Tricky interview question: When you run, do you take the same route every day, or a different one?

The following took place during an interview for an equities trade support position at a global investment bank in Australia...

The question

The interviewer asked me what my interests were outside of work. I casually mentioned a few things, such as travelling, reading, camping and running. When I said running he fixed me with a look and said: "Ah, so when you run, do you take the same route every time, or a different route?"

The candidate's reply

I immediately panicked, not expecting any follow-up from such a trivial initial question. I thought to myself: If I answer the same way every time, I'll appear conservative and resistant to change; but if I say it varies each time, I'm obviously flaky, inconsistent and undisciplined. What to do?

In the end I mumbled something along the lines of: "No, no, I run the same route each time", which elicited only a grunt and a disapproving look, before the interviewer moved onto the next question. I didn't get the job.

How he would have responded in hindsight

I set myself a specific time as a goal for a particular route. Once I have achieved that goal, I find a new route and set myself a new time to be achieved. That way I'm always challenging myself to improve my running times and I keep completing these challenges under different circumstances.

How would YOU have answered?

Use the comments box below to suggest a better response to the interview question above.