you didn’t see eye-to-eye with another co-worker. How did you handle this?

      How to Answer

      Many of the roles at Southwest require you to be close to your coworkers for extended periods of time. For some, this could be part of the allure of the job. For others, this might prove more difficult. Therefore, your interviewer is curious not only about how you might cope in an environment like theirs. They also want to determine how adept you are at conflict resolution and how developed your nondefensive communication skills are.

      "A company is stronger if it is bound by love rather than by fear." - Southwest Airlines Founder Herb Kelleher.

      Written by Kevin Downey on February 2nd, 2023

      Experienced Example

      "Not long ago, I worked with someone who had a different way of doing things. It wasn't that their way of doing things was wrong. It was just what worked for them. However, they could be a bit overbearing and often argued that what works for them should be the way everyone should do it. At first, I felt a little bullied by this individual and tried doing it their way, but since their approach wasn't my style, it didn't meet my standards. Eventually, when we would share a joint task or project, I would ask them how they wanted to divide our tasks rather than how we should approach the project as a whole. Then I would tell them how I would handle my tasks, according to my nature, and eventually, we got this approach to work where we could complement each other rather than clash."

      Written by Kevin Downey on February 2nd, 2023

      Answer Example

      "I recently worked with someone who would frequently cut corners in ways that I didn't agree with. I frequently tried to encourage more ethical behavior and lead by example; however, this had little impact. The fact is, I otherwise quite enjoyed working with them, and I tried to keep them from risking their position, but they were often dismissive. Then someone new came on board, and this employee pushed the envelope too far when it came to bending the rules. The new hire reported them, and they suffered repercussions for their actions, which I suppose was inevitable."

      Written by Kevin Downey on February 2nd, 2023

      Anonymous Interview Answers with Professional Feedback

      Anonymous Answer

      "When discussing client files my broker and I don’t always see eye to eye on a lot of things. For example, we had a client that I couldn’t get approval on through conventional financing. She told me to go ahead and run it through FHA because the DTI allowance is higher. I had to explain to her that I was not able to run the file through FHA because the client had defaulted on some student loans, nullifying her ability to get any government-backed loan such as FHA, VA, or USDA. Conventional was the only way to go. Upon going over the client’s credit report she confirmed that. But her having been in the industry for over 20 years there have been many times she has disagreed with me on things and she was right because I’m new and not aware of all the different approaches to take to get an approval. For example, I was not aware that we could get a lower rate simply by typing in a rate. I thought we had to go by the standard list of rates. But if we want a rate lower than 6%, we can type in 5.98% and see what it would cost to get that rate, which usually isn’t much and the customer is happy because we’ve offered a lower rate than what was offered by another lender."

      Marcie's Feedback

      Excellent! This is a good answer that shows how you successfully navigate small disagreements with coworkers. You come across as knowledgeable yet open to learning from others. Perfect!

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