Attending an interview will always give you a mix of emotions. Excitement, nerves, apprehension, and perhaps a little fear. Often because while you may prepare as much as you can regarding the company and the job role, you can never be sure what sort of questions you are going to be asked. One of the questions that can leave you a little unsure on how to answer is discussing your weaknesses. After all, who wants to admit that you have a weakness when you are trying to land the job? But the truth is, how you answer this question can work in your favour.
What is your weakness?
The first thing to do is to be honest with yourself about what your weakness is. We all have our downfalls, there is no denying that. But what you want to be able to do is to answer the question honestly. So take some time ahead of the interview to understand what your strengths are, but also what any weaknesses could be identified. It might be a weakness on a personal level such as not being able to handle confrontation or struggling with criticism, for example. Or it might be a weakness in terms of skills for the job. Such as being able to perform a particular activity that might be needed for the job role you are interviewing for. Identifying the weaknesses that you might have will help you to answer the question constructively and positively.
Weakness isn’t always a bad thing
Let’s be honest, weakness doesn’t have to be a bad thing. Sometimes what you might think is a weakness when it comes to the job role might actually be a training issue or something you can learn on the job. So don’t always see this as a negative and instead think about how it could be a positive. For example, you may not have the confidence to perform a particular activity but that doesn’t mean to say you can’t do it or it may have meant you have never had the opportunity to do it before now.
Be honest but positive
You may think that highlighting a weakness could present you in a negative light, but being honest about it and explaining why you may think it is a weakness will actually turn it into something positive. Employees are looking for the right fit for the job role they have advertised for but they are also looking at the person as well. All the time questioning whether you might also be a good fit for the business. They will respect your honesty and your opinion. Here is an example of turning a weakness into something more positive:
“I feel that my weakness is a lack of confidence in performing (insert activity here) however I know that I am always keen and motivated to work hard and try my best”
“I feel that my weakness might be confrontation but I always want to see the good in people and hope that by avoiding confrontation there can be a more positive way to move forward”
Remember, be honest but positive. Doing that will ensure that this question will not hold you back when it comes to your interview.