what is a good weakness to say during an interview

What are your weaknesses?

Yes, the dreaded job weaknesses interview question.

The last thing y'all ever want to practise at an interview - tell the interviewer that you are bad at something.

You already feel like puking. And now, you have to make yourself look expert while discussing how you lot're terrible at something.

And no, yous can't pretend like you take no professional person (or personal) weaknesses. You're a puny man.

You've got to ain up to that.

Good news. You lot can answer the "what are your weaknesses" job interview question without sabotaging yourself.

And - hint - it does NOT involve pretending that existence a perfectionist is a personal weakness.

This commodity volition bear witness you:

• What an interviewer wants to hear when they inquire for a list of weaknesses.
• How to answer the "what are your weaknesses" job interview question.
• The best "what are your weaknesses" instance answers.

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If you are looking for more guides to go ready for your interview, cheque these:

• How to Answer Why Practice You lot Want to Work Here
• How to Fix for a Telephone Interview
• Common Interview Questions and Answers

Don't forget that having a professional resume is an important footstep to get to the interview. So don't forget to cheque our Resume Examples for +500 Jobs.

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1

What Are Your Weaknesses? Here'due south What You're Being Asked

What does the interviewer desire to find out by asking the "what are your weaknesses" question?

Here's a little secret. It'south about how yous answer, non what you reply.

The interviewer is looking for three qualities:

• Self-awareness

Right
An ideal candidate won't deny that they have real weaknesses. But the weakness they cull won't interfere with the duties of the task in question. Yep, I have a couple of weaknesses. My biggest weakness is my inability to work well on a team. That'southward why I became a truck driver. I get to spend most of my time lonely.

Wrong
Some candidates volition hear the "what are your weaknesses" question and freeze. They panic and deny that they take any. Denial is ane of the worst mistakes y'all can make. Weaknesses? What weaknesses? Yous mean me? You must be kidding! I don't accept any.

• Honesty

The second worst mistake? Lying.

Right

An ideal candidate won't prevarication about their weaknesses. Cull a real weakness and talk about the steps yous're taking to accost it. I'chiliad non very good at gauging how long a task will have me to finish. I quite ofttimes underestimate the fourth dimension information technology will take to do smaller jobs. The result is that I don't delegate plenty time to larger, more important projects. I have to rush to get things done. Sometimes I miss deadlines. To address the issue, I've started taking time management courses at my local community college.

Wrong
Disguising a forcefulness as a weakness. What are my weaknesses? Well, for one affair, I'g such a perfectionist. Everything has to exist perfect. Not to mention I'1000 a definite workaholic. Plus, I'yard obsessive almost organization. Everything has to exist perfect and in place. Information technology's super annoying.

Okay, for a long fourth dimension we were all trained to answer this way. Now, interviewers know that information technology'southward a way of avoiding the question. Once more, they'll wonder what you're hiding.

• Self-improvement

Right

An important part of your "what are your weaknesses" reply is showing self-improvement. You lot should include details about the steps y'all're taking to learn a skill or correct a weakness. I take two greatest weaknesses. The beginning is my inability to share responsibilities. The 2nd is remaining patient during group projects. I want to exist in control. I don't trust others with work I know I can do better. So, if I take to share a task, I lose my patience when I doubtable that the other person isn't doing information technology right. I've discussed these weaknesses with my supervisor every bit areas I'd similar to improve. We've set a timeline and goals for me to attain. I've enrolled in several team building workshops and a volunteer grouping. I'g learning to permit go and trust others. My supervisor complimented me on my progress.

Incorrect

You are not confessing your sins or discussing babyhood traumas with a therapist. So, don't talk well-nigh your greatest weakness of all time and and then wait for mercy. I detest animals. I hate animals so much that I yell at my sister's canis familiaris when she isn't around to hear it. I don't know why I hate animals so much. I suspect that it comes from the time when a seagull ate my taco. That bird swooped down and ate a taco out of my hand. I've never been the same since. I don't know what to practice about it.

