Microsoft founder Bill Gates shares how he would handle the 'toughest' job interview question

Microsoft

founder Bill Gates once found himself in the hot seat of a job interview with basketball legend Steph Curry. But instead of discussing just philanthropy or basketball, Curry decided to turn the tables. He put Gates in the hot seat with a challenge: answer questions as if he were interviewing for a junior engineering role at Microsoft. For Bill Gates, who left Harvard to start Microsoft and went on to become one of the world’s richest persons, it was a playful throwback. When Curry asked the standard interview question – “Why should we hire you?” – Gates leaned on his programming skills. "You should look at the code that I've written. You know, I'm kind of crazy, I write software programs way beyond any classes that I've taken, and think I've gotten better over time," he replied. Talking about his strengths and weaknesses, Bill Gates admitted that marketing and sales were not his area. But, his real power, he said lay in creating and defining products. "Product definition, product creation — very strong. If you have a team that understands the customers, the sales, the marketing, I'm not going to bring that, but I would enjoy working with them," he explained.

How Bill Gates answered salary expectations question

When asked about salary expectations, Gates replied:"I hope the option package is good. You know, I'm able to take risk and I think the company has a great future. So I'd prefer to get stock options even more than cash compensation.” "I hear some other companies are paying a lot but treat me fairly and emphasize the options," he further explained. The conversation showed that whether it’s a young engineer applying for their first job or a billionaire reflecting on his journey, the essentials of a job interview remain the same — showcase your skills, be honest about your limits, and highlight what you love doing.