Job Interview Questions: How should I answer this job interview question?

I'm a mathematician. I left my last job because my old boss got some big promotion overseas and the new boss didn't like me. She made things difficult and unpleasant for me so I walked away from the job. I am quite good at figuring out mathematical problems and applying or even developing new algorithms for various purposes and I have won many prizes for my work.

The general advice I have received re: job interviews is. Be yourself and be honest. So if they ask me this question, should I just answer it honestly?

Job Interview Mistakes!

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This is a tough one. Being honest and saying that you didn't get along with your manager might be something the interviewer understands and sees as valid, or it may make them think you're a pretentious a** who will walk away the second you stop getting your way. Personally, I'd answer with something like this:

"I worked at Company, Inc for 5 years, and for the first 4 I really enjoyed it. Company, Inc had a wonderful, positive work environment, I was able to be productive and also feel like my contributions were worthwhile. During my 5th year management changed because my previous manager, with whom I had an excellent working relationship, was placed in a position overseas. I soon experienced challenges and difficulties working under the new management, and although I attempted to address them multiple time both directly and through HR, my attempts were unsuccessful. Because I was unable to overcome the difficulties that were preventing me from working to the best of my ability at my job, I felt it was time to move on."

You can alter this by whatever means you prefer, but the point is to emphasize that you attempted to resolve the situation multiple times (which hopefully you did), and that leaving was a last resort. Be very careful not to come off as arrogant, and also not to insult your former manager. What you said in your question may be the absolute truth, but if I was interviewing you and you said it that way, I would think you were full of yourself and wouldn't like you at all. I would also wonder if you were sexist and had issues about working under a "woman boss," especially if the previous boss was male.

Job Interview Techniques - 3 Super Tips When Preparing For A Job Interview

• You should answer it honestly and if you are concerned about job security I would suggest trying to become a teacher because it would benefit you to become a teacher since it seems that you have skills that many people do not possess. Yes be honest but do not tell everything, by that I mean you can be honest but not to a point where it may cost you the job, so tell them all they need to know and not all of the details


• I like the suggestion that someone else above had - tie it into job security. Which is true because you were worried about your job due to your new boss. I don't know if I would outright state that you had a problem with the new boss because this is risky. Instead, state you were worried about about the job's stability and decided your goal was to find a stable job in a challenging work environment.
  
  Good luck!


• Be honest but don't elaborate. It's very important that you don't say anything bad about your former boss. In a way, this is a test.
  
  Say that the you and the new supervisor had personality conflicts and leave it at that.
  
  It happens and potential employers are aware of it.


• yes be honest