Interview questions › Learning agility
Tell me about a time you got something wrong while learning a new skill. How did you find out, and what did you do?
Learning agility · commonly asked in most interviews
No account, no credit card for the first three questions.
How to answer it well
Say who found the error, the first thing you did after being told, and the check you now run before calling work finished.
Two mistakes that cost you points
- Choosing a story where the mistake was harmless or someone else's.
- Not saying how you found out, which hides whether you would notice next time.
What to do with this question today
- Answer it out loud once, without stopping. Do not write it down first.
- Read back exactly what you said. Mark the filler words, and the length of your longest pause.
- Answer it again and change one thing — usually the opening line, or the number at the end.
This question is not in the free run yet — practise the same skill with a free run, or paste a job description and we build the set around that role.
More questions
- What is something new you learned in the last six months? How long from first look to actually using it, and how did you know you could? · Learning agility
- Tell me about the most useful feedback you have received, and what you did about it. · Learning agility
- You join a team that uses three tools you have never touched. How do you get useful in the first two weeks? · Learning agility
- How do you keep up with changes in your field? Be specific about what you actually read, watch or do. · Learning agility
- What is your weakness? · Learning agility
- In one minute, introduce yourself and explain why this role should consider you. · Communication
Also searched as: tell me about a mistake you made while learning; learning from mistakes interview answer
Dimension: Learning agility — the same skill is probed again with different wording, so practise the pattern, not just this sentence.