As soon as you enter an interview room, the way you conduct yourself and whatever you say is closely monitored. The whole conversation with your interviewer is to answer one question ”are you the best person for this job?” It is your best move to prepare yourself for all questions which surround these central questions. A great place to consume experienced information regarding interviews and career is from the experts at Monster.com.

In this article, we discuss one of the important and frequently asked questions in an interview: “Why do you want to leave your current job?” We will explain the answers to the following questions:

1. Why is the Interviewer Asking You This?
2. Are There Good and Bad Answers? What is the Difference?
3. How to Frame Your Answers

Why is the Interviewer Asking You This?

Your interviewer is probably curious to understand the reasons you’re looking for a new job. It may seem like every other question in the interview but this question can distinctively predict the success of your interview. Let’s look at some of the most common reasons to ask this question:

• To find out whether you left voluntarily

It is important to the employer to understand if you were let go or are you planning/did you leave on your own. This helps your interviewer to determine whether they should progress to understand your reason for leaving or to find out if you were let go because of performance or integrity issues.

• To understand your reasons for wanting to leave

The interviewer listens to all your reasons and is constantly looking to judge if your reasons were responsible, reasonable and rightfully derived.

• To determine what you are looking for in a new job

Change means that you are seeking something new. The interviewer wants to understand what that is and if it fits well with their company.

• To understand if you are on good terms

Ending on good terms even if you had issues with your employer indicates maturity. If you can even vouch for still being in touch with your previous manager or have him as a reference that will go a long way in demonstrating that you were a great employee and have good relationship skills.

• To assess what are your work values

The reasons you give for leaving can say a lot about you. Depending on your reasons the interviewer will get an estimate of the values you hold regards to your work expectations.

Your answer will decide the number and intensity of follow up questions.  A seasoned interviewer will read between the lines for every reason you give them so it’s essential to understand the thoughts behind the question.

Are There Good and Bad Answers? What is the Difference?

Now, you understand the importance of this question and what the employer is looking to derive from your answer. So, now the question is -are there good and bad answers?

Short answer: Yes.

There are certainly good and bad answers to this question. A good answer entails fewer follow up questions and increases your likeability in the interviewer’s eyes. Whereas, a bad answer can invite a lot of scrutiny and counter questions which may hurt your chances of getting selected.

We look at a comparison of some good and bad answers.

Bad Answer	Good Answer
I don’t like the job	I like to continuously grow my skillset and elevate my learnings. However, in my organization, the opportunities to grow my skills are limited in my current role. Hence, I was excited to learn about this opening, where the opportunity for growth is broad.
I am paid less/I want to be paid more	I’m motivated by a lot of factors, delivering on expectations and providing quality are always my priority. I am also greatly motivated by incentives and monetary appreciation so I was excited to learn about the way high achievers are appreciated at your company.
I don’t like working extra hours	I have always been punctual in my work and I am diligent in delivering the work before deadlines. I love family time and I am a big believer in maintaining work-life balance. This value was not shared with my previous employee, so I was happy to learn that work-life balance is an important value you uphold in your company.

Bad answers focus on your direct conclusion which can sound like a preference or simply a subjective opinion. Bad answers are vague and have a higher possibility of different interpretations which may land you in trouble.

Good answers put you in a position where you are focusing on describing the circumstances around your decision and focusing on positive possibilities and opportunities. They use a component of the job description and use it to redirect it to answer how you fit as the right person for the job.

There may also be some answers which don’t require you to give many details, such as:

• You had to leave because the company you worked for went out of business
• You had to leave due to urgent family or personal reasons
• You had to relocate to a new city
• You had to leave due to some health reasons that have since been resolved

How to Frame Your Answers

The general tell of a good answer which is well framed is that it makes you appear to be leaving your current job to move towards a better opportunity. You should always position it as you are coming to this new company because this opportunity is too good. To help you frame your answer better, follow the below points:

• Be Honest with a Reasonable Sense of Diplomacy

In an interview, honesty is wasted without tact. You need to manage a balance between being honest, everything you say is considered by the employer to figure out the pros and cons of hiring you. Tactful honesty is a great way to explain your reasons to leave as well as inform the employer about who you are, what you can do and how you fit into their company.

• Be Positive and Focus on Your Learnings

Redirect the conversation to the valuable lessons you obtained from your company and how it has actually improved you, instead of discouraging or demotivating you. You need to answer the question and then cleverly segue into answering the main underlying question -”why are you the best person for the job?”

Use the job description of the role you’re interviewing for and highlight how your skills seamlessly fit within their outlined expectations.

• Be Clear About Your Reasons for Leaving

Think about your company and your experience there, focus on what you didn’t like or what didn’t work out and quickly list down all the reasons for leaving. Circle some of the key points that are best suited to be mentioned professionally and commit to make them your key answers to this question.

• Put Yourself in the Shoes of an Employer

After you’ve thoughtfully listed out your reasons for leaving a job, consider how an interviewer might interpret your answer. Preparing yourself for followup questions will ensure you are not caught off-guard.

Assume that the interviewer suspects that you are hiding something and they want to know what it is, what possible follow-up questions would they ask you? If you’re unsure about the follow-up questions, try to get feedback on your reasons from trusted friends, family or mentors and prepare yourself for follow up questions.

Using the above-mentioned tips, you will be able to deliver a thoughtful, sincere and reasonable answer to justify leaving your current job and land a good impression on your interviewer. If you are looking to increase the number of quality interviews you can find fast and at your desired roles, you can use the smart job filters on Monster. You can also leverage their large network of employers to quickly find your right fit and even avail Monster expert resume writing services to boost your chances to land interviews.

Conclusion

The reason for looking to leave your current job is always going to get attention from interviewers as it holds the potential for a lot of key information. This information explains a lot about your personality, work values, your relationship with your company and your thoughts and feelings about ending your professional relationship with them. Therefore, it makes the most sense to prepare a well-articulated answer for your response.