In an interview, different questions are asked to get to know a candidate better. One such query is, “what are your hobbies?” How you answer this one may help the hiring manager understand your passion and knack to pursue it. However, there are quite a few ways you can answer it.
Understand the Significance of Hobbies
If a recruiter asks you about your passtime, you might be confused. You might be wondering, “Why do they want to know about my hobbies and interests?” It is understandable that you might think that what you do in your free time should not have anything to do with the interview. However, it does!
Not only does it help the employer understand how you spend the leisure, but it also gives an insight into what your passions are and your actions towards them.
1. Demonstrating work-life balance
Knowing you have a hobby that you pursue lets the employers understand that you are someone who emphasizes work-life balance.
2. Showcasing personality and interests
Other than that, when you are talking about your passtime, the hiring managers have better insights into your traits and interests. It is something that can make it easier to understand if you are a good fit for the position.
3. Highlighting transferable skills
A majority of pastimes come with skills that can also be useful in the workplace. Take a look at the roles and responsibilities to understand what these skills are.
Choose Relevant and Appropriate Pastimes
A person can have more than one hobby. But you can’t talk about all of them during a job interview. So, find out what hobbies to tell in interview.
1. Select the one that aligns with the company culture
Talking about pastimes that are relevant to the company is ideal. For example, you can talk about the ones that require problem-solving skills if the job requires an innovative candidate who tends to be at the forefront of solving problems.
2. Avoid controversial or extreme ones
Even though it is important to show that you are a distinct individual, you still need to steer clear of mentioning the ones that are not at all relevant to the roles of the new opportunities to a greater extent.
3. Focus on passtime that showcase desirable traits
When you are selecting which activities you should prioritize, you need to narrow down the list based on the soft skills that are required of you. You need to mention the hobby that has a lot of traits of what the job entails.
Prepare Specific Examples and Anecdotes
While answering, you should try to be as specific as possible. For that, you can bring up relevant instances to support your response.
1. Identify key experiences or achievements related to these activities
Reflect on examples of how your pastime has helped you gain valuable skills or supported significant achievements.
2. Craft concise and engaging stories to share
Craft compelling anecdotes that demonstrate how your hobbies have enriched your life. You can also talk about how your pastime has contributed to your personal and professional growth.
3. Practice delivering your examples with enthusiasm
Practice sharing these stories in a captivating and enthusiastic manner that connects them to the topic at hand.
Highlight Transferable Skills Gained
When you are conversing about hobbies and extracurricular activities, you need to highlight how they have assisted you in gaining vital skills. In this manner, you will be able to showcase that these are beneficial to your personal development.
1. Leadership and teamwork skills from group activities
Explain how team sports and group projects developed your leadership skills, such as decision-making, motivating others, and handling conflicts.
2. Creativity and problem-solving skills from artistic pursuits
You can share how artistic hobbies stimulate the imagination and foster creative thinking. Converse how the hobbies built your problem-solving skills and the ability to come up with creative ideas.
3. Discipline and perseverance in competitive sports
Discuss how competitive sports built resilience, discipline, and a strong work-ethic. Highlight how these qualities add to your authority to handle the changes and meet deadlines.
4. Communication and interpersonal skills from social hobbies
You can also speak about the hobbies that have enhanced your social skills and allowed you to be outgoing. Make sure you showcase to the hiring manager that these hobbies have improved your people skills.
Demonstrate Passion and Dedication
You can’t call something your hobby unless you are passionate about it.
1. Express genuine enthusiasm for your hobbies
When the recruiter asks what are your hobbies, express your passion and engagement. Let your excitement for your hobbies shine through in your conversations.
2. Discuss the time and effort you invest in your interests
Highlight the time, hard work, and resources you pour into your hobbies. Emphasize your unwavering commitment and dedication.
3. Show how your hobbies contribute to personal growth and development
While answering what are your hobbies, share how your hobbies have enriched your life beyond leisure. Explain how they have shaped your values, broaden your perspectives, and fueled your ongoing self-improvement.
Connect Your Hobbies to the Job Role
The best way to answer the question, “What are your hobbies?” during an interview is to align your response with the job role.
1. Identify parallels between your hobbies and the job requirements
Highlight the link between your hobbies and the required abilities, attributes, or experiences for the role. Demonstrate how your hobbies have equipped you with the necessary skills to excel in the position.
2. Explain how your hobbies have prepared you for the role
While talking about “what are your hobbies?” explain how the skills, qualities, or experiences you acquired through your hobbies make you an ideal candidate for the job.
