Why Do You Want to Work From Home Interview Question and Answer - Career Sidekick

Why Do You Want to Work From Home Interview Question and Answer - Career Sidekick Why Do You Want to Work From Home? Interview Question and Answer Interview Questions and Answers Remote Job Search / https://www.edenscott.com/blog If youre interviewing for a remote job or work-from-home job, youll need a great answer for the why do you want to work from home? interview question.Youll also need a good answer for this if youre asking your current employer for permission to work from home.So were going to look at the best answers you can give when an employer asks, why do you want to work from home?Lets get startedHow to Answer the Why Do You Want to Work From Home? Interview QuestionAny time youre answering this question in a job interview, there are some steps you want to follow.Even if youre interviewing for a job thats fully-remote already, youll still need a great explanation for why you want to work from home because this is going to be one of the top interview questions they ask you.So lets look at the steps you can follow to boost your chances of hearing yes1. Always give a business reason (even if its not your only reason)Its easy to come up with personal reasons to want t o work from homeNo dress code (unless youre getting on a video call) No commute More time to sleep.You can be home to get deliveries, talk to repairmen, etc.Life is just much easier when you work from home.But if you want the interviewer or hiring manager to say yes when you ask for this perk, youll need to give a good business reason for it.You could say youre able to get far more work done in a distraction-free environment, and when you dont need to spend an hour commuting each way.Thats one way to twist a personal reason (skipping the commute) into a business reason.If your commute is very long, you can point at the amount of time you spend in the car or on the train each day and talk about how much more productive youd be if you put that time toward planning your day and doing work.Thats just one example of how to do this. Get creative, and remember to always mention one business reason and one benefit to THEM.That brings me to my next point when answering, why do you want to wo rk from home?2. Make your answer about them as much as its about youDont just talk about yourself when answering this question. Always make sure youre talking about their needs and how this can help them.If they ask you why youd like to work from home and youre only talking about yourself and what YOU want, then youre really not answering this question the right way.As an employee, you want to be showing the company that youre thinking about ways to produce more work for them. Your manager will LOVE this if you make your answer about them.3. Think of it as a conversation, not a confrontationRather than trying to twist an employers arm into giving you this perk think of it as a conversation to come up with an arrangement that both sides feel is fair.Negotiation expert and former FBI hostage negotiator Chris Voss wrote an outstanding bookwhere he talks about how no is the beginning of a negotiation, not the end.So if an employer says no at first, dont feel defeated.You could ask an op en-ended question to understand their objection to you working from home.You might say, whats your main concern?Open-ended questions like this are a great way to find out what the other person is thinking in a non-confrontational way.FYI this is one of the best interview tips to follow in general. It really is just a conversation!In this case asking this will also help you find out if youre hearing no because working from home regularly is against company policy.Some companies just dont allow employees to work from home, so its better to find out early in the process if this is something thats important to you.4. Talk about what else you like about the jobWhile its good to be honest and admit youre really attracted to a position because its work-from-home, you should also make sure you have other reasons for wanting the job.Show interest in the position itself at least as much as you show them youre excited about the idea of working from home.Ive interviewed for fully remote jobs in the past and tried to act like I wasnt excited about working from home, and the interviewer knew I wasnt being honest. It cost me the job!So dont lie or hide your excitement; just make sure to show equal excitement and interest in the position itself.Do your research, know what the job involves, and be ready to name a couple specific reasons why you want this position.One way to do this in the interview is to ask the interviewer lots of great questions about the company, the team, and the position.5. Ask calmly and confidently, and dont act like its a big dealIts important to show confidence in any interviewor any time youre asking your current employer for something (a raise, a flexible schedule, etc.)Practicing your answer will help with this.Also, try not to act like this is a big deal or a huge life-changing thing.While working from home might be your dream and really WOULD change your life in huge ways, you want to act like its just a casual, reasonable request that you feel w ould benefit your productivity (or whatever other business reason youre going to name).So try to stay calm and level-headed when you ask.Dont act like its a huge letdown if they say, no, and dont go crazy celebrating if they say, yes.By asking calmly, youll be more persuasive, youll seem more professional, and youll be