If you have ever been to an interview and you had to encounter with a weakness question for the first time you surely had no idea how to answer that simple question.
It also makes one wonder that why the interviewers ask weakness question. The reason why weakness question is raised is to find out how well the interviewee knows themselves. If one knows about their weaknesses then that means they really know themselves. And as this is the one question where even the most talented candidates get stuck and lose the chance of getting the job.
Some of the ways interviewers ask a weakness question are:
“What is your greatest weakness?”
You can answer this weakness question by either mentioning about skills which are irrelevant for the job or about the skills you recently improved or the best way is to turn a negative into a positive.
Sample Answers
While working over a project it is my greatest weakness that I want to complete it as soon as possible no matter how far the deadline date is.
I have a habit of re-checking my work a lot of times in order to make it look perfect but now I do try my best to remind myself about the short time I have.
“How do you think you will overcome your weaknesses?”
When you are answering this weakness question, you got to mention some reasonable way in which you are trying to get rid of your weaknesses
Sample Answers
I usually have interests in more than one thing at a time and this could really remove my focus from the more important work. Hence I keep reminding myself about the work that is really needed at the moment and keep my other interests aside.
Sometimes some projects don’t inspire me to work on them so I try to find a niche in those projects to make them appealing.
“What are the things which people criticize about you?”
The purpose of this weakness question is to know how sensitive you are to people’s honest comments and how do you handle criticism.
Sample Answers
People really don’t have to criticize me because I am always open to comments be it good or bad in order to improve myself.
Well, I guess humor at such a moment is the best way to encounter criticism.
“How do you handle difficult situations?”
Here the interviewer wants to know about the strategies you use in order to handle a tough situation and also wants to know about your attitude towards such situations. The best way to answer to this question is to describe some of your own personal experiences.
“Tell us some of the most difficult decisions you have ever made in your life?”
For this question, there is no such thing as right or wrong answer. It is all based on your personal experience. Tell them about a situation in the past or any current situation where you are facing difficulty in deciding what to do or you can talk about some predictions in the future where you may take a lot of time to decide. It could be anything from finding the right life partner to settling in the right country. Just try to keep your answer positive.
“When was the last time you lost your temper and why?”
Every organization requires a staff who are patient and are not short tempered. So give them an appropriate reason of why you really got angry and don’t say that you have never got angry because the interviewer will know right away that you are faking.
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Jobiety Editorial Team
Our editorial team researches and tests every piece of career advice we publish. We draw on real hiring data, interviews with recruiters, and hands-on experience to give you guidance that works.
