ANSWER

An interviewer probably isn't going to ask this exact question. Instead, they may ask you to list the characteristics and values of a job that are most important to you. Or, they may give you a list of values, with job security being among them, and ask you to rank them. Where you place job security in this list may communicate much more about you than you intend or realize. 

A lack of job security can cause discomfort and anxiety for many. Most people have a fear of the unknown, and the lack of job security intensifies these feelings. Still, job security is often overrated. Sure, it's important to determine whether a company will be in business a year later or whether the role for which you are interviewing has some amount of permanence, but to place too high an importance on job security can be a red flag to the interviewer. 

Top performing employees don't worry much about job security. They have sufficient confidence in their ability to apply their experience and skills to new and challenging situations. They know from past experience that if they apply themselves fully they will out perform their peers. Not placing too high an importance on job security communicates this about you. 

Job security also has a hidden downside. For most, job security leads to complacency. Instead of continuously setting new and sufficiently challenging goals we simply rely on whatever projects we are assigned to gain 'on the job' experience. We still learn over time, but without carefully established goals and a purposeful plan to achieve them we end up with a career which drives us towards an undetermined destination rather than actively determining the destination we want for our career, often while failing to reach our full potential. 

So, if asked some variation of this question you should make it clear that job security isn't high on your priority list for the reasons above. To summarize, top performers derive their sense of security through confidence in their own abilities and through the deliberate execution of an action plan established to achieve strategic career goals.

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Chris Adams
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