Tell me about a situation where you needed to be patient.

"I need to be patient most of my day, as the manager of an animal shelter! Animals need to be training, and that takes a great deal of patience and consistency. I also juggle a lot of volunteers who are not always as reliable as I would like. Patience is certainly a strength of mine."

Patience is essential, whether you're dealing with a demanding customer or an untrained dog. Your patience helps you to listen to others and deal with the types of problems that can arise with the animals at the shelter. Explain to the interviewer that you able to relax and focus on taking care of your daily duties, even when it means being patient with others.

"When I was working in retail, we often had a lot of downtime in between customers. I filled the in-between by keeping busy, folding clothes, cleaning and making sure that all of the shelves were stocked. I learned that sometimes being patient just means keeping yourself occupied while you wait for the next sale."