Competency Interview Questions
Master 25 competency-based interview questions covering behavioral scenarios and skills assessment.
Question 22 of 25
How do you deal with stressful situations in the workplace?
Admin
Manager
Sales
Teacher
Marketing
Retail
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Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"I tend to work best under stressful situations. For example, the pressure of deadlines from my boss often drive me to work faster and better. I am resistant to stress and able to focus on the work that needs to get accomplished."
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"When stressed, I try to take a break, re-focus, and then get back to work. I also like listening to music in my office when it's appropriate. Not all businesses are OK with that, and I understand."
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"I do well under pressure or stress, within reason. I obviously need to balance myself and my workload out, as much as possible, or it can become an overwhelming workplace vibe. I know myself and my triggers pretty well, so when I feel like there's too much on my plate, I know how to center myself and just dig in and get through it, knowing I'll come out better on the other side."
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"I take stressful situations in stride, as much as possible. I'm a mom, a teacher... not a whole lot can phase me at this point, honestly."
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"Stressful situations are bound to happen, and I typically take them as they come and they don't ruffle me too much. I know it's part of the creative process and it's going to pass soon enough."
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"Retail can be very stressful, especially during the holiday season, Black Friday, and other major sales. I resist the stress by being prepared, taking one task at a time, and encouraging teamwork."
Christine Pasqueretta is a human resource and recruitment professional with experience creating, developing, implementing, leading, and measuring HR impact initiatives.
Ah, the challenge of stress management! Your ability to manage stress will directly influence your ability to do your job successfully. Before answering this question, think of some ways you have learned to deal with stress at work. You can't always take a break when you need it, so what will you do?
Some workplace stress management strategies are:
- Track your primary stress factors and make a plan for overcoming those
- Establish boundaries with distracting coworkers
- Breathing exercises, or meditation
- Be sure to recharge your emotional batteries throughout the day
- Express your stress to your manager/supervisor
- Ask for help
Christine Pasqueretta is a human resource and recruitment professional with experience creating, developing, implementing, leading, and measuring HR impact initiatives.
"I've learned some helpful breathing techniques that I can do while I'm at work. Even when I'm feeling rushed or overwhelmed by a situation, I can slow down my breathing and remain calm. Once I understood that it was okay for me to take a minute for myself, I learned to handle workplace stressors in a whole new way."
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Anonymous Answer
I confront the issue head-on.
I remain calm, prioritize my time, and focus on what needs to get done.
Rachelle's Feedback
Excellent! You show a great deal of determination in this response.
Anonymous Answer
Working in three different teams as part of one role could get overwhelming at times, especially as each team had different focuses and dynamics.
In order to deal with this, I ensured I took the time to prioritize at the start of each day, making a list of things that needed to be done and crossing them off once they were finished. This helped me visualize the workload, and it was motivating to see things crossed off. I felt it also helped me keep focused and organized.
If my mind started to get frazzled I would take a break, take some fresh air, then come back refreshed.
Stephanie's Feedback
This is a well-rounded response! You do a great job of illustrating how you navigate workplace stress, while also showing how you take care of yourself when times are stressful.
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