What is one decision you made in your career that you would like to have the chance to do differently?

How to Answer
Answer Example

Everybody would love to have a' do over' at some point in their life. This applies to their professional life as well. We've all made a decision that, in hindsight, we either regret or would like to take in a different direction. Interviewers understand this and may ask you about it. One reason is to test your honesty and your ability to accurately evaluate your actions. The other is to determine the scope of the decision you would like to change, and how much it impacted the organization you are working for. When responding to this question, describe a situation that had a minor impact and would be beneficial to the organization if corrected.

"Probably the decision I would like to change the most was deciding to move directly into an engineering job after completing college instead of accepting an invitation to intern abroad. I was anxious to start my career and had several job offers on the table for engineering positions. However, one of my classmates had accepted a position with a German company and invited me to intern with them during the summer. If I had accepted the invitation, I believe I would have learned additional engineering skills and developed the ability to work with individuals from different cultures and countries. This would have broadened my background and helped me during my subsequent career."

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How to Answer: What is one decision you made in your career that you would like to have the chance to do differently?

Advice and answer examples written specifically for a Senior Staff Engineer job interview.

2. What is one decision you made in your career that you would like to have the chance to do differently?

How to Answer

Everybody would love to have a' do over' at some point in their life. This applies to their professional life as well. We've all made a decision that, in hindsight, we either regret or would like to take in a different direction. Interviewers understand this and may ask you about it. One reason is to test your honesty and your ability to accurately evaluate your actions. The other is to determine the scope of the decision you would like to change, and how much it impacted the organization you are working for. When responding to this question, describe a situation that had a minor impact and would be beneficial to the organization if corrected.

Written by William Swansen on September 9th, 2021

Answer Example

"Probably the decision I would like to change the most was deciding to move directly into an engineering job after completing college instead of accepting an invitation to intern abroad. I was anxious to start my career and had several job offers on the table for engineering positions. However, one of my classmates had accepted a position with a German company and invited me to intern with them during the summer. If I had accepted the invitation, I believe I would have learned additional engineering skills and developed the ability to work with individuals from different cultures and countries. This would have broadened my background and helped me during my subsequent career."

Written by William Swansen on September 9th, 2021

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