Don't exist weird. Don't be too candid. Don't over-confess. Forget about your aversion to animals, and don't talk about how yous miss work considering y'all can't leave of bed.

Here are other ways the interviewer might ask the "what are your weaknesses" question:

• What is your weakness?
• What is your greatest weakness?
• What is your biggest weakness?
• What are some of your weaknesses?
• What are your weakest areas?
• What are your weakest skills?
• What exercise y'all consider to be your weaknesses?
• What are your strengths and weaknesses?
• What would your current boss say is your weakest surface area?
• Tell me about a time y'all failed.
• Describe a difficult work situation and what you did to overcome it.

Some of the variations let you to respond with a display of force. Don't waste the opportunity.

Pro Tip: Recall, the interviewer cares less virtually what you lot respond and more about how y'all answer. The "what are your weaknesses" question is designed to put you lot on the spot.

Strengths and weaknesses go hand in paw. Demand help identifying your strengths? Read our guide: " How to Reply the "What Are Your Strengths?" Interview Question (Examples) " and List of Top Strengths to Put on a Resume

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two

How to Answer the What Are Your Weaknesses Job Interview Question [Job Interview Weaknesses List]

How are you supposed to come with a listing of weaknesses in the first identify?

And yes, yous'll want to make a list of your job weaknesses in advance. Plus, you lot'll desire to prepare yourself and so yous can talk about most of them if necessary.

That's because the interviewer may start with:

What is your greatest weakness?

And follow up with:

What are some other weaknesses?

First, look at this:

Here is a list of common professional person skills you can mention when answering questions about your weaknesses during a task interview:

• Teamwork
• Time management
• Sharing responsibleness
• Patience
• Focus
• Shyness
• Organization skills
• Sitting still
• Writing skills
• Overtalking
• Delegating tasks
• Sense of humor
• Presenting to public
• Public speaking
• Speaking too honestly
• Spontaneity (y'all don't like to work unprepared)
• Multitasking
• Command of a particular foreign language.

Just you lot should also come up with your own, customized list of personal and professional person weaknesses that yous can use to further inform your respond. Hither's how to do information technology:

Start by asking yourself the following:

• Is there a task or work-related skill that I don't similar to practice or don't do well?
• Was there a fourth dimension that I failed at piece of work?
• Was there a time that I failed at work and corrected it?
• Did my supervisor ever indicate out that I needed to work on something and and then praise me when I corrected it?
• Did anyone always criticize me for working in a particular mode?
• Did I always accept whatsoever academic weaknesses? Was there annihilation problematic for me when I was studying?

Remember, the best answer to the "what are your weaknesses" question should accept two parts:

• The weakness.
• What you're doing to correct information technology.

So, when you lot make a listing of weaknesses, try to come up with those that you lot've worked hard to correct.

Next, go to your job offer. What skills can yous find?

Hither's an example of a job offer for a Server at a restaurant:

Notice the skills:

• Show up on time every solar day.
• Works well nether pressure.
• Power to stay professional.
• Power to work in a fast-paced, team environment.
• Has a positive, bubbly, and friendly attitude.
• Can pay attending to item, speed, accurateness, follow-through, and multitasking.
• Can learn and retain data.
• Good listening skills and the power to follow instructions.

Expect at your list.

Your answer to the what are your weaknesses question is the only time you'll desire to avoid matching skills from the job offer. You will want to cull weak skills that ARE NOT essential for the task.

Correct

Choose a weakness that isn't i of the chore-related skills listed in the task offer. Ane of my biggest weaknesses is that I can't sit notwithstanding and focus for extended periods of time. I was never a bookworm. I always preferred athletics and easily-on activities. To brand sure that I got through schoolhouse with good grades, I set study goals for myself. I would sit down still and focus on exam materials for thirty minutes. After, I would advantage myself with a break to run effectually or socialize. The organization taught me subject field and helped me focus. I graduated from my high schoolhouse with honors. I am now attending college on an athletic scholarship. First, she doesn't disguise her weakness as a strength. But she does mention her strengths as she goes along. It's more than okay to talk about your strengths in your what are your weaknesses answer.For example, she is disciplined and can learn new data. 2d, she shows what she did to address her weakness.She set study goals. And these steps lead to her success. She got good grades and earned a scholarship.

