Strange Interview Questions

It's well known that some of the most unusual interview questions come from consulting organizations.  Many of them parallel the Barbara Walters interview style of "if you were a tree, what kind of tree would you be and why?" 

Granted, these seldom have any actual real-world application, but they do serve a two-fold purpose:  1) They act as "brainteasers" to see how applicants think, and 2) They give interviewers the smug (if not sadistic) satisfaction of "knowing" the right answer while watching some poor applicant struggle to guess at the correct answer.

If that sounds overly critical, ask yourself how you would respond if you spent several hours polishing your resume and rehearsing your likely responses to questions about your background and experience only to be confronted with gems like these:

1) "If you were shrunk to the size of a pencil and put in a blender, how would you get out?"

2) "How many ridges [are there] around a quarter?"

3) "What is the philosophy of martial arts?"

4) "Explain [to] me what has happened in this country during the last 10 years."

5) "Rate on a scale of 1 to 10 how weird you are." (There's a safe one!)

6) "How many basketball[s] can you fit in this room?"

7) "Out of 25 horses, pick the fastest 3 horses. In each race, only 5 horses can run at the same time. What is the minimum number of races required?"

8) "If you could be any superhero, who would it be?"

For additional questions - along with a listing of candidates' responses - feel free to visit the Atlanta Business Chronicle.