What are your weaknesses?

Why the Interviewer Asks This Question
What You Need to Know
How to Answer
Entry Level Example

Your interviewer not only wants to not only hear about your strengths but also your self-perceived weaknesses. How well you know yourself, and where you are at in your professional development, will help them assess your emotional intelligence, drive, ambition, and experience. Collectively, this should inform them of how capable you are of holding yourself accountable while taking ownership of your growth opportunities. This is integral to Google's culture and is the baseline for one of its guiding principles. "Accountability: Google holds all individuals responsible for their actions, and ensures that, where appropriate, those individuals hold others accountable too."

At Google, they have a saying, "Learning is more than just knowing, it's the ongoing quest for understanding." This is reiterated frequently by Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google and their parent company, Alphabet. For example, "Learning is what makes information useful, and what enables people to apply knowledge to make things better for themselves, their families, and their communities."

When asking about your weaknesses, try to think of them as growth opportunities. Any time you fail, consider what the lessons you learned from those failures stand to offer your future success. As Sundar Pichai says, "Wear your failures as a badge of honor." "Keep pushing your limits." "In life, don't react. Always respond." Lastly, when it comes to discussing your growth opportunities, don't feel shy about it, or worry that your interviewer might judge you for them. As long as you take ownership and are working on improving and expanding your skills, you'll be showcasing yourself as an asset rather than a liability. As Sundar Pichai says, "Let yourself feel insecure from time, it will help you grow as an individual."

"One of my weaknesses is feeling intimidated and shy about speaking up when I have something to contribute. You see, throughout school, I was always that kid who was raising his hand. I knew all the answers, and it always happened that my teacher stopped pointing at me for the answer, hoping some of the other kids would raise their hands in response to their questions. Then, after being placed in all the AP classes, eventually the same thing happened. So, I stopped raising my hand, feeling timid and worried about being alienated. I alienated myself instead, trying to fit in. But, I am anxious to outgrow that. Now that I've graduated from college, and am ready to launch into an exciting career, I am determined to find a position with a think-tank atmosphere, surrounded by like-minded people who won't be intimidated by me trying to contribute, and who will value what I have to say. That's one of the things I found really attractive about Google's culture, is that they make a point of letting it be known that at Google, everyone's voice is heard."