'I interviewed over 100 people at Goldman Sachs, and this was the one question I asked every job candidate'
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Before cofounding Solemates, a brand of women's shoe-care products, in 2009, Brown worked at Goldman Sachs for almost six years.
In her various roles, which included analyst, wealth adviser, and chief of staff, she interviewed between 20 and 30 job candidates a year vying for a few highly coveted positions at the investment bank.
"I interviewed over 100 people at Goldman Sachs," she tells Business Insider, "and this was the one question I asked every job candidate: 'What do you like doing the most?' - but I would ask it in two different forms."
Sometimes she asked this question in the form of: "What do you love doing the most in your current or former job?" Other times she asked: "What's your favorite thing to do outside of work?"
"I still love this question because ultimately it gives you insight into who the person really is," she says. "If someone hates making cold calls, but loves data analysis, it's important for you to determine that distinction because each requires totally different skill sets."
If someone enjoys doing a specific job or task, they will probably end up being good at it - or at least passionate about it, Brown adds.
"And I think it's so important to harness people's strengths," she says.