During a job interview, your goal is to sell yourself. To accomplish this, you must first persuade the interviewer that you are qualified for the position, that you will bring value to the company, and that you have the type of personality that meshes well with others. Usually, you do this by explaining your relevant experience, highlighting your strengths, and showing enthusiasm. But how do you respond when the interviewer inevitably says “Tell me about your weaknesses”?
The appropriate response is often debated, but it’s common in interviews. With over a decade of staffing experience, I’ve helped numerous candidates improve their interviewing skills. Here are a few tips on how to speak about your weaknesses during a job interview.
Don’t Avoid Talking About Your Weaknesses
Everyone has weaknesses, and communicating otherwise might come off as disingenuous. If asked about your weaknesses, view it as a chance to show that you’re honest. You can provide authentic insights into your personality and demonstrate that you’re self-aware and interested in growing to improve your knowledge and performance.
Employers want to see candidates who are self-aware and who are willing to admit where they have room to grow and develop. Candidates who put on a “perfect” front/attitude are often regarded as difficult, close-minded, and unaware.
Remember that if you’re being interviewed for a job, the employer is already interested. It just wants to meet you in person and get to know you better. Discussing your weaknesses can help your interviewer get a better understanding of your experience and personality to give them confidence in their decision to hire you.
Be Honest and Professional
Honesty is a good policy, but remember that you want to come off as professional and qualified, too. A good rule of thumb is to be able to elaborate on anything you listed in your résumé. Did you list a skill with a software program? Be prepared to explain what you used it for. Did you get certified in operating equipment outside the scope of your job? Explain its value without embellishing.
If you sell a future employer on skills or experience you don’t have, you’ll start off in a new role several steps behind where you should be. You’ll always feel like you’re trying to catch up or “fake it until you make it”—and your employer will, too. To find a job you’re going to be happy in, you want to start off on an honest foot. Also, companies typically know within the first few weeks if you were honest about your experience, so being dishonest can be a major impediment to your long-term potential.
For each skill or experience on your résumé, come up with a potential learning experience or something you could have improved upon. Did you struggle when learning the software you listed? Did the project you started take a little longer than you expected? Explain why, how you handled it, and the lessons you learned. Show how you improved and how it can better prepare you for this position you’re interviewing for. If possible, position your approach to tackle weaknesses as an opportunity to strengthen your problem-solving and troubleshooting skills.
Keep Your Weaknesses Career-Related
Discussing weaknesses that don’t apply to your professional life (like relationship issues or poor money management) should be avoided. For example, if you are interviewing for a maintenance manager position and know you have a type A personality that struggles to let go of something until it’s done right, I would answer that you sometimes struggle to delegate work to others because you want things done correctly the first time and always on time. Learning to help teach others and manage through delegation is a skill you’re working on as a result.
Try One of These Examples When Speaking About Your Weaknesses
Finding a potential weakness to discuss in an interview requires some introspection and self-awareness. Here are a few examples for inspiration:
1. “I could use more experience with …”
This statement not only shows self-awareness but also gets right to transforming the weakness into an opportunity. Think about a skill that might benefit the employer, and express your enthusiasm in wanting to learn it.
2. A Weakness Unrelated to the Position
This is a “safe” weakness. If you’re applying for a position in carpentry, you could safely talk about a weakness in public speaking or writing because those skills aren’t relevant enough to affect your success in the position.
3. Self-Critical
Most people can relate to being ambitious and tough on themselves. Describing an instance when you were self-critical provides an honest weakness with more insight into your (ambitious) personality. Most employers would prefer an introspective employee over a lackadaisical one.
4. Keep it Concise and Professional
Avoid telling long, rambling stories that may involve too much personal information. Also, try not to speak too negatively about your past manager or coworkers.
It’s common during interviews to be asked about a weakness, but with some preparation, you can answer this question with confidence and leave a great impression on the interviewer.
Quinn Heimann is a Director of Strategic Sales for Aerotek, Inc., a talent solutions provider. In her current role, Heimann manages client relationships with many of Aerotek’s key customers across North America. She has been with Aerotek since 2011 and has held a multitude of roles overseeing clients in the construction; oil and gas; disaster response; healthcare; life sciences; and, most recently, the consumer products spaces. In her time as a business development leader, she has been focused on aligning Aerotek’s capabilities with the strategy and focus its clients need in order to be successful. She’s built a strong legacy of developing others and is a creative, focused, and results-driven leader with outstanding organizational and business development skills. Heimann is also an avid reader, a wife, and a mother of two who lives in Phoenix, Arizona, when not traveling for the company.