Talking about your strengths and weaknesses in interviews

What are strengths?

• Something that — if you practice — you could become good at, compared to (i) others who have the skill and (ii) your other skills
• Something you find enjoyable enough that you might do it for 10+ years
• Something that’s broad enough it can be used in more than a couple of jobs
• Something that’s stable enough that it won’t change from year to year
• We say ‘something’ because we want to keep strengths broad. They can involve skills (e.g. writing, statistics), ability to work in certain contexts (e.g. under pressure, in a big bureaucracy), resources (e.g. connections to influential people), character traits (e.g. persistence, charisma), or abilities (e.g. dexterity).

Adapted from 80,000 Hours

How do I know my strengths?

Strategies to discover:

• Read the job posting. What is it about the role that interests you–it could be that it already leverages your strengths.
• Review any personal assessments you may have taken in class, student organizations, or independently.
• Take the free Skills Matcher assessment
• Ask friends and family–what do they think you’re good at?
• Review your resume. Are there themes you can draw from your experiences or responsibilities?
• Ask yourself what activities tend to energize or motivate you?

Responding to interview questions about strengths

1. It’s important to discuss a strength that’s relevant to the position for which you’re applying (such as a skill mentioned in the job posting).�
2. Offer a brief example of a time you leveraged this strength. An example helps give context for your skills and offers “proof” of it.�
3. Explain how this strength would be helpful in the position for which you’re applying.

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Explain its relevance

Choose a relevant strength

Offer an example

Example response | strength

Question: What would your peers say is your greatest strength?

Answer: Peers might say that my strength is effective communication. In my role as committee liaison in student government, I communicated weekly with subcommittees to ensure I could adequately update other leaders. This required managing dozens of email communications, as well as impromptu conversations in the office. I know this would come in handy in this role of Internal Communications Coordinator because the job posting mentioned I would need to collect updates for the inter-departmental newsletter.

Responding to interview questions about weaknesses

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This question is not meant to be a trap. The interviewer doesn’t exactly want to know your “weakness,” but your ability to self reflect, take constructive feedback, and understand where you can grow.

Some interviewers may not frame this question as “What is your weakness?” They may ask “What are your areas (or opportunities) for growth?”

How do I know my weaknesses

• Reflect on past feedback on what to improve or challenges you’ve experienced
• Looking back on classes, work, or student involvement, were there certain tasks that drained your energy more than others? You might be able to do something, but maybe it drains you more than other tasks
• Leverage personal assessment results (see slide 2)

Important

Choose a weakness that is honest and authentic, but one that is not vital the role for which you’re interviewing.

For example, an employer may be hesitant to hire someone for a sales position if they say their weakness is being shy when first meeting people. Sales requires confidence and strong communication with strangers frequently.

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Responding to interview questions about weaknesses

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1. Clearly describe your weakness. Be specific and avoid vague clichés (“I work too hard,” or “I care too much.”

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• Offer a brief example of a time your weakness affected your work.
• Talk about what you’ve done to improve your weakness.

Explain how you’re improving

Be specific

Offer an example

Example response | weakness

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Question for Technical Support Specialist: What’s an area of improvement you’re working on?

Answer: I’m currently working on improving my Microsoft Excel skills. I know the basics, but I’ve never had any formal training or worked with large data sets. I’ve been working through a LinkedIn Learning course to learn how to leverage Excel for basic statistical analysis and visualizing data.