8 Ways to Answer the Job Interview Question "What Is Your Weakness?"

Employers may often ask you about your strengths during job interviews. But what if they suddenly ask, "What is your weakness?" For both questions, you need to strike a balance when replying. When sharing about your strengths, you shouldn't come across as boastful. Meanwhile, narrating about your weakness shouldn't cast you in a bad light. 

Why do employers ask this tricky interview question? It's not to trip you up or rob you of your self-esteem. Most of the time, they want to know the following:

If you fit their work culture

Interview questions are a way for companies to gauge if you'll work well with their teams. If collaboration is an important part of the job, having someone who promptly admits mistakes and is willing to learn from them is a valuable asset.

How honest you are

The point of the question is for you to answer it. If you try evading it by saying, "I don't have any weak points," then employers automatically know that you're not telling the truth. 

How you communicate your limitations

There is a difference between revealing your weak points and being self-deprecating. Employers want you to admit your limitations— not be dragged down by them. Showing self-confidence despite your flaws can be attractive to hirers.

Your sense of self-awareness

Being self-aware helps you become a better employee. If you know the areas in your attitude or process that you need to work on, then the company doesn't have to exert time and effort to point them out to you. Knowing what you lack is also a sign of professionalism.

If you're open to self-improvement

Often, employers put more weight on your willingness to improve than your weakness. So, don't sweat about revealing your failings; just follow it up with how you're trying to surpass your weakness.

Also read: Top 10 Tricky Job Interview Questions–Plus, Ways to Answer Them!

8 Tips on How to Answer the Interview Question, "What Is Your Weakness?"

Prepare your response before the job interview to ensure you don't buckle under the stress of answering this question. Here are some tips to help you craft a simple and convincing statement.

1. Study the job ad.

Put yourself in the shoes of the company. Based on the job description, list the most skills and trails they may be looking for in a jobseeker. If these are their non-negotiables, then you must be careful not to mention them as your weaknesses. For example, someone wanting to hire an accountant will undoubtedly be put off by a candidate who is terrible at organization and crunching numbers.

2. Pinpoint your weakness.

Don't invent a weakness so that you'll have an answer. Dig into it by asking friends or someone close to you in your former job about your negative tendencies. Try to recall your supervisor's comments during your evaluations. What aspects of your work needed improvement? You can even reflect on your student days and reminisce about what professors said about your projects. The answers that surface often will most probably be your major weaknesses.

3. State the obvious.

If you have a glaring weakness, such as your lack of experience, it's best to get that out of the way early on. You may be a fresh graduate, someone shifting careers, or a jobseeker applying for a job you're unqualified for. Whatever your reason, acknowledging this weakness right away during a job interview may be a refreshing approach. Employers will appreciate your honesty.

Sample answer (for a customer service role): 

"As a fresh graduate, I'm not equipped with work experience. However, my experience as a student council officer for three years helped me develop my communication skills, which I think will be an asset for this role. As an officer, I could evaluate my co-students' grievances regarding our uniform. I treated the students as if they were my customers. I strived to understand their problem so that I could find a solution for their concern."

Why it works: 

This answer faces the challenge of being a fresh graduate head-on. But it also shares an experience that may be relevant to the role. Back up your claims with concrete instances to better showcase your accomplishments. This answer also tells employers that you know what the role entails. Remember that you can always compensate for your lack of hard skills with soft skills.

4. Choose your weakness well.

Connected to our first tip, mention a weakness that's not essential to the role. Don't shoot yourself in the foot by saying you have average writing skills when applying as a content writer! If you share one of your skill gaps, it should be something that won't affect your job performance.

Sample answer (for a sales position):

 "I tend to have a hard time working with others. I work best when I don't rely on others to finish a task. However, I realized that some things could be accomplished more effectively when done as a group. I'm trying to work on improving this by doing volunteer work. I currently spend my weekends helping build shelters for the homeless. Slowly, I'm learning to be a better team player."

Why this works:

Though teamwork is important in any workplace, it isn't a priority when you're in sales. Sharing this weakness will not hurt your chances of getting hired. Still, you've managed to insert the information about your volunteer work, which employers may find favorable. The fact that you're working on addressing your weakness is also a huge plus.

5. Mention that you're taking steps to improve yourself.

After deciding on which weakness to reveal, strategize on how you can work on the specific issue. Employers love proactive workers, so you need a detailed plan for addressing your weakness. Always give specifics; if you're stating only broad-stroke solutions, your interviewer may feel your lack of sincerity.

Sample answer: 

"I am known to be a procrastinator. During my early years in college, I always managed to finish my projects on time through cramming. Before my final year, I invested in taking an online seminar on productivity management. I thought it would help me as I prepared for my thesis and when I entered the corporate world. By applying what I learned from it, I managed my time better in my final year in college."

Why it works:

The answer shows your self-awareness and willingness to change. Sharing your endeavor's positive outcome tells your interviewer how you effectively put theory into practice. Then share what you are doing to improve and how the journey has been going. This shows that you're both a willing learner and an able one.

6. Don't try to be clever.

Straightforwardly answer the question. Making a weakness sound like a strength is a form of "humble bragging" and may turn off employers. For example, "I work too hard" or "I'm such a perfectionist" have become predictable answers. They also show that you're unwilling to reflect on your faults and share actual developmental areas. 

7. State only one weakness.

While you come across as arrogant if you mention that you don't have any weak points, stating all your faults may ruin your chances of getting the job. Humility doesn't mean confessing all your flaws, which may leave the employer wondering if you're the right candidate for the role.

8. Choose a soft skill as a weakness.

Choose a soft skill you need to work on to play it safe and make your answer genuine. Here are the top 10 weaknesses you can mention:

• Delegating tasks
• Being too detail-oriented
• Lack of spontaneity
• Not able to turn down requests
• Ability to multitask
• Impatience
• Public speaking
• Lack of confidence
• Creativity
• Maintaining a work-life balance

Land That All-Important Job Interview!

Even during interviews, honesty is still the best policy. Keep it real by sharing a genuine weakness and letting hirers know how you address it. By answering this question well, you highlight your professionalism and make a great first impression.

To get that job interview, #LetsGetToWork by choosing from our many career options. Just visit JobStreet or download the JobStreet app on Google Play or the App Store to create or update your profile then search jobs.

Lastly, check out Career Tools for more useful resources to help you prepare for an interview, download resume templates, and more.