Below are life story interview questions to ask your parents or grandparents to learn more about their lives and your family history.
Be sure to add your own questions to the list as I ask well over 100 in an interview as a Legacy Video producer, helping families preserve their stories. And don’t forget to ask follow-up questions!.
- What is your name?
- Do you have any nicknames?
- When and where were you born?
- When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
- Where have you lived?
- How would you describe your cultural identity?
- What is your favorite hobby?
- What is your favorite travel destination?
How to Interview People for Their Life Stories
Who Are the Important People in Your Life?
Make a family tree for yourself that depicts your place in the extended family. Include siblings, parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles. Mention those who have had a special impact on your life; inquire as to why. If you lived down the street from one cousin and across the country from another, that would explain why you share so many more experiences with the nearby cousin. Were you close in age? Did you share similar interests?
What Were Your Most Memorable Experiences?
Some occasions and encounters are so profoundly transformative that they immediately stand out. Jog your memory for others by thinking year by year. What are your earliest memories? What stood out to you when you were 8, 10, and 12? When did you first leave home, and why? Whether you left for the military, college, or a new job, leaving had an impact on your life. Tragedies shape one’s life, so consider the circumstances of your marriages and the births of your children. Also consider the impact that deaths, job losses, wars, and natural disasters have had on your life.
Below are life story interview questions to ask your parents or grandparents to learn more about their lives and your family history.
Be sure to add your own questions to the list as I ask well over 100 in an interview as a Legacy Video producer, helping families preserve their stories. And don’t forget to ask follow-up questions!.
At Family Tree Video, we create Legacy Videos, contemporary memoirs that combine a parent or grandparent’s filmed interview with family photos, documents, maps, and other artifacts. The outcome is a lovely “Moving Portrait” that captures your loved one as they share their life story, family history, and memories. This is a present that your family will cherish for many generations.
Your response to this question reveals how highly or negatively you view yourself. Your response will demonstrate your level of knowledge and your future goals in a clear and understandable manner. Real autobiographies include works as commonplace and obvious as Bill Clinton’s “My life” and as intriguing and alluring as Mahatma Gandhi’s “My Experiments with truth.”
Whatever happens, keep in mind that these questions are intended to shed light on your characteristics in a way that those routine questions can’t The employer is merely testing to see if you become agitated or not. The main goal is to create a difficult situation to cause stress. So think calmly and be as creative as you can. You’ll surely make it through and secure the offer-letter.
Once more, a question that is frequently asked with the same goal of learning more about your quirks and characteristics Many people would advise you to choose an animal that is powerful and intelligent. However, the trick to this question is to think about the job you’re applying for before responding.
The question is only posed with the intention of learning about your priorities and your personal values. Hence, you need to answer accordingly. Think about the most important things you have at home. It could be anything, including pictures, papers, cash, animals, computers, etc.
Always keep in mind that you will need to provide a reasonable and logical justification for any decision you make.
FAQ
What is a biographical interview question?
Examples of biographical queries: Describe yourself, what you can bring to the company, and what drew you to this position in particular.
How do you write a biographical interview?
- Have a pre-interview meeting. …
- Record in multiple formats. …
- Start with easy questions. …
- Don’t do it all at once. …
- Seek out memory stimulation. …
- Stick to asking open-ended questions (e. g. Tell me about…, Describe…, “How did you feel when…,” “Why do you think…,” etc.)
What are good story Questions?
- How did the author begin the story? …
- What is the main problem in the story? …
- What challenges do the characters meet in the story? …
- What choices did the characters have?
- How do the characters’ decisions impact the other characters and the plot?
- What do you consider to be the book’s most crucial section?
What are personal interview questions?
- Tell us about yourself. …
- What are your strengths and weaknesses? …
- Which animal, and why, would you choose to be if you could be one for a day?
- Describe yourself in three to five words. …
- Why did you leave your last job? …
- What motivates you? …
- What kind of compensation are you looking for?
