13 Totally Unexpected Interview Questions That Threw People Off

The most nerve-wrecking part of job-interviews can be the questions — the not-knowing what to expect or if you’ll answer them correctly. But sometimes, even quick-thinking can’t prepare you for strange or interesting questions. The people below were caught off guard by their hiring managers’ questions and some of their responses showed just how well they cope when thrown a curveball.

• “Walk me through the steps of making a peanut butter sandwich.” What kind of mind game was that?
  It was to work at a coffee shop as a barista. I get that they were trying to see how I thought and maybe how specifically task-oriented I was but still. Weird question. © Leeser / Reddit

• I once went to a job interview for an administrator role at a tattoo salon. During the meeting, the HR manager asked me to show him my Instagram handle. Without overthinking, I handed him my phone, assuming he just wanted to check my profile name. Instead, he started scrolling through my posts, examining my photos, and even paying attention to the number of likes each one had. At one point, he looked up and asked, “Why do some of your pictures have fewer likes than others?” As though that was somehow relevant to the job.

• “If you were a tree, what kind of tree would you be?” I was interviewing for an analyst position so I went for a “decision tree”. I got the job. © ntlslayer95 / Reddit

• Weirdest job interview question I ever got was something like: “How would you describe the color yellow to a blind person?” I said that it’s the color of the warmth of sunlight, the color of the taste of citrus. The interviewer was like, “Good answer.” They didn’t hire me. They being a pest control company. © EthereaBlotzky / Reddit

• I had an interview where they silently gave me a questionnaire to fill out for 50 questions and just went to another room. The questions were very detailed and stupid, mostly about money. “Is your goal to make money in our company?” (If the answer is ‘yes’, then you didn’t pass.)
  I left before I finished answering this list. I found out later that they register employees for an incredibly low official salary, promising to pay most of it at the end of the month, but they delay money for 6 months and don’t give it out if the person quits. I’m glad I left. © Lina_Grapes / Reddit

• At an interview to be a county street sweeper, the guy asks me if I have a girlfriend, and rants for 5 minutes how young people don’t get married anymore. Then he asks me what I want to avoid on the job. I had no idea how to answer. So I asked him to clarify, to which he just repeated the question, over and over until he got angry that I didn’t know how to answer that, then asked me to leave. © forgotmyfirstname** / Reddit

• Another interview. Different company.
  Interviewer: “What is your favorite kind of ice cream?”
  Me: “Uh, I dunno. Guess I like vanilla.”
  Interviewer: “Hmm. No. No one here likes ‘just vanilla’ that’s too basic. We all like things like Cherry Garcia or Chunky Monkey...not vanilla.”
  Me: “...you know my work has won awards, right?” © SeaTie / Reddit

• At an interview for a tech startup, they asked me, “If you could be any animal, what would you be?” I answered, “Otter, because they’re fun, active, work well with their hands, and cute.” They debated whether or not to hire me because of my answer, because, “We only hire predators, never prey.” © rileysweeney / Reddit

• I once interviewed for a front desk role at a small tech startup. After the usual questions, the CEO brought in a tray with five different juice boxes and asked,
  “Pick one and tell me how it represents your communication style.”
  I picked grape and mumbled something about being straightforward but not everyone’s favorite. He nodded like I’d revealed a deep truth. The next guy picked apple and got the job. Apparently, grape was “too safe.”

• At an interview that was going well, my potential boss hit me with one final question: “Can you show me the last 5 pics on your phone?” He said it was for a personality check. Nervous, I opened my gallery, and 1^st thing to pop up was a topless photo of my boyfriend wearing a headband. Suddenly, his eyes lit up and in a serious tone, asked, “Does your man wear a headband because you’ve cropped his ears?”
  For a moment, I froze, unsure if he was joking or testing me. Realizing it was all in good humor, I managed to respond with a shy smile, keeping my composure. It turned out the question was indeed a test—to see if I had a sense of humor or if I’d react defensively. Thankfully, I passed. And yes, I got the job!

• During a job interview, the employer asked me, “What’s the exact time and geolocation of your birth?” At first, I laughed nervously, thinking it was a joke, but their expression told me they were serious. Curious but confused, I gave them the details as best as I could recall.
  To my surprise, they then launched into a lengthy explanation about why this information was critical to understanding my personality type. For the next thirty minutes, they spoke with intense enthusiasm about astrological charts, planetary alignments, and how these factors supposedly influenced my work ethic and compatibility with their team.

• I was once in a data entry interview when the manager asked, “Tell me your ideal fast food meal — full breakdown, no skipping sides.” I described it, unsure why. When I finished, she jumped up, began packing her laptop away, and asked, “You passed the interview three questions ago. I’m just hungry now. Want to grab lunch?” She wanted to buy me my first meal on the job. I was so excited, I said “yes” and we headed to the cafeteria to get my “ideal fast food meal”

• “One of my employees have been talking about you a lot, if you’re hired can you ensure to keep it strictly professional?”
  I did not keep it professional. © Dr-NiceGuy / Reddit

Sometimes getting the job is half the challenge. The other half is dealing with the unexpected moments and people that the job comes with. Here are work conflicts so dramatic, they make you wonder if you came to work or a theatre.