25 Questions from the World's Most Influential Leaders: Unlocking Hidden Potential in Your Next Hire

If you are interviewing a candidate for a position, and you got brain freeze, in other words you can't find good questions for the interview, here are 25 favorite questions by the world most influencing leaders, you will never go wrong with those questions and more over you will get the best insights about the candidate you are hiring using their golden tips.

You will find below the 25 questions with the rationale behind every question so you know which insights you will be collecting.

Jeff Bezos

"Tell me about a problem you solved in an innovative way."

Bezos believes innovation is key to growth and wants to identify people who can think differently about challenges. This reflects Amazon's leadership principle of "Invent and Simplify."

Warren Buffett

"If you were independently wealthy, what would you do with your life?"

Buffett uses this to assess genuine passion and intrinsic motivation, believing that people who work only for money won't deliver exceptional results.

Elon Musk

"Tell me about the hardest problem you've solved."

Musk focuses on problem-solving abilities and resilience. He believes those who can articulate complex problems in detail are usually the ones who actually solved them.

Bill Gates

"How would you explain a complex technical problem to a non-technical person?"

Gates values clear communication and the ability to simplify complex ideas, essential for cross-functional collaboration at Microsoft.

Jack Ma

"What will make you stay in a company for at least 3 years?"

Ma focuses on long-term commitment and alignment with company values, believing sustainable growth comes from stable teams.

Simon Sinek

"What makes you come alive?"

Sinek believes understanding someone's genuine passions reveals their potential to inspire others and contribute to a positive company culture.

Jack Welch

"What are the last three books you've read?"

Welch used this to assess continuous learning mindset and intellectual curiosity, key traits he valued at GE.

Satya Nadella

"Where do you find meaning in your work?"

Nadella looks for people who connect their work to a larger purpose, reflecting Microsoft's mission to empower others.

Richard Branson

"What didn't you get a chance to include on your resume?"

Branson values personality and character traits that might not be visible in formal documentation, but are crucial for Virgin's culture.

Mary Barra

"Tell me about a time you failed and what you learned from it."

GM's CEO uses this to assess resilience, self-awareness, and ability to grow from mistakes.

Reed Hastings

"What's the most difficult feedback you've received?"

Netflix's culture of radical candor makes this question crucial for assessing how candidates handle direct feedback.

Howard Schultz

"What's your favorite Starbucks story?"

Schultz uses this to gauge passion for the brand and understanding of customer experience, core to Starbucks' success.

Indra Nooyi

"How would your parents describe your purpose in life?"

The Former PepsiCo CEO uses this to understand candidates' core values and long-term vision.

Steve Jobs (Historical)

"What's the biggest thing you've shipped?"

Jobs focused on actual achievements and impact, valuing those who could deliver significant results.

Sundar Pichai

"Explain something complex you know very well in simple terms."

Google's CEO values clear communication and deep understanding, essential for technical leadership.

Mark Cuban

"How have you recently improved yourself?"

Cuban values self-motivated learners who actively seek personal and professional growth.

Ray Dalio

"What do you do when you disagree with your boss?"

Bridgewater's founder values intellectual honesty and ability to have productive disagreements.

Zhang Yiming

"What changes would you make to our product?"

ByteDance's founder looks for strategic thinking and genuine interest in improving existing systems.

Marc Benioff

"How do you define success?"

Salesforce's CEO uses this to align personal values with company culture and social impact goals.

Sheryl Sandberg

"What would you do in your dream job?"

Looks for alignment between personal aspirations and potential role, indicating long-term fit.

Jensen Huang

"What technology trend excites you the most?"

NVIDIA's CEO assesses vision and passion for innovation, crucial for tech leadership.

Ginni Rometty

"Describe a project that failed despite your best efforts."

Former IBM CEO values resilience and ability to learn from setbacks.

Daniel Ek

"What's something you believe that others think is crazy?"

Spotify's founder looks for independent thinking and conviction in ideas.

Anne Wojcicki

"How do you make decisions when you don't have all the information?"

23andMe's CEO values practical problem-solving in uncertain conditions.

Sam Altman

"What important truth do very few people agree with you on?"

OpenAI's CEO looks for independent thinking and ability to defend unconventional views.

You need to select the most relevant questions to your topic and industry, but again you will never go wrong with those questions.

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