Nobody likes to confess their faults and shortcomings, however nobody is ideal. And in a job interview, pretending to be excellent can really damage your candidacy.
Recruiters and hiring managers wish to ask job candidates about their strengths and weaknesses to gauge a candidate’s truthfulness, picture of self and, in fact, areas that may very well be improved.
Should you’re on the lookout for a brand new job utilizing a job search board like ZipRecruiter, right here’s how highlighting your strengths and proudly owning as much as your weaknesses can assist you discover a job that’s the proper match and keep away from disappointment on the finish of the interview course of — or touchdown a job you wrestle to hold out.
Frequent Strengths and Weaknesses
So, what are your strengths and weaknesses?
It’s one of many hardest and commonest interview questions, proper up there with questions on your causes for leaving your job.
The hiring supervisor or recruiter received’t anticipate you to itemize each single one in every of your strengths and weaknesses. Relatively, they need to learn about your strengths and weaknesses as they relate to the job description.
The strengths and weaknesses your interviewers will need to learn about may very well be comfortable abilities or technical abilities.
Listed here are some widespread strengths that employers generally search for in job candidates:
- Teamwork: You’re employed effectively with others, particularly in conditions wherein it’s quicker or extra environment friendly to collaborate with coworkers.
- Management abilities: You don’t shrink back from taking a number one position, together with the duty that comes with it.
- Focus: You aren’t simply sidetracked from the duty at hand.
- Multitasking: You may juggle a number of priorities and reorder them when mandatory.
- Integrity: You at all times make sure the job is finished the proper approach with no corners minimize or guidelines bent.
- Creativity : You have a tendency to have a look at issues otherwise and give you much less typical options.
- Flexibility: You don’t break when you need to bend to accommodate altering priorities.
- Element Oriented: Nothing will get previous you, particularly the essential particulars.
- Group Abilities: You understand precisely the place your instruments, initiatives and property are at any given second.
- Self-starter: Nobody has to let you know when it is advisable to do your job. You get to work when one thing must be carried out.
- Writing abilities: You’re clear and environment friendly in your written communications, even if you happen to don’t have extraordinarily robust writing abilities.
Listed here are some widespread weaknesses folks checklist throughout job interviews:
- Self-doubt: Generally you aren’t positive if you happen to’re doing issues the proper approach.
- Inexperience: You lack expertise with a device, a method or a duty within the job description.
- Lack of Consideration to Element: You aren’t that detail-oriented. Generally, you miss essential particulars both since you’re working too quick or simply fail to acknowledge them.
- Impatience: Generally, you get annoyed when issues don’t transfer as shortly or as easily as you’d like.
- Disorganized: You generally lose sight of instruments, initiatives or property.
- Lack of Creativity: You normally don’t give you a brand new approach of an issue.
- Shyness: You are likely to shrink back from the highlight, together with management roles.
- Poor Communication Abilities: You’re not at all times forthcoming with well timed data.
Tips on how to Promote Your Strengths
Nobody desires to look dangerous of their job interviews. When requested about your strengths and weaknesses, you need to strike a stability between not overselling what you’re good at and never focusing an excessive amount of on stuff you wrestle with.
When requested about your strengths, don’t checklist all the pieces you assume you’re nice at. Concentrate on the issues you do greatest and which might be most relevant to the place.
Should you can’t determine your strengths by yourself, take into account asking a coworker or a buddy. You can additionally assume again to any teaching or efficiency critiques you obtained from previous or present bosses.
Tips on how to Body Your Weaknesses
Tie your weaknesses to your skilled progress. In your responses to interview questions, attempt to assist your interviewers perceive how far you’ve are available shoring up your weaknesses in your skilled life.
Should you really feel your management abilities might enhance, for instance, inform your interviewers about the way you’ve volunteered for management alternatives to enhance. Displaying them that you simply’re working to enhance reveals them that you’ve got self-awareness and will be coached up.
Employers normally provide you with a cheat sheet with most of the solutions they need to hear — the job description.
Instance Solutions for Interview Questions
Listed here are some instance solutions you need to use as templates on your responses in your subsequent job interview.
What are your best strengths?
I really feel that a few of my best strengths are my capability to focus, multitask and preserve observe of the entire particulars of my assignments. Through the years, my supervisor has entrusted me with a heavier workload and has remarked on my capability to remain on process and stability my priorities effectively.
Breakdown:
This respondent listed a number of associated abilities, which is extra plausible than itemizing a dozen strengths. Additionally they use their supervisor’s belief in them as proof of their capability to handle a number of duties effectively.
What are your best weaknesses?
Primarily based on suggestions I’ve heard previously, I really feel like my communications abilities might use some enchancment. I’ve taken this suggestions to coronary heart, and I’ve labored to be extra vocal within the office. I particularly attended a collection of Lunch and Be taught periods at work with the purpose of bettering my management abilities.
Breakdown:
This reply to the interview query acknowledges a weak spot upfront, with out going into an excessive amount of element about how huge the problem is.
It additionally reveals that this respondent listened to suggestions and took steps to enhance their communications abilities.
Discover a Job That Performs to Your Strengths
Each job would require a sure set of sentimental abilities and technical abilities. However how will you focus your job search on job alternatives that demand your greatest abilities?
Get customized job suggestions from a digital recruiter named “Phil.” ZipRecruiter integrated the facility of synthetic intelligence to permit Phil to make your subsequent job search straightforward and environment friendly.
Simply inform Phil your expertise and your profession objectives. Then Phil will get to work scouring job postings, analyzing hundreds of thousands of knowledge factors and sending you a brief checklist of essentially the most related jobs.
There are hundreds of thousands of lively jobs on ZipRecruiter, and it’s good to know you’re not alone in your job search. Whereas Phil saves you time on looking jobs, ZipRecruiter’s One-Click on Apply allows you to apply to open jobs immediately — all it takes is one click on to submit your resume and profile to employers.
Prepared for a better job search? Getting began with ZipRecruiter is so simple as making a free account and importing your resume.