Incorrect

Albeit to a weakness that is necessary for the job. I have anger direction issues. I tend to blow up when someone makes me angry or nervous. I guess you can say I'one thousand the opposite of Little Miss Sunshine. Don't get me wrong. I like people. But I'k a grumpy person. I don't have a high tolerance for nonsense or stupidity. I'1000 working on information technology, though. I've been doing volunteer work with seniors to develop patience and empathy. I have a couple of regulars who are as grumpy every bit me, and we get forth fine. The job offer states that the ideal candidate should be "positive, bubbly, and friendly." If that's not y'all, you're not qualified for this chore. If y'all're going to fake information technology until you make it (i.east., y'all need the job), don't mention that you're Oscar the Grouch.

Here's another example of a what are your weaknesses respond for a Software Designer:

Right

A real weakness, but i that isn't going to touch on your job functioning as well much. I would say my greatest weakness is my writing skills. I've e'er been a technical, math person. I like crunching numbers. But when it comes to words I go tongue-tied and forget the rules. I've started using Grammer apps to brand sure my emails are right. The app gives the action a tech feel, which makes the whole matter more comfortable for me as well. The candidate chose "writing skills" as her weakness. As a software designer, she won't accept to write much. We'll say that "written communication skills" didn't show upward in her task offer. Plus, she is taking measures to do better.

Wrong

A real weakness, but i that would affect your task functioning. My greatest weakness? I'm a contradiction. I'thou a clown, and I tin can't make people laugh. No matter how hard I effort, no 1 laughs when Bobo does his clown bear witness. If "making people laugh" is one of the chore requirements, don't tell the interviewer that you can't make people express mirth. That'due south the easiest way to blow your interview.

That'due south why you lot want to choose upwardly to three weaknesses from your listing that don't match skills listed in your task offer.

Okay. Once you lot've got a list of your greatest weaknesses, you'll need to listing the ways you're improving. Showing that you're working on improving your weakness is of import part of answering the what are your weaknesses question.

Don't leave the interviewer hanging.

Have you done whatever of the following things to amend your weakness:

• Enroll in a class.
• Get grooming (Internal or External)
• Bring together groups or workshops.
• Do volunteer work or an activity outside of work that uses that skill.
• Become aid from a mentor or counselor.
• Find tools that assist correct the weakness.

You'll also want to give clear examples of how you succeed or are on your fashion to succeeding.

Enquire yourself:

• Did your supervisor notice a change after you took measure out to right a weakness?
• Have yous noticed an comeback?
• Can you lot prove that you're fixing your problems with articulate results?

The STAR method is an effective style to demonstrate that the measures you lot're taking are working.

The STAR method will help y'all recollect how to tell your success stories during an interview. And don't merely use the STAR method for the what are your weaknesses question.

You lot can use information technology to answer just about any typical interview question.

STAR stands for State of affairs, Task, Action, Result:

Situation - Yous start by explaining a situation which required yous to solve a problem, use a skill, or come upward with a new idea.

Task - Next, you explicate the activeness that your job requires in such a situation.

Action - After, you describe the action that you took. If it's different than the required chore, you should as well explain why yous chose a different path.

Result - What happened in the stop? How did the situation play out once you acted? It's best here to illustrate successes with numbers and details if y'all can. Numbers help reinforce the touch on that your action had.

Permit'south use an example of a weakness for the Server candidate that matches our task offer. Remember this is only part of a skilful answer for the what are your weaknesses question.

Situation - My greatest weakness is that I talk as well much. I am a blabbermouth. I used to get in trouble for talking over my teachers during class.

