Tell me about a time when you had to make a difficult decision.
As a Youth Worker, you must provide the utmost care to the underage individuals for whom you are responsible. In addition to attentive care, you will need to make challenging decisions focused on the wellbeing of these youth.
Your supervisor may not always be around to help you deal with stressful situations, and in those times, it will be your responsibility to handle conflict as it arises.
Show the interviewer that you can make wise decisions under pressure. Provide an example that demonstrates your ability to navigate situations by trusting your gut and taking action.
"While working alone at a drop-in youth center, an adult stranger entered the center who was intoxicated and unaware of where he was. This person spoke loudly and aggressively. I told our youth I needed to have private conversation with this individual, and I instructed them to stay in the supervisors' office until I returned. I asked them to occupy themselves by taking turns singing karaoke on the computer in the supervisors' office. The doors to the office could lock, and had a lot of windows, so I was able to keep a close eye on them while I dealt with this intoxicated individual. Then I discreetly called for help. Next, I distracted the individual, made him a cup of tea, carried on a conversation, and kept him calm until help arrived. When the situation was secure, I had a session with our youth, knowing many of them were hypersensitive and we talked about our feelings. The kids said they felt safe. After consulting with my supervisor, they agreed that under the circumstances, I handled this difficult situation with as well as one could."
"There was a troubled sixteen-year-old I was working with and we'd formed quite a bond, and I felt as if we were making a lot of progress. Then one day I did a head count of our group and realized this youth was missing. I then thought I heard a funny noise from behind the equipment shed and went to investigate and stumbled upon them using drugs. They begged me not to tell and got down on their hands and knees, crying and gripping the leg of my pants. In order to de-escalate them and let me go, as silly as it sounds, I crossed my fingers behind my back and promised I wouldn't tell. I told them to toss the drugs on the ground right there and to rejoin the group. Once we were back, and they started playing on the field, I texted our public involvement officer informing them of the situation and where they could find the packet of drugs. We then wrapped up the game, and all went back inside. As everyone went in, I asked the sixteen-year-old to wait outside with me to prevent a scene, and the public involvement officer took over from there. The youth hollered at me and cried, begging us not to inform their parents. It was hard. His parents removed them from the program, and I never saw them again. Like I said, we'd formed a bond, and that day still haunts me. It was a difficult decision... necessary, and done without hesitation, but difficult none-the-less."
Community answers are written by other candidates practicing this set. Reading how others frame the same question is one of the fastest ways to sharpen your own.
Anonymous Answer
My experience has afforded me opportunities to learn how to be firm with my decision-making skills. For example, when I was working in a residential housing facility that housed vulnerable populations living with addiction and mental health challenges. I was helping a resident fill out his disability assistance form. I soon noticed that his energy levels were regressing and that he was drifting off to sleep. When I asked him how he's feeling, he responded that he was fine. Despite him being somewhat responsive, I suspected an opioid overdose; therefore, I reached out to another staff member to call 911 and notify authorities so that I could administer a naloxone shot.
In the end, it was determined that this resident did in fact, overdose.
Rachelle's Feedback
Wow - what an experience and certainly good action on your part. This example is intense but also does an excellent job explaining how well you think on your feet, and the fact that you are very attentive.
Anonymous Answer
In many ways leaving my last job was a difficult decision. I had established positive working relationships with many young people. I developed a relationship of trust, and therefore it was a difficult decision to decide to leave, and in many ways, I felt guilty about leaving the role and telling the young people I worked with that this was the case.
Rachelle's Feedback
It's completely normal to feel guilt when leaving a role, and this answer shows a lot of compassion and humanity on your part. I'd like to see you dive deeper into your response and give more detail around your decision to leave and the reasoning behind your choice. This question is a good opportunity for the interviewer to assess your decision-making process.
Anonymous Answer
At the end of one of my youth mentoring sessions, we returned back to the young person's home, and found that his mother and brothers were not home and neither was his mother's car. Immediately, the young person became extremely visibly distressed and began crying and getting frustrated. I noticed that he was very quickly becoming angrier and angrier too. I told him that his mother had probably just ducked out to the shops quickly, and that we had finished a little bit early too, and recommended that we take a walk around the block. In the meantime, I rang the program coordinator who then rang the mentee's mother, and confirmed with me that she did indeed duck out to the shops and that she was on her way home now. I told the mentee this and he began to calm down.
Stephanie's Feedback
Great specific example! It sounds like your quick thinking and problem-solving skills helped the young person de-escalate during a stressful situation.
Anonymous Answer
While being a Senior support worker, a young person left the care home as they had a physical dispute with another child in the home. They were found at their friend's house and were refusing to return back to the home. It was my decision to tell the police to remove them and return them to the care home or to allow the young person to stay there for an overnight stay. I took time to evaluate the risk of them being at their friend's house, and also leased with their social worker, before making a decision to allow them to stay there for the night to prevent the young person returning to the home and then for the current incident to escalate or for the young person to leave the home once they returned for them to partake in risk-taking behavior.
Marcie's Feedback
This does sound like a challenging decision! You've done a great job of explaining what happened, what your role was in the situation, and how you came to the decision you did. Did it end up being the right decision? Did the child stay safely overnight at their friend's house and then come back to the care home the following day?
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