How to answer "Describe a situation where you had to work with a difficult team member" in a job interview

You just finished showing the job interviewer why you are a good fit for this role.

Then comes the curveball: "Describe a situation where you had to work with a difficult team member." Your mind starts to blank. What should you say?

Don’t worry — this question is your chance to showcase your problem-solving, communication, and teamwork skills!

This is a very common question interviewers ask to mainly see if you have the right skills to handle tough work situations:

• Communication skills

• Conflict resolution skills

• Adaptability

• Self-awareness

Having these skills shows interviewers that you can handle tough situations with professionalism and maturity.

You want to choose an experience where you can highlight:

• Background information: What happened? What was the key challenge? What made the team member difficult?

• Actions you took: How did you communicate? What actions did you take to resolve the situation? Why did you think this was the best approach?

• The result: What were the results? How did the team members respond? What worked well?

• Learning experience: What did you learn from the experience? How will you handle similar situations in the future?

Remember to focus on the situation and your action, NOT on your colleague's bad personality or character flaws.

Pretend you're faced with the same interview question: "Describe a situation where you had to work with a difficult team member."

What do you think is the best response?

Option A: Last year, I volunteered to help organize a school event for incoming international students. In our meeting, we had one team member who kept disagreeing with everyone's ideas on the lunch menu. I met with the team member in private and found out that they felt that the menu didn't consider people with underrepresented backgrounds. Thanks to this insight, we had a successful opening event. I also learned the importance of listening to every team member.

Option B: One time, I had a team member who kept criticizing everyone's ideas. They seemed very impatient and sometimes rude. I was shocked. We were supposed to help incoming students but because of the team member, we couldn't get anything done. Everyone disliked the person. So we told the manager and the company got rid of the difficult team member.

Be prepared to share an experience that showcases your ability handle difficult team member!