Elon Musk has one question he asks at every interview to catch out liars
Elon Musk has revealed the one question he asks during every job interview so he can 'catch out the liars'.
While the idea of working for the world's richest man sounds like a smart financial move - the reality is that you better be ready.
The Tesla and X boss isn't interested in how well you did at uni, or how many year's experience you have in your field.
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What he is interested in is catching out the bulls**ters. The kind of people who can speak five languages, or acted like they were once the CEO of their father's business when they were 16.
In an interview with Auto Bild in 2014, Musk was asked about what skills he looks for in an employee.
Typically, he focuses on asking one/three mini questions.
While the interviewee opens up about the 'story of their career,' Musk said: "I really just ask 'What are some of the tougher problems [you've] dealt with and how [did you] dealt with those?'"
"And how they made decisions at key transition points," he added.
Musk explained that the very specific question 'is usually enough' to give him 'a very good gut feeling about someone'.
It can also reveal whether or not he's being lied to.
The SpaceX founder added: "What I'm really looking for is evidence of exceptional ability so that they've faced really difficult problems and overcome them.
"And of course, you want to make sure that if there was some significant accomplishment, were they really responsible or was somebody else more responsible."
Musk said he looks for the person who's 'had to struggle with the problem, they really understand it, and they don't forget'.
He explained: "So you can ask them very detailed questions about it and they'll know the answer, whereas the person who was not truly responsible for that accomplishment will not know the details."
This comes after Indeed also flagged it as one of the 'eight common problem-solving questions' you might be asked if facing a job interview soon.
The site notes: "If the job you're applying for requires you to think analytically or solve problems, your interviewer may ask some problem-solving questions. These questions can vary between industries and jobs, but some examples come up frequently.
"Explain what challenges you have and what you did to overcome them. You can answer this question using the STAR technique.
"The STAR technique includes explaining the situation, the task, what action you took and the result.
"Choose an example that has a positive outcome and talk about what you learned from the experience, linking this back to the job description if possible."
Anish Vij