Interview Question: How to Answer - What are Your Weaknesses?

One question which is regularly asked in a job interview is “What are Your Weaknesses”. Answering this question is often difficult, but we are here to make it easier!

The best way to handle this question is to minimize the trait and emphasize the positive. You can mention skills that aren't critical for the job, talk about skills that you need to improve and what steps have you taken already in improving it.

Your interviewer may want to know whether you will be able to learn new tasks and handle new challenges. So, this question is an opportunity to show that you have got the right qualities for the job. You can answer the "what are your weaknesses" job interview question without sabotaging yourself. Stay from pretending like you have no weaknesses.

A good answer has two important parts:

1. Your weakness: Briefly describe a real weakness that wouldn’t be a major drawback for the current job
2. How you are working on it: Here you can discuss your proactive efforts to improve. This shows that you are self-aware, proactive and always looking for ways to learn and grow.

The weaknesses you choose should ideally be:

• Not relevant to the current job.
• Easily fixable.

Your answer should indicate that you are self-aware and able to critically analyze your own skills. You should come across as honest, self-reflective and proactive.

Interviewers might want to ask this question:

• To know more about your character and personality
• To check your level of self-awareness.
• To check if you have any drawback that may affect your ability to perform the role
• To see if you are willing to address your weaknesses
• To test if you can perform under pressure

Here are the answers you should avoid for "what are your weaknesses?" :

• A weakness that is actually a strength
• A weakness that reflects a bad attitude
• A weakness that has no relevance on your professional competencies
• Refusing to the answer the question
• Vague or general answers