A common mistake that candidates can make when asked about weaknesses is to say that they don’t have any at all, which they may think will help them to avoid questions they don’t want to answer.

As human beings, we all have weaknesses; I therefore recommend that this question is approached in one of two ways. You can tackle this, either by talking about a weakness that is not a key area for the role that you hope to secure.

Or you can identify a weakness that you have identified in yourself in a previous role and show the interviewer how you have worked to overcome it. For example, “organisation was not my strongest point, so considering this, I implemented a time management system that really helped me meet my deadlines”.

Being asked about your weaknesses is a common interview tactic, so it will definitely help you to be prepared to discuss those things that you are have not been quite so good at.

For some, talking about what is perceived as a “negative” may be uncomfortable and the candidate in question may think that by answering this with honesty, they put their chances of succeeding in the interview process at risk. I always urge candidates to think otherwise.

As long as thought and preparation has gone into this along with other questions, you can easily turn this negative into a positive.

negative qualities, Tough interview questions