Michael Page Logo

Main menu

  • Home
  • Jobs+

    Searching for a job?

    • Job search
    • Submit your CV
    • Resume and cover letter advice
    • Salary guide
    • Salary comparison tool
    • Global opportunities
    • Contracting jobs

    Quick job search

  • Recruiting+

    Looking to hire?

    • Recruitment services
    • Contract recruitment
    • Executive recruitment
    • High volume/project recruitment
    • SME recruitment
    • Employer advertising package
    • Salary benchmarking tool

    Submit a job spec

    Our recruitment expertise

    • https://www.michaelpage.com.au/
    • Accounting & Finance
    • Banking & Financial Services
    • Construction
    • Digital
    • Engineering & Manufacturing
    • Hospitality & Leisure
    • Human Resources
    • Legal
    • Marketing
    • Mining, Energy & Resources
    • Procurement & Supply Chain
    • Property
    • Retail
    • Sales
    • Technology
  • Advice+

    Advice

    • Advice
    • Career advice
    • Management advice
    • Market insights
    • Resume templates

    Popular topics

    • Interview advice
    • Resume advice
    • Salary negotiation
    • Promotion advice
    • Staff retention advice
  • About+

    About us

    • Who we are
    • Work for us
    • Media releases
    • Diversity & inclusion at Page
  • Join PageGroup+

    Join PageGroup

    • About PageGroup
    • Why choose us?
    • Your role here
    • Use your skills
    • FAQs
    • Apply now
  • Contact+

    Contact us

    • Contact us
    • Find our offices
    • Looking to hire?
    • Submit your CV
    • Timesheet Portal
    • Feedback
Sign In
Saved jobs (0)
Search for a job

You are here

Home>Advice>Career advice>Interview>How to answer ‘What are your weaknesses’ in your interview

How to answer ‘What are your weaknesses’ in your interview

by the Michael Page team
-
31/07/2019

It’s impossible to know exactly what will happen in a job interview but one question you can count on is, “What are your biggest weaknesses?”

Many employers ask about weaknesses during job interviews to give them an idea of not only your actual weaknesses but how you present yourself in a difficult or thorny scenario. Naturally, coming across positively when faced with the weaknesses question is a balancing act but it is possible to get right.

So if you’re wondering what are good weaknesses for a job interview, here are our top interview tips for addressing that prickly question.

Choose something non-essential

A business is less likely to hire you if your chosen weakness is a key part of the role so consider all the essential attributes you need to perform well, and steer well away from them. Instead, consider a skill that’s less important in the position.

For example, imagine you are applying for a job as a barista. The essential skills involve coffee knowledge and making, composure during stressful situations, and personability with customers. A non-essential skill, and therefore a ‘good’ weakness, might be that you’re not much of a cook, or you don’t have any experience working on the till.

RELATED: 18 common interview questions

Pick something that can be improved

An ingrained, untrainable and unfixable weakness presents much more of a problem for employers than something that can be improved with a training program or more experience.

For example, if your weakness is that you always show up to work late, they can’t bring someone in to make you show up on time. If your weakness is that you are inexperienced in customer service, they can spend time with you to help you learn the ropes.

Frame a strength as a weakness

If you’re the type of person to focus on details almost to a fault, this can also be used as a weakness. In some scenarios, being too detail-oriented can slow things down and push deadlines back without adding significant quality or value to the product.

Or perhaps you care too much about your clients and are so invested that they receive exceptional service, which goes above and beyond. Again, blurring the line between strengths and weaknesses can come across as honest and real.

Give an example of something you’re already working on

It’s only human to have weaknesses, but not everyone actively works to improve themselves. If you already know a real flaw in your skills or personality attributes, take steps to improve yourself in this area ahead of time.

For example, perhaps you struggle to delegate tasks because you don’t trust others to do the job well. This weakness could slow anyone down but if you have set a plan in place to train others and efficiently hand over the reins on projects, you can admit this weakness, then follow immediately with real steps you have already taken in making improvements.

Ultimately, it’s important to show self-awareness in that you are not a perfect human. To show that you’re willing to work on your flaws, and to be honest instead of lying. Tick these boxes for your interview, and you’ll be one step closer to landing the job.

 

Previous article
6 qualities of a great leader
by the Michael Page team
Read article
Next article
5 tips to overcome negative mindsets in the workplace
by the Michael Page team
Read article

Join over 80,000 readers!

Receive free advice to help give you a competitive edge in your career.

Sign up to receive job alerts

We will let you know when any new !keyword jobs are available. | We will let you know when any new !keyword jobs in !location are available. | Create an account to enable features like one click apply, and set up more than 5 job alerts

Topics

  • Career advice
  • Management advice
  • Market insights

Popular Articles

  • 5 ways to beat the Monday morning blues
  • The art of influence - Getting what you want to work
  • How to succeed in the first 90 days of a new role
  • 5 tips to secure the pay rise you deserve
  • Top tips for retaining staff
  • Benefits of mentoring

Tags

applying for a job
job search
self improvement
seriously useful
Michael Page Logo
  • Read our BlogRead our Blog
  • Follow us on FacebookFollow us on Facebook
  • Follow us on InstagramFollow us on Instagram
  • Follow us on LinkedInFollow us on LinkedIn
  • Watch us on YouTubeWatch us on YouTube

General

  • Change country/region
  • Unauthorised data breach
  • Page Personnel Australia
  • Page Executive
  • Cookies policy
  • Email disclaimer
  • Investor site
  • PageGroup corporate site
  • Privacy policy
  • Site terms
  • Site map
  • Feedback

Jobs by function

  • Accounting & Finance
  • Banking & Financial Services
  • Construction
  • Digital
  • Engineering & Manufacturing
  • Hospitality & Leisure
  • Human Resources
  • Information Technology
  • Legal
  • Marketing
  • Mining, Energy & Resources
  • Procurement & Supply Chain
  • Property
  • Retail
  • Sales

Reviews

Feefo logo

Our offices

  • Brisbane
  • Melbourne CBD
  • Melbourne South East
  • Perth
  • Sydney CBD
  • Sydney North Shore
  • Sydney West
  • Canberra

Contact

  • Feedback
  • Looking to hire?
  • Submit your CV

Michael Page is part of PageGroup. Michael Page is a trading name of Michael Page International (Australia) Pty Ltd (ABN 58 002 872 264). Registered Office: Level 32 Grosvenor Place, 225 George Street, Sydney NSW 2000
© PageGroup plc