I’m a bit surprised at the answers you are getting here. I think this touches on two subjects so I’ll try to give two answers. First of all, when asked about a

I’m a bit surprised at the answers you are getting here. I think this touches on two subjects so I’ll try to give two answers. First of all, when asked about a time when, it’s perfectly normal to spend some time to think about it. I always give them a truthful answer and God knows I have a lot previous fails and / or managerial arguments on my plate. Seriously, “my old manager thought I was a dumb idiot with attitude issues” (hint: not true! or maybe it is). What does this even tell them? That you’re honest (probably) and either you’re a dumb idiot with attitude issues or your manager was not a nice person. Do they act on the assumption that your manager was right? This says a lot more about them than about you. Remember, it’s a two sided interview. If you can’t be honest, if they rush to conclusions, if they put you on the spot, you’ll be in for a frustrating employment. Secondly, about your dealing with the awfulnes of past deeds, I’ll just copy paste a nice little story here: > A senior monk and a junior monk were traveling together. At one point, they came to a river with a strong current. As the monks were preparing to cross the river, they saw a very young and beautiful woman also attempting to cross. The young woman asked if they could help her cross to the other side. > The two monks glanced at one another because they had taken vows not to touch a woman. > Then, without a word, the older monk picked up the woman, carried her across the river, placed her gently on the other side, and carried on his journey. > The younger monk couldn’t believe what had just happened. After rejoining his companion, he was speechless, and an hour passed without a word between them. > Two more hours passed, then three, finally the younger monk could contain himself any longer, and blurted out “As monks, we are not permitted a woman, how could you then carry that woman on your shoulders?” > The older monk looked at him and replied, “Brother, I set her down on the other side of the river, why are you still carrying her?”