How to Answer the Interview Question: "What Are Your Weaknesses?"

Interviews are typically highly structured, and those who have been through multiple interviews surely know that "What are your strengths and weaknesses?" is a question often posed by interviewers, especially for job seekers new to the workforce. These types of questions often come in the middle to late stages of the interview, after the interviewer has already gained an understanding of the candidate's internships, work experience, and skills. This allows the interviewer to delve deeper into whether the candidate is a good fit for the role and the team.

Answering questions about your strengths is relatively straightforward and usually poses no significant threat to the interviewee. However, providing a good response to the weaknesses question won't guarantee you an offer, but a poor response can diminish the positive impression you've built up and, in some cases, lead to an unfavorable outcome.

Why Interviewers Ask This Question

To know how to respond to a question, you must first understand its essence. The reason interviewers often use this type of question in interviews is quite simple – these questions are relatable and offer insights into many aspects.

Think of it like an iceberg model, with the job seeker's knowledge and skills exposed above the surface. Interviewers can easily assess these through previous interviews. However, abilities, personality, and worldview hidden beneath the surface are traits that need to be unearthed through questions like these.

Objective 1: Understand the Candidate's Personality

Through everyday questions and dialogues, interviewers aim to uncover any personality flaws that might affect work or team dynamics. The candidate's answers to these questions provide a solid basis for the interviewer's assessment.

Objective 2: Further Assess Job Suitability

If a candidate's weaknesses directly conflict with the job's requirements, it could affect work outcomes in the long term, leading to elimination. No employer wants someone careless handling finances or an introverted, inarticulate individual in a sales or marketing role.

Objective 3: Evaluate Problem-solving and Stress Management Abilities

Interviewers are astute; they can easily see through a candidate's "smart tactics" and sometimes prefer not to expose them. Asking these types of questions often sets a challenging problem or a stressful atmosphere. It mainly assesses how the candidate resolves this kind of challenge comfortably. A clever answer, which offers a comfortable solution, earns extra points.

Common Mistakes in Responding

Mistake 1: Framing Strengths as Weaknesses

An example would be saying, "My weakness is that I pursue perfection, sometimes spending too much time refining minor details, which can delay the work." This answer is simply playing games. HR professionals interview people daily and can easily spot such indirect self-praise. Regardless of how well the interview has gone so far, this insincere approach significantly lowers the overall interview score.

Mistake 2: Being Overly Straightforward

"I can be careless sometimes and make some elementary mistakes," says an accounting job applicant. "I'm quite introverted and not good with words, which makes me nervous when dealing with strangers," says someone applying for a marketing position. "I lack the ability to handle pressure; excessive workload exhausts me," admits a candidate emphasizing a tough corporate culture. These responses are often a landmine, as although they convey sincerity, the mentioned weaknesses directly impact the job and give the interviewer a clear reason not to select the candidate.

Mistake 3: Mentioning Personal, Non-Professional Weaknesses

"I can't cook; I rely on takeout for meals, which isn't healthy." "I'm not into exercise; I prefer staying at home, which has affected my health and fitness." These soft answers make you seem insincere and unengaged. Interviewers won't gain valuable insights, which leaves a negative impression.

The Right Way to Answer

A correct answer should consider the following six points:

1. Answering Formula: 

Summarize your weakness + provide specific examples + describe the negative impact + explain your improvement plan.

In responding to these questions, you must be sincere and preferably offer concrete examples to show you're not making things up but are genuinely self-reflective. Always include a plan for improvement. For instance, "I've realized that I can work on my communication skills. Therefore, I've been reading books on effective communication and practicing in my daily life."

2. Choose a Weakness That Is At a Higher Professional Level 

This portrays you as someone with high standards, self-demanding, and ambitious. This approach ensures that your weakness does not negatively affect your current work.

For example, in an interview for an entry-level position, you can say, “Although I have strong execution abilities from my internship experience and consistently exceeded the goals set by my superiors, I acknowledge that my strategic vision needs improvement. I tend to have a relatively shallow approach to problem-solving. There were instances where I proposed different viewpoints, but they were not always well thought out.”

3. Weakness Does Not Affect Your Job Performance 

Before answering, analyze the necessary qualities for the job you're seeking and make sure your weakness doesn't overlap with these requirements. As previously mentioned, no one wants to hire someone who is careless for an accounting position or too introverted for a marketing role.

4. Avoid Weaknesses You Can't Quickly Change

Since the essence of a weakness is that it needs correction, avoid choosing aspects related to personality or worldview. Opt for knowledge and skill-based areas instead, and provide solutions.

5. Ensure That Your Tone Remains Mild 

Compare these two sentences: "I have a poor ability to manage my time," and, "I have room for improvement in time management and need to enhance my skills." The second sentence is much milder and won't create a primarily negative impression.

6. Leveraging Limited Work Experience as a Weakness

For new entrants to the job market, especially fresh graduates, admitting that you're "inexperienced" is a versatile answer when you're unsure what weakness to present. You can say, "While I believe I have a rich knowledge base in my field, I acknowledge that I am still inexperienced compared to industry veterans. I have had limited exposure to certain projects in the 'X' category." 

Don't worry; admitting inexperience won't harm your interview chances because it's a common issue for fresh graduates. The key is self-awareness. However, if you have been working for 1-2 years or more, avoid using this approach.

In a Nutshell

Answering the question about your weaknesses during an interview requires careful consideration. Your response should be sincere, self-reflective, and demonstrate your commitment to improvement. It's essential to choose a weakness that is at a higher professional level and doesn't directly impact your job performance. Maintaining a mild tone and providing a clear improvement plan is key to a successful answer.