Interview questions › Learning from setbacks
What is the biggest mistake you have made at work?
Learning from setbacks · commonly asked in most interviews
No account, no credit card for the first three questions.
How to answer it well
Pick one with a real consequence, take the cause on yourself, and finish with the safeguard that exists today because of it.
Two mistakes that cost you points
- Using a humble-brag ('I care too much').
- Spending so long on the story that the fix never comes.
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
- Tell me about something that did not work out, and what you changed afterwards. Looking back, which step would you change? · Learning from setbacks
- Tell me about a project that failed. What was your part in it? · Learning from setbacks
- Tell me about an idea of yours that was rejected. What did you do next? · Learning from setbacks
- There is a gap in your resume. What were you doing during that time? · Learning from setbacks
- In one minute, introduce yourself and explain why this role should consider you. · Communication
- Walk me through your resume. Tell me about the choices you made along the way. · Communication
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Dimension: Learning from setbacks — the same skill is probed again with different wording, so practise the pattern, not just this sentence.