If you’re interviewing for jobs, you’ll probably be asked about your dream job—because it’s a favorite question of hiring managers. Even though it may seem like an unusual question, you’ll need to answer in a compelling and memorable way to put yourself in the best light to get the job.
It’s especially important to set yourself apart because the job market is so competitive. When you finally get an interview, you’ll want to make the most of it—and increase your chances of being selected—as a candidate the interviewers like, remember and want to work with.
Why and How Interviewers Ask About Your Dream Job
There are many versions of the question about your dream job. In fact, interviewers could ask you,
- What is your dream job?
- Describe your ideal role.
- If you look ahead, what is the best job you can imagine?
- What are the characteristics of your ideal job?
- How would you describe your dream role?
Many people ask, “What are hiring managers trying to figure out with this question?” And, “Why is this an important question that is often included in an interview?”
What they’re really asking is what motivates and energizes you, what makes you happy and what you’re interested in. The reason: Smart interviewers know that if you are passionate about your work, you’ll be even better at it. And they know that if you see growth opportunities, you’ll be more likely to stay with the company.
Interviewers are also looking for self-awareness and your ability to express yourself effectively. They appreciate people who have reflected on what they want and are going after it—and who can communicate well.
Ultimately, they’re looking for whether the job and the organization will be a good fit for you and for them—in terms of what you like and where you want to go.
How To Answer ‘What Is Your Dream Job’
So how should someone answer ‘what is your dream job’ in an interview? And what are the key points, words or themes you should include in your response?
Here’s what you must know—and how you can answer in the best way.
1. Use humor
One of the first ways you can provide a memorable answer to this question is to use humor.
For example, no matter what job you’re interviewing for, you can say something like, “Well this would be my dream job, for sure!” Or you could also use humor in describing something that is very idealistic and unrelated to what you’re interviewing for. For example, you could say “Well, my dream job would be living on an island and laying on the beach, but that doesn’t pay very well.” In either case, you would go on to talk about your real answer—but the humor can be a good starting point.
Humor can be especially effective if you use it well—because it can put both you and the interviewer at ease and it can build rapport—in addition to making you more memorable.
But you’ll also want to use it with caution, so you come across with humility and never arrogance. Be sure you’re communicating an underlying message that it’s a fun question to think about, and never a message that you’re devaluing the interviewer or the question.
One caveat: Leverage humor only if you can pull it off. If you’re not someone who can connect using humor or if you get into a situation where you believe the interviewer wouldn’t appreciate humor, then it’s better not to use it at all.
2. Talk About What’s Most Important to You
Before you answer the question, reflect on your dream job and what’s most important to you. Perhaps challenging work or making an impact on customers or the community are your priorities. Maybe you want learning and growth. Or perhaps you want a job that allows you to use your creativity.
Once you’re clear about what you want, you’re wise to answer the question by talking about the attributes of a role that you would love, rather than a specific job title. You’ll want to communicate something about yourself, something about your priorities and something about your vision for the future. And overall, you’ll want to demonstrate healthy self-awareness.
When you answer, share what makes you thrive or energizes you as well as the area of the company or the type of role that you’re attracted to.
For example, you might say that you’re most energized when you’re facing big challenges, so your dream job would be working in operations and solving tough problems, including working with a team that has great relationships with each other. Or you might say that you thrive on analytical work, so you’d love to find a data analytics role that allows you to dig into details and explore quantitative information to inform innovation for the company.
3. Make Connections to the Job
Perhaps the most important aspect of answering this question is to connect it to the role and the organization you’re interviewing for. As you’re doing this, you can make it about the present or about the future.
For example, if you’re interviewing for a job as a digital marketing coordinator, you can talk about how much you love taking a creative approach to social media and the aspects of the responsibilities of this job are a match to what you enjoy. Or if you’re interviewing for a job in finance, you can describe the ways that you’ve always been good at thinking in numerical terms—from budgeting to investing—and how you’ll especially enjoy all the financial analysis that the job requires.
You can also talk about the growth opportunities that you know are offered at the company. For example, you could discuss how your ideal job would have you working on fast-paced challenges and thinking on your feet, so you believe the customer account manager role would be energizing—and how you’d love to grow into a leadership role where you’re engaging others in the process of sales as well.
Caution About Remote Work
As you’re answering a question about your dream job, focus on the aspects of the job and its content—rather than the structure or location of the job.
You may long for a job you can do while you’re sitting at home in your jammies, but this won’t be compelling to an interviewer. Or you would love to have a job that pays significantly for working only a few days a week on a remote basis, but again, this won’t move an interviewer to advance you in the process.
Interviewers want to hire people who are enthusiastic about their work and who want to make a contribution—and focusing on the content of the job will help you communicate this most effectively.
Be Yourself
You’ll want to be yourself through the whole interview, of course. And as you’re answering the question about your dream job, it’s an especially good time to shine, because talking about your dream job is usually fun.
Embrace the optimism you feel as you describe what you love and the work you want. Your energy will be contagious and will help the interviewer get to know you, connect with you and increase the chances they’ll want to hire you.