What Are Your Hobbies and Interests?

Why interviewers ask this

Interviewers use this to understand who you are outside work, whether you’d fit the team culture, and sometimes to test whether you have healthy boundaries around work-life balance.

How to answer — tips

• Be genuine — fake hobbies are easy to see through in follow-up questions
• Pick hobbies that show positive qualities (discipline, creativity, leadership, curiosity) without explaining the connection
• It’s fine to mention 2–3 interests briefly
• If a hobby is genuinely relevant to the role, mention the connection

What NOT to say

Don’t list ‘reading, traveling, and spending time with family’ — every candidate says this. Don’t describe hobbies that might raise red flags (extreme risk-taking in a safety-critical role, highly time-consuming commitments if the role requires lots of availability).

Answer structure to follow

Outside work, I [genuine hobby/interest]. I’ve [specific thing that shows engagement — competed, started a project, learned something]. I also [second interest if relevant]. Honestly, I find it helps me [connection to work — recharge, think differently, stay curious].

Frequently asked variations

What if I don’t have notable hobbies?

Everyone has interests — cooking, hiking, gaming, reading specific genres, DIY projects, following a sport. Specificity matters more than impressiveness.

Should I mention hobbies that are religious or political in nature?

Generally, avoid them unless they’re directly relevant to the role (e.g., volunteering for a nonprofit you’re interviewing at). They can inadvertently trigger bias.

How long should this answer be?

30–60 seconds maximum. It’s a rapport-builder, not a feature presentation.

Practice on video: record your answers on Employment.Media, re-record as often as you like, and share one Video Group link with employers. Get started free.