Weaknesses in Job Interview: How to Answer with Samples

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jobs Nov 23, 2014 0

Mentioning your weaknesses in an interview can be challenging at times. While we enter the interview room all prepared to showcase our strengths and prove our candidature fit for the role, we are faced with a question to give examples of weaknesses in the interview.

Learning about your weaknesses is equally important as knowing about your strengths. You need to combine your action plan and self-awareness to answer the interview weakness question effectively.

Get a comprehensive knowledge of the interview weaknesses that you can quote in response to the question “What are your weaknesses?”. This will help you leave a positive impression on the interviewer. Check out the blog to know more about interview weaknesses examples.

Reasons Employers Ask About Weaknesses in Interview

There are various reasons interviewers ask about weaknesses in the job interview, sometimes because they want to know whether you have self-awareness and are working on your weaknesses, and at other times they want to know if you can turn your weaknesses into strengths in your career.

Check here the list of interview weaknesses that you can quote in your upcoming interview:

  • Evaluating Growth Mindset: The way you respond to your weaknesses in the interview reveals a lot about your personality. Acknowledging weaknesses and working on them shows that the candidate has a strong candidature and can take obstacles as opportunities.

  • Assessing Honesty: Discussing weaknesses in the interview also shows that the candidate has a high level of integrity and transparency in communication.

  • Checking Self-Awareness: The candidate who is aware of her weaknesses can work on them to improve. This is one of the reasons employers ask this question from the candidates.

  • Continuous Learning: Answering this question also reflects on your ability to continuous learning and growth. You must mention the steps you are taking to address your weaknesses in the interview, this will help you grow professionally.

Common Examples of Weaknesses in Interview

There always lies great strength in acknowledging the weaknesses and striving to make improvements. This is how you can turn the question “What do you consider to be your weaknesses?” in your favour.

Here are some of the common examples of interview weaknesses that you can quote in your answers that will help you strengthen your candidature.

  • Not having effective organisational skills

  • Lack of effective communication skills, or public speaking skills

  • Inability to balance work and personal life

  • Hesitation in asking for help

  • Unable to say no to someone

  • Difficulty in prioritisation of tasks

  • Lack of self-confidence

  • Craving for perfection leads to delays in the projects

  • Lack of time management skills

  • Critical self-evaluation

How to Answer “What is Your Greatest Weakness?”

In the interview, all the questions are like an opportunity for you that is taking you an inch closer to your dream job.

Though you can’t predict all the questions that will be asked to you in an interview, there are certain sets of common interview questions that have a high probability of being asked in your next interview, so it is most important for you to prepare the answers to these questions.

Check out the points mentioned below that will help you frame effective answers to the interview weakness questions.

  • Introspect on Your Weaknesses

    Prepare for the answer to this question by taking into account the problems that you face, the feedback that you have received from your seniors, etc. Make a list of those interview weaknesses and then find out which one is the most important problem to be addressed. Do not forget that self-reflection is an underrated skill, so review your mistakes.

  • Narrate a Story

    Stories connect with people more than statements do. So rather than simply quoting your weaknesses in the interview and the ways you are striving to improve, you should always think of the relevant stories from your professional journey that can further validate your experiences. Here is the secret tip, real-life examples will always help your stories stand out.

  • Keep the Answer Short

    Conciseness always wins! You should always create answers that are short, to the point, and elaborative. Do not pour excessive details into your answers rather keep it short. You must remember that between quality and quantity, the quality always wins the race.

  • Focus on Growth

    Through the interview weakness question, you have a chance to reflect on the growth of your professional career. You can mention the strategies that you have incorporated that have helped you improve your weaknesses, and that have ultimately led to career growth.

Sample Answers for Job Interview Weakness

It is advisable for the candidates to not take the interview weakness question as a mere formality, but rather to prepare well for the question. A perfect answer will help you stand out from the crowd.

  • Impatience

    We all get impatient at certain times in the workplace. However, if this is a common trait of your personality then it can be counted as a weakness. Here is the sample answer of what you can say to answer this interview weakness question.

    Sample Answer:

    One area where I have identified my weakness is when dealing with delays in deadlines or work, especially when working in a team, I get impatient. Being a professional who is driven by efficiency and good results, I find it challenging to deal with delays.
    To overcome this problem, I have incorporated some of the strategies that have helped me hone my patience and resilience skills. I set realistic goals and strategies for myself and others. I have started acknowledging that everyone works at their own pace, and certain things might take more time than anticipated, I have cultivated the habit of patience.
    This has not only helped me overcome my weaknesses but in addition to it helped me develop other skills as well as move ahead toward career progression.

  • Unorganised

    Suppose you are one of those whose desks are cluttered with files, and documents and fail to keep these things organised. Then this can be considered a weakness for the interview that needs to be addressed especially when you are working in the corporate workspace. Check out the sample answer to this interview weakness question as listed below:

    Sample Answer:

    I do not have effective organisation skills. Though it has never impacted my work, but is a crucial skill for professionalism. I dedicate the whole of my time to completing projects with top-notch quality and efficiency but miss out on maintaining a systematic approach to maintain a workflow and prioritising tasks effectively. My desk also remains cluttered at times.
    Since I have realised that these skills are impacting my professional skillset, I have been using strategies to improve my organisational skills. I have started taking help from digital tools and systems to help streamline my workflow and keep track of the tasks and deadlines.

  • Lacking Public Speaking Skills

    If you fear public speaking or fumble at times during the presentation, then this is a weakness to tell in an interview. Check out the sample answer for the way you can craft the answer to this question.

