What is your greatest weakness? What are you doing to improve it?
When hiring managers ask this question they are looking to see if you are honest, self-aware, and willing to improve. The hiring manager is also looking for indicators that show you've been able to learn new tasks and handle new challenges. So, this question is an opportunity to show that you've got the right assets for the job.
"In my last performance review, my manager asked me to improve my working knowledge of GIS. I have since signed up for a course which will be complete in December."
This answer should be focused on a work-related weakness but be careful not to say something you will regret later. Focus more on the positive. You should talk about a real weakness that you've been working on to improve. For instance, if you're not good at public speaking, but you're taking a course to help improve that skill, mention that in the interview. Or maybe you feel that you're easily distracted when working online, but you recently installed software that helps you stay on task. Answers like these show a desire for self-awareness, improvement, and discipline.
"I have very strong attention to detail and sometimes, this can turn into a tendency to perfectionism. In the past, I found this leading me to triple-check every item on a spreadsheet, closely proofread emails to ensure I'd communicated what I was trying to get across in a clear, concise way, or fiddle with the layout of a presentation to ensure that it was perfect. I've since learned to successfully budget my time and gauge which tasks require and actually benefit from this level of precision."
Community answers are written by other candidates practicing this set. Reading how others frame the same question is one of the fastest ways to sharpen your own.
Anonymous Answer
I put too much into a project. I will work overtime because I am passionate about what I do, even if that has meant less family and friends time. I have taken steps against this, like turning off notifications of emails on my phone. On my latest vacation, I only looked at my email on the last day.
Rachelle's Feedback
I recommend choosing a weakness that does not sound self-serving. "I work too hard" is an answer that many hiring authorities report as being too far towards selling your weakness as a strength. This could backfire. Is there anything listed in the job posting or job description that is a job requirement that you are not a 10/10 in when it comes to skills and strengths?
Anonymous Answer
I've never quite maintained a website before. I've worked on some WordPress blogs in the past but nothing as sophisticated as an actual organizational website. I'm definitely willing to learn!
Stephanie's Feedback
In the "Revised Answer" section, I have included a suggestion for re-wording your response in order to improve clarity and impact.
An area that I am working to improve is my comfort in building and maintaining a website. I've successfully created some WordPress blogs in the past, but never anything as sophisticated as an actual organizational website. While this is currently an area of growth for me, I am eager to learn, and I am currently practicing ________________ and __________________ skill in order to improve in this area.
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