A Time You Pushed Back
Tell me about a time you pushed back on a request.
Describe the request, why you disagreed with it, how you said so, what you proposed instead, and what happened.
Answer in the first person with your own decisions, in under three minutes, and have a 60-second version ready for a round that keeps interrupting.
Hints
Hint 1
Push-back lands when it comes with an alternative; a refusal alone is a different story.
Hint 2
Show that you understood the requester's goal and served it another way.
Solution
Show the approach
What a strong answer contains
- The request and the goal behind it, taken seriously.
- Your specific objection — risk, cost, a better path — with the evidence you brought.
- The alternative you proposed and how you got agreement.
- The outcome, including whether you were right, and how you would handle it if you had been wrong.