    Sample Answer:

    One of the areas where I am lagging is having effective communication skills. Though I am an IT professional, public speaking is not a much-needed skill for my professional growth. However, it is still one of the most important types of skill set that is needed in a professional workspace.
    To address this weakness, I have been practising in workshops, and seminars, and attending public speaking events. Also, I have been taking feedback from colleagues and professionals to help me identify the areas of improvement. I have witnessed a massive improvement in my public skills over the months. It is a continuous journey and I am confident that I will develop expertise in this skill with time.

  • Critical Self Evaluation

    It is often a fact that we might not realise that being overly harsh on ourselves can be a negative trait and can even lead to burnout. If you are one of those who is suffering to tackle this weakness then you can answer this question in the right way as listed below:

    Sample Answer:

    One of my weaknesses is that sometimes I get too critical of myself and tend to self-reject my work. At the same time, self-evaluation plays an important role in pushing the boundaries and evolving into a better self in both professional and personal life. But, extremely harsh self-criticism sometimes leads me to lose confidence, morale, and burnout.
    In one of the projects I led in my previous company, my self-rejection attitude led me to reject some of the important and well-written blogs. My manager later reviewed and gave me feedback to avoid being overly critical.
    Since that day I have started working on improving this problem, and I have started focusing on the positive sides of my work. I have been motivating myself and started looking at the brighter side of the picture.
    This has helped me evaluate my work the right way and know what to trim off and what to appreciate. Another major improvement that I have taken into consideration is to celebrate every small and big milestone in my professional journey to bolster my confidence.

  • Difficulty in Maintaining Work-Life Balance

    This question is often resorted to by the candidates as a strength rather than a weakness and an indirect way of showing that you are a workaholic. However, the inability to manage your work and personal life must not be considered a positive trait since it also puts a toll on your professional life. It adversely impacts productivity in cases and then can lead to burnout.

    Sample Answer:

    I struggle to make a balance between my professional and personal life. Being a professional who strives to bring the best to the table, I miss out on striking the balance as a result of which the stress levels increase. Due to this habit, I have also faced burnout in my previous work experience.
    To address this weakness, I have started incorporating some of the time management techniques that have helped me in effectively managing my time. I have also kept some dedicated time slots for my recreational activities. I have started setting realistic goals and expectations for myself.
    Incorporating these techniques has helped me thrive both in my professional and personal life and enhance quality work in the professional workspace.

  • Hesitation in Asking for Help

    Asking for help is one of the key skills that helps the candidates learn about new skills. This is one of the most important skills for freshers and early career professionals. You might need help in knowing how to do work and at times to know how to manage the overwhelming work.
    If you are one of the candidates who hesitates in asking for help you can utilise this question as an opportunity to let your prospective employers know about it.

    Sample Answer:

    After self-evaluation, I have identified that my inability to ask for help is one of my areas of weakness. Being an independent and self-reliant person, I face challenges in asking for help. In one of the key projects undertaken by me in my previous company, I was facing difficulty in managing the work within the deadline.
    After similarly moving on 6 months, my manager noticed it and helped me learn some of the key time management skills.
    This made me realise that not asking for help is affecting my productivity negatively. It is also taking away some of the chances of learning from the seniors and colleagues. To address this weakness, I have taken steps to change my perception to see taking help as a strength and not a weakness.
    Furthermore, I continuously motivate myself to ask for help thinking that it will help me unlock some of the key skills that will help in uplifting my career trajectory.

  • Weak Data Analysis Skills

    This is a technical skill that needs to be learned and mastered. You must remember to mention this as your weakness only if this is unrelated to your job roles.

    Sample Answer:

    I have been working on improving my data analysis skills recently. Though the lack of data analysis abilities is not impeding my workflow in any way, I understand the importance of data analysis in effective decision-making and tracking the performance of my work effectively. I have been taking online courses to learn about data analysis. I am confident that these skills will help me enhance my ability to contribute further insights to the team and take on higher responsibilities.

Tips to Answer Job Interview Weaknesses

Here are some of the worthy tips to answer the interview weakness questions.

  • Avoid generic answers: You must not mention some of the generic statements for the role you are applying for. Customise your answer for the employers to show that you know your weaknesses and are taking steps to improve them.

  • Unrelated to Job Description: This is to be taken into consideration by the candidates that the weaknesses that you are planning to quote should not be one of the key requirements of the job. This will lead to the cancellation of your candidature.

  • Do not admit failure: This is to note that you must acknowledge your mistakes and then mention the strategies for improvement. Do not admit failure or give a hint that you are not bothered about your weaknesses.

  • Give Examples: As mentioned above, stories catch the attention of the listeners. How do you get the stories? From your previous working experience. Keep a few authentic and relevant stories ready to narrate for this question.

In a nutshell, you must have learned the ways to answer the interview weaknesses questions. Always remember that addressing your weaknesses and mentioning the attempts to improve will present you as a strong candidate and increase your chances of getting the job. Preparing well for this is one of the questions in which candidates often get stuck while answering.

FAQ on Weaknesses In Job Interview

What is a positive weakness of the job interview?

Some interview weaknesses can be positive and might show certain positive traits of your personality. For instance, being overly critical about your work shows your high commitment to producing top-notch quality work. It also depends on how you present the answer, you can always mention how your weakness has helped you in a way but is also creating certain problems. Hence, you are taking steps to improve on those aspects of your personality. This will help you demonstrate your resilience to work on your weaknesses and focus on your growth potential.

What are some professional weaknesses in the interview?

We all have various weaknesses, but in interviews, it is important to pick up the professional ones. Some of the professional interview weaknesses can be time management skills, public skills, adaptability skills, and managing conflicts.

What are some weaknesses in interview examples for freshers?

For freshers, some of the common interview weaknesses examples can be the lack of a specific skill set, limited exposure to the industry, and limited professional experience. You can also pick some interview weaknesses such as time management skills, public speaking skills, etc.

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