Task - The master gave me a warning. She told me that I had to learn to zip it during course or I would get expelled. So, I had to come up with a way to restrain myself.

Action - I started playing the Quiet Game with my friends. Y'all know the game that parents trick children into playing in the car on longer trips? Well, I asked my friends to help me larn to mind more and speak less past playing the Quiet Game with me. They were more than accommodating.

Upshot - I learned to occupy myself with listening. I learned to expect until information technology was my turn to speak and to cut myself off when I go a senseless motormouth. Afterward a month of shutting myself up, my teachers noticed that I was doing improve. They also suggested that I join the contend team where I helped the squad win State Championships. Now to prove my new skill, I will stop talking.

Pro Tip: You tin can mention strengths in your what are your weaknesses answer. Remember the question is oft paired with strengths anyway:What are your strengths and weaknesses?

Want to know what skills hiring managers find nearly important? Non sure if all the skills from the job offer are task-related? We've got you covered. Read our guide: " +xxx Best Examples of What Skills to Put on a Resume (Proven Tips) "

3

The Best What Are Your Greatest WeaknessesAnswers

So here'south what a what are your weaknesses answer should look like:

Right

My greatest weakness is that I am a shy and nervous person past nature. The result is that I have a difficult time speaking up in groups. Even if I accept good ideas, I take problem asserting them. Frequently I continue them to myself. Here the candidate is admitting a mutual and existent weakness. At the same time, information technology's not the best answer if the task requires public speaking skills. Brand sure you tailor your response to the task description. In one case, I suggested an idea for a project. The projection manager shot it down, and I did not protestation. The supervisor heard about my thought. It upset him that I didn't fight harder for it. Here's a state of affairs where the candidate's weakness caused her to fail at work. I decided that it was time to sign up for speaking classes. I besides took some acting classes. The interim classes helped me larn to separate my professional person cocky from my shy self. That helped me a lot. Now, the candidate talks near the steps she took to improve her weakness. She took classes that she felt would assist relieve her shyness at work. The adjacent time I worked on a projection, I stood past my ideas. I spoke up and asked the project manager to take a second look at what I had proposed. She agreed that my idea was quite good upon reflection. My supervisor noticed the comeback and promoted me to management. I at present caput upward a team of five people despite existence shy. The candidate points out how her deportment have resulted in success. It'due south okay if you don't accept a success story for your grand finale. All you need to do is show that you are taking steps to ameliorate now and in the hereafter.

Wrong

I take terrible time management and organizational skills. I'm i of those people who procrastinates and puts things off until the very last minute. I've made upwardly for it over the years because I am a certified genius. Where others would crash and burn if they get out things undone, I flourish. So, I may look like I do nix. I may sit in the middle of a mess. Simply, I will e'er come across the deadline, even if it's five minutes from the time I starting time the work. This type of answer raises all kinds of scarlet flags for the hiring manager. Aye, let'south say she meets deadlines. Only she can she turn in quality piece of work terminal minute? Hundred-to-one. What about that mess? She makes messes? What kind of messes? Well, that's non considerate at all.

If you want to be sure you lot ace your interview, check out our handy interview advice. Then, you need to send a thanks email. Not certain how? Read our guide: " How to Write a Thank You Email Afterwards an Interview (+10 Examples) "

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Key Takeaway

Yes, sometimes the interviewer will effort to take hold of you off guard with an interview question that isn't fair. And aye, the what are your weaknesses interview question is one of the worst.

To properly reply this dreaded interview question, remember:

• Focus on beingness self-aware, honest, and dedicated to improvement. If y'all've got these 3 qualities, your weakness won't ruin your chances of landing the job.
• Try to reflect on your real weaknesses and what you lot're doing to improve.
• Give an honest and effective respond. And remember, you're just human.

Still not sure how to talk most your weaknesses? We can help! Exit a comment and nosotros volition assist y'all detect out how best to answer weakness questions during your interview.

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Source: https://zety.com/blog/what-is-your-greatest-weakness

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