One of my absolute favorite interview questions is, “What are your short and long term goals?” I love this question not because I necessarily have the world’s greatest answer for it, but because its tantamount to asking someone “How many cats are there in the US?” If you really want to figure out if I am passionate about your company, ask me “What really gets your blood pumping?”

Not that I am necessarily trying to critique interviewers but when it comes down to it, asking about short term and long term goals suggests that we should try to answer in a manner most appropriate for the interview, not our own situation.

Personally, if you really want to see me light up; let me tell you about my passion for connecting traditional marketing models and new media. Let me tell you about how I see so many companies trying to integrate new media into their marketing plans, not because it feeds their brand, but because they think it is the “in” thing to do. Give me a chance to show you what I might be able to do on a project for your company and then make up your mind if my goals fit yours.

Yes, I am an over-caffinated MBA student and I desperately want that job. Having me tell you that my short term goal is “to find myself in your company and to generate great results for it as an intern” barely scratches the surface of what motivates me.

In fact, it turns out its easy to have a goal but, because of our drive to land that great job, its another game entirely to articulate that as a passion and vision for your career. Every day I wake up and try to figure out how to articulate this without scaring off 90% of the corporate recruiters out there.

Now that its out there, maybe – just maybe – I’ll get to answer it.

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