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Some unimaginative interviewers still ask the
question "What are your greatest strengths and weaknesses?". Mostly however,
you will find the question being put in different terms although you will
know it is this same strengths and weaknesses question. What you may hear is
"explain the top 3 skills you possess" or "what would your colleagues say
you are good at?" - these are all positive and easy to respond to as you can
talk about your good side. The weaknesses question on the other hand is not
as easy to face and this is the one that bothers so many people.
Strengths
On the 'strengths' question it is best to
think 'Key Strengths' and this is a self-describing statement that you
should prepare in advance of any job interview. Knowing what the new job
role is about allows you to customize a key strengths statement to the major
requirements of the job and establish your suitability.
An example of a 'Key Strengths Statement':
"I have very good communication skills; I
work well either leading or being part of a team and I am self-motivated and
capable of working on several tasks at once.
As a leader of small teams I involve people
in the decisions so that they feel involved and ensure they have the
opportunity to contribute to tasks facing the team. I manage the
information, plan and organize and make the decisions as required.
With my strong communication skills, I have
been able to motivate the staff to higher standards of performance meaning
we have also helped our profits figures through increased sales and tighter
cost-control.
Alongside this I have encouraged innovation
and my team has produced several very good ideas for new products, services
and markets. As an example the new widget has taken off in Eastern Europe
and is contributing 7% of profits in less than 18 months.
Most importantly I actively seek to develop
members of my team for their own careers sake but also for the future of the
business itself. This means I also look for personal development
opportunities to ensure my skills are kept up to date."
Weaknesses
In response to the 'weaknesses' question
don’t ever offer a catalogue of weaknesses or you may as well leave. Equally
don’t say you’ve got no weaknesses – we all have some and that just sets you
up for a fall.
Talk about something that anybody could
relate to such as administration and say “I used to be pretty weak at
mundane administration tasks but I recognized that it gave me other problems
so I’ve been working hard to improve on it since.” In other words place your
weakness in the past, show you recognized it and are working to rectify it.
Other weaknesses that are recognizable
include being over-enthusiastic and trying to do too much. These can be
powerful when you state something like:
"I got so wrapped in the job that I was
trying to do everything, but when I discovered I could delegate effectively
and focus on higher tasks the net result was greater overall productivity".
When you have prepared well for your
'Strengths and Weaknesses' questions you really will think of it as a gift
when they eventually ask you "What are your strengths and weaknesses".
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