Hiring managers usually have a list of questions they love to ask when they interview you. But just because you get asked a common question doesn't mean you should give a common answer. If you plan ahead, you can come up with a standout answer.

In the video below, I will tell you two standard job interview questions and give you my best advice to show you've done your homework and sell yourself for the job.

Find out what job interview answers will impress hiring managers

If you'd like more help with job interview questions and answers, check out my tips for a Strategic Approach to the Interview.

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Even with high unemployment and a competitive job market, you don't have to be in the job search nearly as long as everyone else is.  Watch the video and I'll tell you what you should do.

Get more information on the fastest way to find a job.

The relocation question can come up in phone interviews as well as face-to-face interviews...be ready.

The more you know, the better off you are.  The best way to find out, of course, is to ask questions...but which ones? Watch the video below to find out the best questions to ask in your job interview.

Find out more about taking a strategic approach to your interview to get the job.

There are two facts about the job search you might not realize:

1. Around 70%-80% of all jobs are never advertised, never posted on online job boards.

2. Only a tiny number of online applications (maybe 5 out of 1000) ever get to the person who can make the decision to hire you.

I don't know about you, but if I were in the job search, I would not like those odds.

The only way to beat those odds and find the job you want is to go around that broken system. Go straight to the hiring manager.

I've been teaching job seekers how to find and contact hiring managers for years, and they can't believe how fast they find great jobs.

I wanted more people to have the same success my candidates have had, so I put together a free webinar: How to Find Hidden Jobs in Any Economy.

Come to the webinar and learn how to get a job fast:

• why 'normal' job searching is so frustrating, and what you can do about it
• how to use online job boards as resources, not time-wasters
• how to find unadvertised jobs and get interviews

If you can enter your name and email on this Registration Page, pick a time that suits you, and sit in front of your computer for about an hour, I can teach you how to find all the unadvertised jobs you want.

Watch the 2-minute video below for 5 tips you need to find a job fast--from starting your search to closing your interview:

If you want more tips like these and the fastest job search possible, watch another video about how to get a job fast.

You're graduating...now, how are you going to get a job?

Your brand-spanking-new college degree is no guarantee of a job. The job market is tough.  But despite everything you hear (and might be experiencing), there are jobs to be had.  You've just got to be aggressive and fight for them.  The tips I'm about to share with you take some effort and might seem over the top, but they will get you a job fast.

Project the right image

• Polish up your Facebook profile. Don't keep it separate for your social life. Hiring managers look for potential hires on Facebook, and might contact you if they like what they see.  Just clean it up and start adding posts that make you look good for a job search.

• Get on LinkedIn and do something. It's THE social media to use in a job search. Set up your profile, add a picture that makes you look professional, and start adding keywords that matter to your future industry: your degree, any  work/volunteer experience, and what you want to do. Then start joining groups for that industry where you can learn from discussions and start seeing who's who. If you're not sure what to do, get my LinkedIn Profile Tutorial and knock it out in an hour.

• Write your resume like it's selling you as a product--because it is. Put yourself in the shoes of an employer...what will they care about in your background? That's what goes on your resume. Even volunteer work counts. Try to translate what you've done into numbers. In a resume, numbers speak louder than words. Here are a couple of articles to help: Redo your resume and Write a Resume that Pops.

• Beef up your resume with a job shadowing experience.  Job shadows are not just for figuring out if this is the job you want.  They can (and should) be used for picking the brain of the person you're following around:  What's the best path into a job in this field?  What does a typical day look like?  What does it take to be successful?  (Get more job shadow questions to ask .) When you put that experience on your resume, all of a sudden you have keywords that get it pulled up in that company's search for candidates AND show you're someone with initiative and smarts.

Find the jobs and get the interview

• Recognize that unadvertised jobs make up at least 70% of what's out there--and find those hidden jobs.  Your peers will be spending all their time on job boards, filling out application after application--and hear nothing.  You, on the other hand, will be going straight to the hiring managers of companies you want to work for and introducing yourself--with an email, on Facebook, on LinkedIn, etc.  It's nice if you know someone who can introduce you, but it's not necessary.  I just talked to someone who spent months getting no bites in her "normal" search, so she found 41 hiring managers, contacted them, and got 6 responses in 24 hours.  She's on her way to a few interviews for sure.  It takes guts, but the results are worth it.  If you'd like to learn what to do and how to do it, come to my free webinar, How to Find Hidden Jobs in Any Economy.

• Even if you see an advertised job you want, contact the hiring manager about it before you do anything else.  If he says "you have to apply online," at least now he knows your name.  The thought of that kind of an aggressive step will freak most job seekers out, but it is a fantastic move that gets you noticed in a very positive way.

Slam-dunk the interview

What's your biggest disadvantage in the interview?  A lack of experience--both work experience and interview experience.  You can solve both.

• Get my free Job Interview Prep Kit.  It's a 20-page guide for getting prepared for the interview.  You will be very confident and ready for anything.

• Write up a 30-60-90-day plan for your first 3 months on the job.  When the manager says "Tell me what you know about doing this job" you can say, "I'm glad you asked.  I wrote up this plan for what I would do in the first 3 months and I'd like to discuss it with you."  You talk about the plan with him and all of a sudden you're light years ahead of the other candidates who didn't have a plan.  This is the one thing I'd never go to an interview without...whether I had no experience or a lot.  Learn more about these plans here: 30-60-90-day plan for your first interview and  how to find information for your 30-60-90-day plan.  Get a template and samples here:   30-60-90-Day Action Plan.

• Learn great answers to interview questions.  We have a great free Mock Interview Training program at Career Confidential:   hear a typical job interview question, type in your response, and see a video of me and how I would answer it, given my years of experience as a recruiter and career coach.  It's a popular program.  Try it out here.

• Ask questions in the interview.  This will make you stand out in a big way.  Ask questions about the job, but also ask two strategic questions:  In the beginning, ask what their ideal candidate looks like.  The answer will tell you what they're most interested in, so you can tailor your answers to their questions accordingly.  Toward the end, ask "Based on what we've talked about, can you see me being successful in this job?" or "Is there any reason you wouldn't hire me?"  Those questions either get them on their first step toward a "Yes, you're hired" or they clue you in on issues they have with you so you can solve them before they decide they'd be better off with someone else.  These are very effective, but it's another thing that takes some guts to do.

The tips you've seen here are not things you'll see everywhere, but that's a strong reason why they'll work.  Not everyone else is doing them.  You're going the extra mile, and hiring managers will appreciate your initiative, enthusiasm, and professionalism.  If you follow these steps, you will be employed before you know it.  I wish you the best of luck.

In the video below, I will share with you two questions that you should always ask in every interview.  Both of them are strategy questions that help you hone in on what the hiring manager wants to hear and nudge him along toward making you the offer.

If you've got an interview in your future, first make sure you get our free Job Interview Prep Kit and then get more strategies for success in our Strategic Approach to Interviewing.