3. Discuss how your hobbies can benefit the team or company
Describe how your hobbies can contribute to the team or company’s success. Emphasize your unique perspectives, varied skill set, or ability to create a productive and supportive work environment.
Be Honest and Authentic
You might feel a lot of pressure when the interviewer asks,” What are your hobbies?” But don’t ever think that you need to lie to sound interesting while answering this question.
1. Avoid exaggerating or fabricating hobbies
Be honest about your interests and hobbies. Don’t try to make your hobbies sound more exciting than they are to impress the interviewer.
2. Choose hobbies that genuinely reflect your interests
Always pick hobbies that you really enjoy and can talk about with passion. So, if you hate reading, don’t mention it as your hobby just to impress the interviewer.
3. Be prepared to discuss your hobbies in depth
The interviewer might ask you more questions about your hobbies, so be prepared to talk about them in more detail. This will show the interviewer that you’re not just listing off hobbies to try to make yourself look good.
Keep Your Answer Concise and Relevant
Remember that the interviewer is willing to learn about you. So, don’t get too carried away with the question,” What are your hobbies?”
1. Limit your response to 1-2 hobbies
When highlighting hobbies in a job interview, emphasize only the most pertinent and compelling ones that directly align with the role.
2. Focus on the most appropriate and impressive aspects
Keep your responses concise and avoid irrelevant or excessive details. Focus on presenting the hobbies’ most impressive and relevant aspects, showcasing your suitability for the position.
3. Avoid rambling or providing unnecessary details
Avoid unnecessary background or elaboration, streamlining your answer to effectively convey your key strengths.
Show Interest in the Interviewer’s Hobbies
Asking about your hobbies is an attempt on the part of the interviewer to get to know you better. You can take a similar approach to gather some knowledge about the interviewer.
1. Ask the interviewer about their own interests
To make a good impression on the interviewer, show that you’re engaged by asking about their hobbies. This shows your curiosity and desire to connect.
2. Find common ground or shared experiences
If you have similar hobbies or interests, talk about them to build rapport.
3. Demonstrate your ability to connect and establish rapport
By learning about their life outside of work, you demonstrate your interpersonal skills and your ability to relate to others, creating a positive connection.
Sample Answers
Some sample answers to the What are your hobbies interview question will give you an idea of how to form your response. Check them out:
Example 1: Showcasing leadership skills through team sports
If you ask me about my hobbies and interests, I will say sports, particularly cricket. I am the captain of my local team, where I have honed my leadership qualities and ability to work effectively as part of a group. Through my role, I have learned to motivate and encourage others to strive towards a shared objective.
Example 2: Highlighting creativity and attention to detail through photography
Photography is my passion, and I pursue it in my free time. It has taught me to view the world from countless angles. Photography serves as an outlet for my creativity and drives me to improve myself.
Example 3: Demonstrating discipline and goal-setting through martial arts
In my free time, I love practicing martial arts. Through my years of martial arts training, I have undergone a profound transformation. Physically, it has honed my skills and discipline. Mentally, it has instilled in me a resilient spirit and the significance of setting and achieving goals. Martial arts demands unwavering dedication and attention to detail, attributes that now permeate all aspects of my life.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
You might be thinking about how someone can be wrong while talking about their hobbies. But if you want to impress the recruiter, try to avoid making the following mistakes:
1. Discussing hobbies that are inappropriate or controversial
Never mention something inappropriate or controversial as your hobby. Moreover, you can say something that’s against the company culture or somehow offensive to the interviewer.
2. Providing vague or generic answers
A lot of people say, “my hobbies are reading and traveling.” But that’s a very generic answer. It’s not wrong to have common hobbies.
But don’t just talk about them like facts. Instead, you can say how these activities make you feel. Moreover, try mentioning how these hobbies make you a better individual and a good candidate for the company.
3. Failing to connect your hobbies to the job role
Ensure that your discussion of hobbies directly relates to the skills, qualities, or experiences sought after for the job role, illustrating how your hobbies make you a well-rounded and qualified candidate.
4. Dominating the conversation or talking excessively about your hobbies
The minute the interviewer utters the words, “tell me about your hobbies,” you might feel the urge to ramble on and on. But remember to keep your responses brief and stay on topic. So, you should avoid discussing your hobbies at length. Instead, focus on providing clear and relevant answers that directly address the interviewer’s questions.
Conclusion
The question “what are your hobbies?” helps interviewers understand the personality and areas of interest of the candidate. So, you need to be careful while answering this question. A genuine and enthusiastic approach is necessary while responding to this query. But you also need to keep the answer short. Moreover, align you passtime to the job role and leave a lasting impression on the interviewer.
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