Although this seems like a straightforward question that is easy enough to answer, there are some ways to frame your answer to this question to avoid seeming like you’re bragging too much or that you think negatively.

This question helps employers know why you think you’re a good fit for the job and the company, as well as assess any potential issues. This question shows employers how self-reflective you are. 

What should you expect from the employer? 

It’s a very common question to get during an interview, but it may not always be phrased as “Can you tell me about one of your strengths/weaknesses?” The employer may instead ask “what attributes will make you successful in this role?” or “what is something you are looking to improve?”

Try to stay away from answering with “I’m a perfectionist!” That is a commonly used answer, and the interviewer may assume you’re not willing to share your real answer, or that you are not aware of your strengths and weaknesses. They are looking for an honest answer and that you have the ability to work on and learn from your mistakes. 

Guidelines for answering the question

1. Assess your strengths and weaknesses before going to the interview. You’ll want to be prepared and honest when answering this question. Hiring managers and recruiters hear many answers to this question and have a good sense of when someone is being authentic, or when someone is saying something generic. 

Look through the job posting and see if you have any strengths or weaknesses that match the skills they are looking for. If you can share examples that will help show your fit for the position it will help you stand out. You can explain how you are working on the specific weakness to improve so you can spin it positively and explain how the position would continue to help you work on improving. 

2. Give your answer in story form. If you have a real-life example you can use to talk about your strength or weakness, it’ll support your attribute. For example, if you’re talking about being a strong team member, and you have an example on how you brought a previous team together, or improved team dynamics. 

When talking about your weakness, explain how you are working towards improving it. If your weakness is not asking enough clarifying questions when given a directive or a project, you can mention how after you receive a project or task, you immediately take five minutes to think through all of your questions and sit down with your manager to talk through all questions before beginning the task.

Try to keep your answer as short and concise as possible, without going into too much detail aside from what is important to the message you are trying to deliver. 

What to avoid

Here are things to keep in mind when practicing your answer to this question. 

• Don’t brag when answering the question.
• Don’t minimize yourself by dwelling on your weaknesses, try to stay as positive as you can.
• Don’t give examples that are unrelated to the position you are applying for.
• Keep your answers to two minutes long and avoid rambling.
• Don’t use an example that could raise a red flag, for example, saying your weakness is being late to everything.

Example Answers

Strengths 

“I continue to learn in every position I hold, both at work and outside of work. While working as a server, I have received all Servsafe certifications available, as well as shadowed our manager and bartender during shifts. This has not only helped me better in my day-to-day work but also prepared me to become a manager when the opportunity presents itself.”

“I consider myself a natural leader. With more than 10 years of experience in guest services, I’ve motivated my team members by checking in with them weekly to make sure I have given them a proper workload and am helping them maintain good mental health. I’ve been able to successfully meet every business goal set and helped 2 previous team members get promoted. I look forward to being able to continue building my leadership skills in my next role as well.”

Weaknesses

“I tend to be too critical of myself. I often find myself asking how I could have done better, even if I’ve done well and met my goal. I found myself burning out too quickly, but one solution I created for myself was to pause and celebrate my achievements, no matter how small. This has helped my own self-esteem and helped me appreciate my team members and give recognition to others.”

“I have trouble delegating tasks to others because I think I am able to take on everything. I often would work long hours to finish every project and struggled to keep my work-life balance. I came up with a system to have weekly reviews with myself of my task list and realistically estimate what projects I could complete and then communicate with the rest of my team to see who had time to take on a project. This has helped me learn new ways of doing projects since everyone has a new perspective as well as spend more time on each project I take on.”

This tends to be a difficult question to answer, but when you take the time to prepare a thoughtful response, you can really impress the interviewer. It can also help you assess yourself as a candidate and work towards improving yourself.