The formula for your answer is easy to follow: First, state your weakness. Second, add additional context and a specific example or story of how this trait has emerged in your professional life. That context will give potential employers insight into your level of self-awareness and commitment to professional growth. Earlier in my career, this led to burnout and negative self-talk.
Not only has this helped my own self-esteem, but it has also helped me genuinely appreciate and recognize my team and other support systems. From high school and into my early professional interactions, it prevented me from speaking up. I learned practical skills around leading discussions and sharing diverse perspectives.
Now, in group settings, I always start conversations with the quieter folks. I know exactly how they feel, and people can be amazing once they start talking. This works well in some situations, but in many cases, I need the help of others to overcome factors beyond my control. In one instance last year, I was spearheading a client event that had a lot of moving parts. I was trying to manage everything from the strategic plan down to the tiniest details, like table settings.
I did a lot of self-reflection afterward. But when I was working for XYZ Company several years ago, I was on a group project where I could see how my putting things off to the last minute created stress for everyone else. It was a wake-up call. I started creating daily schedules that hold me accountable to my team, and I broke the habit.
It was hard at first, but using the Agile process was a real breakthrough in my workflow and mindset. I was laboring over the details and in turn, caused my manager to be stressed when I almost missed the deadline on my deliverables.
I learned the hard way back then, but I did learn. Within a few years of being in the working world, though, I realized that I wanted to take my career in a more analytical direction. In my most recent job, this new foundation has enabled me to do my own goal setting and tracking. Actually, getting over the math anxiety I had when I was younger has been incredibly empowering.
Use the job description as your guide as you select your strengths. When providing context for your strengths, address the specific qualities that qualify you for the job and distinguish you as a candidate. Helping colleagues on projects and properly managing your workload is an artful balance. In the past, this has led me to feel stressed or burnt out. To help myself improve in this area, I use a project management app so I can visualize how much work I have at any given moment and know whether or not I have the bandwidth to take on more.
While expressing outward stress or frustration over missed deadlines can be considered a weakness, employers value workers that place importance on deadlines and strive to keep projects within the planned timeline.
Each candidate has areas to improve upon in their expertise. A few common areas people need experience in include:. Lack of confidence is a common weakness, especially among entry-level contributors. Experiencing a lack of confidence can sometimes cause inefficiencies in your work. For example, you might feel unqualified to speak up at an important meeting when your idea could help the team to achieve a goal.
While being humble when working with others can be helpful, it is also necessary to maintain a certain amount of confidence to do your job at an optimal level. If this is the weakness you choose to present in your interview, emphasize why you value confidence, your understanding of the value you offer, and ways you have practiced displaying confidence in the workplace even when you might not always feel it.
It has been helpful for me to keep a running document of the impact I have made on my team and at my organization to better understand why I should be confident about the skills and unique talents I bring to the table. I have also made it a point to voice my ideas and opinions during meetings when I feel they are appropriate and will add value to the conversation. Asking for help is a necessary skill both when you are lacking expertise in a certain area and when you are feeling burned out or cannot handle your workload.
Knowing when and how to ask for help shows strong self-awareness and helps the organization by getting ahead of a possible inefficiency. While having a strong work ethic and being independent are positive qualities, the business should know when to ask for help. If you know it has been difficult to ask for help in the past, explain why you know it is beneficial and the ways you have tried to improve this skill. I have learned that it is much more beneficial both for me and the business to reach out when I do not understand something or feel burned out with my workload.
I also understand that many experts around me have specific knowledge and skills that can make my work better. While I am still working on it, I have been able to produce more high-quality work as a result of getting help from those around me.
Even the most flexible people can have trouble working with others that have certain characteristics or personality traits. Having good teamwork skills also means having a strong awareness of how you work with others and ways you can adjust your approach to better serve the organization.
However, these answers may make you seem lazy or unmotivated, which will turn off many employers looking at you as a potential employee.
Instead, try turning one of your weaknesses into a strength by using it as part of your answer. Another option of turning your weakness into a strength is to talk about when you overcame your weakness and what it taught you. It is rare for interviewers to be interested in what your weaknesses are. It can come across as too negative or defensive if the interviewer has seen this before when interviewing candidates.
When answering these questions, keep your answers brief and concise without going into detail about why you think those weaknesses might exist because this will likely never really get addressed at all in the interview. Revealing too much about yourself is not a good idea. Giving brief answers and then moving on to the next question is the best way to respond.
Keep in mind that if they ask this, they are open-minded and not looking for a perfect candidate but rather someone who will bring something different or new with their strengths while minimizing any of those weaknesses as much as possible. This is within your skill set and background. To be successful in any field, you need to understand your strengths and weaknesses clearly.
Your interviewers will frequently ask questions about some of the things that make you less qualified for the job than other candidates? This is because they want to hear more about possible areas where improvement could occur or possibly limits on current skill sets. If there are glaring holes in your qualifications, the interviewer may not understand why you were selected from all the other applicants.
Before answering this question, you must consider the job description and the requirements. The interviewer is looking for genuine insight into possible reasons why you may have failed in your previous jobs or what professional weaknesses might hinder your success at this new position. Nevertheless, this is an excellent opportunity for growth if handled correctly! And telling a story is a great way to answer this question! The best way to handle these questions is by telling a story about your personal experience overcoming the weakness.
This demonstrates their care-taking abilities while also showing their awareness of balancing both spheres in life. Think of it as a chance to highlight skills that demonstrate your self-awareness and drive for growth rather than something that holds you back. After hearing your answer in context, they might even offer to help you find a way around that obstacle.
You can find a complete guide to My Strengths and Weaknesses here. We also have a List of Strengths post that you may find helpful. What are your weaknesses? Comment below with 3 weaknesses you have improved in the last few months that may or may not be in the lists above. This will help others see different possibilities.
What are your Weaknesses? Top 3 Weaknesses Knowing your list of weaknesses is great, but understanding how to communicate them in an interview is different. Identify Your Weaknesses. Classify Your Weaknesses.
0コメント