more likely to hear the answer you want from them.6. Be willing to compromise at firstIf you dont hear yes after following the steps above, you could suggest doing a trial period so that if it doesnt work out, you can return to the office.Or you could suggest trying two or three days per week at first, rather than all five.There are many ways to move toward your goal of working from home if youre willing to talk to the employer, understand their viewpoint, and use logical business reasons as much as possible.Or if you really like the job, you could start out in the office and then demonstrate youre capable of working at home little-by-little.You could start by asking for one day here and thereFor example, you could tell your boss you have a repairman coming or are expecting an important delivery you need to be home for, and you dont know what hour itll arrive.Ask to work from home and then go above and beyond what they expect in terms of your work. Get double the work done compared to what you normally would!Then a few months later, bring up the conversation of working from home on a regular basis!7. Demonstrate youre a self-starter in the hiring processIf youre planning on asking to work from home in your next job, you should really use the whole hiring process to show youre a self-starter even before going on an interview.Respond to emails quickly and clearly. Show you can communicate effectively.Heres an exampleIf you are calling the employer or returning their call and you dont reach them suggest future times to speak in your voicemail. And/or follow up by writing an email with your availability for the next day if they tried to reach you bu t failed.You might say:Hi Jim, I got your voicemail just now. Sorry I missed your call. Ill be available until 5 PM Eastern Time today, and any time from 9 AM to 2 PM tomorrow (Friday). Im looking forward to talking with you.While avoiding phone-tag might seem like a pretty small thing to do, it actually goes a long way toward showing the employer youre capable of working on your own and getting the job done.Youd be amazed at how many people cant even communicate clearly to set up a phone interview.For example, they wont tell an employer what timezone theyre in. Or theyll call back and not leave a voicemail with any future availability, etc.Another opportunity to go above and beyond what they expect with communication: Thank you emails and follow-up emails after the interview.Small things like this add up and show an employer youre competent and a far-above-average communicator.8. Practice your answerYour request to work from home is NOT going to come out perfect the first time you say it, especially with the interviewer or your boss staring you down.So practice at home and make sure youre comfortable with what you want to say.Also prepare for what youll say if they say, no.We covered a few ideas above including suggesting a trial period, suggesting a couple of days per week to start, etc.By having a plan for if they say, yes, but also if they say, no, you can continue the conversation and get the best possible arrangement given the situation.If you follow these tips, youll give yourself the best chance of success when asking employers to work from home, and answering why do you want to work from home? in your interviews.Why Do You Want to Work From Home? Sample AnswersNow that weve looked at tips for answering, why do you want to work from home?, lets look at a couple of word-for-word sample interview answers.These will help you come up with your own answer that sounds professional and convincing.Sample Answer #1:I want to work at home so I can be more produc tive and spend more time focusing on my job, rather than commuting. Right now, I commute an hour each way, and thats time that could be spent on my work. When Ive taken sick days, Ive noticed Im more productive at home. For example, last Thursday and Friday I was out sick and completed four days worth of work because I was able to skip the commute and work distraction-free.Sample Answer #2:I already collaborate with most of the company virtually, since our project teams are spread across five locations. I want to work from home so I can use my current commute time to plan my day and do work, so I can produce more for the company. I think I would be more productive if I were able to wake up to a home office and start working instead of spending 70 minutes commuting each way. Having a home office would also save the company money on electricity, and would require one less space for a desk. And since I already communicate virtually throughout the day usually doing multiple conference calls and Skype calls my daily work wouldnt look any different at home.Answering Why Do You Want to Work From Home? Quick InstructionsUse business reasons and logical arguments, not personal reasonsMake your answer about how this will benefit the employerThink of it as a back-and-forth conversation, not a confrontationTalk about other reasons youre excited about the job; you never want to seem like you only care about the work-from-home aspect of the positionAsk calmly and confidently, and dont act like its an unusual requestBe willing to compromise at first. If they arent satisfied with your answer, you could suggest starting by working at home two or three days per week instead of all fiveDemonstrate throughout the hiring process that youre a great communicator and self-starter so theyll trust you more to work at homePractice your answer so youre confident and relaxed when explaining why you want to work from home