“Why do you want to leave your current job?” is perhaps one of the most frequently asked questions in an interview, and many applicants seem to have no idea how to answer this in the best way. It may look like it is time to criticize your current employer, but it is not recommended to do so because this will not reflect well on your image professionally.
The best approach is to prepare a polite and positive response that can effectively showcase your suitability for the new position.
Content Outline
Why Does The Interviewer Ask This Question?
Just like most questions that may be asked during an interview, there are really important factors that the employer would like to gain from the answer as they ask you why you would like to leave your present company. To put it another way, they could be asking: ”Why are you looking for a new job?” Here, the answer should respond more to the question with all the possibilities that a new position can offer rather than the problems a person can have with the current position.
Why Should You Avoid Negative Answer?
Your interviewer is not your friend even though they are interested in getting to know you. Keep in mind that your goal is to impress a recruiting manager and not have a casual conversation and complain at the bar after a stressful day at work. If you start firing off all the issues you’ve had with your boss or employer – the promises they failed to deliver on, the skepticism they displayed towards your work, the disrespect they paid to your opinions – you will come off as a complainer. You could be making the exact same excuses when you are working for another company.
Here are some examples to describe positive reasons for leaving a job:
Luckily, there are so many situations that one can have when he or she is looking for a reason that would actually portray the person in a positive image before leaving a particular job.
- I am interested in learning more.
- I think I am ready to take on additional responsibilities.
- I believe I have progressed as best as I can in my current position.
- I would like to change my environment to motivate myself.
- My current job the new skills that I wish to develop.
- I no longer feel challenged in my current role.
This question is valid for a number of reasons since most people quit jobs for one reason or another, perhaps a combination. The interviewer may ask for other reasons.
Approach To Answering The Question
In answering this question, you also get a chance to display your knowledge of the potential employer and the interest you have in the offered position. Explain why you are leaving the current job and then explain why the new job will be especially interesting to you.
Example :
“ My biggest concern is that I would like a new challenge: more responsibility as well as a change of working environment. I have desired to manage a team but sadly there are no leadership positions available at my current company. As for me, I enjoy giving training and enhancing the abilities of junior staff. This is something I do often in my current position and I get plenty of good feedback about it, but I feel I could do even more and better if I had my team. I understand that you are seeking a candidate who can coordinate the graduate team, and this seems very exciting to me as I would be able to assist these graduates to grow.”
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