Weird or Unique Interview Questions You Might Get Asked

We are all familiar with standard job interview questions, like “Tell me about yourself” or “What are your biggest strengths”. But every once and a while you may face a funny interview question completely out of left field – so unique or weird that you will not even know where to begin when trying to put together an answer.

And that is the point. There is nothing like strange or funny job interview questions to test your ability to think on your feet and outside the box.

16 Weird or Unique Interview Questions Used by Big Companies

The point of unique interview questions is that you cannot anticipate them, thus making your responses more genuine and less memorized.

That said, there are several big companies that love to pose bizarre interview questions. Here are some examples:

Facebook: 25 racehorses, no stopwatch. 5 tracks. Figure out the top three fastest horses in the fewest number of races.

Google: Why are manhole covers round?

Apple: If you were a pizza delivery man, how would you benefit from scissors?

Amazon: How would you solve problems if you were from Mars?

Trader Joe’s: What do you think of garden gnomes?

Tesla: Can you recite your resume by heart?

Cisco: I hate minivans, but can you sell me one anyway?

Johnson & Johnson: What information is important about the sale of one pencil?

Twitter: What do you need to turn lead into gold?

ConnectWise:  You've been given an elephant. You can't give it away or sell it. What would you do with the elephant?

Walgreens:  If you were a tree,  what kind of tree would you be and why?

PolyOne:  What's the color of money?

Dell:  Are you a hunter or a gatherer?

Microsoft: How would you test an elevator?

Kraft Foods: On a scale from 1 to 10, can you rate me as an interviewer?

Intel: Can you design a spice rack for the blind?

Weird or Unique Interview Questions and Answers

There is a well-established means of preparing for and answering common interview questions.

But how do you prepare for weird or funny interview questions that are unpredictable like the previous examples?

The best place to answer these interesting interview questions is to just listen and make sure you understand the prompt.

Second, do not try and rush an answer to these quirky, creative interview questions. Instead, think about the question and try to understand why it is being asked. In most cases, employers ask weird or unique questions to see how you respond to the unexpected. Weird interview questions also allow an employer to understand your qualities and characteristics. And finally, some questions have a veiled analytical component meant to test your reasoning and mental aptitude – this is especially true if you are applying for a technical position.

Finally, provide an answer that you think will address the “why” of the question, and not so much “what” the question is asking.  Again, the answer is likely less important than how you answer and your reasoning.

Take for example Microsoft’s question regarding elevators. If you are applying for an engineering position within the company, they are likely to want to get a more technical response from you.  But if you are applying for a marketing position with Trader Joe’s, the interviewer is likely more concerned with a response that will show off your personality than whether or not you actually like gnomes.

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