How to Showcase Your Strengths and Weaknesses for Every Career Path

Prepare for an interview with an honest assessment of your skills

You know that by preparing well for your next interview, you're likely to make a much better impression than you would if you just grasped for answers on the spur of the moment. Some questions seem designed to catch you out – but that's where we come in. In this article, we're looking into how you can answer the interview question, “what are your strengths and weaknesses?” without sounding overconfident or underqualified.

Why do interviewers ask about strengths and weaknesses?

When you're thinking about your strengths and weaknesses for an interview, you'll probably find yourself wondering why they're asking you in the first place. Surely, they already know about your strengths from your resume – and any weaknesses could put you out of the running!

There are several reasons you may find yourself being asked this question. Firstly, the interviewer obviously wants to ensure you're qualified for the role. No candidate is ever 100% perfect, so companies will have non-negotiable requirements as well as areas where they'd be willing to compromise if the candidate is otherwise ideal.

Secondly, your answer will show whether you understand the requirements of the role. If you're able to articulate your strengths and weaknesses in relation to the position available, it will show that you've read and digested the job posting, done your research, and come prepared to demonstrate how you align with their needs.

Thirdly, your answer will show how self-aware you are and how you perceive yourself. This can give the interviewer insights into your personality and how well you'd fit into their team, as well as whether you're able to fill their skills gap.

Variations of the question

Of course, the interviewer may pose the same question in different ways. You may hear:

What are your strengths?
What would your colleagues say is your area of expertise?
What do you do best in your current role?
What are your weaknesses?
What do you need to learn more about?
What skills could you improve on?

However the question is worded, your responses need to reflect what the hiring managers want to hear depending on the role, the field, and the company.

Below, we examine how to answer these questions and provide some strengths and weaknesses examples to inspire your own responses.

How to talk about your strengths

When you're thinking about your strengths for a job interview, it's important to always consider the role at hand. Check out the job posting again, to ensure that you're clear on the requirements, and pick a skill (or three!) that will be necessary to fulfill the role to a high standard. This will ensure you're emphasizing that you're a great fit for the job.

Of course, that doesn't mean you should mention skills you don't have, or which are rusty or below average! Honesty is important here. Choose strengths that you can back up with good, solid examples from your career so far.

Take a look at our sample answers to see how you could frame your own answer.

Example responses for talking about your strengths

I'm great at building rapport with people. I'm confident approaching them and getting a conversation going, which means that in my current role in a retail sales environment I'm consistently one of the top performers. My ability to strike up a conversation, understand the customers requirements, and recommend suitable products ensures that they enjoy their shopping experience and become repeat customers. As this role is very sales-focused, I'm sure I'd be able to deliver similar results for you.
I have great attention to detail. That means that when I'm reviewing content for publication, it's rare that any errors creep in. I pick up on mistakes in content using a variety of techniques, ensuring we always put out error-free content that reflects positively on the brand and the business. I know that this position involves producing content for social media and I'm sure my meticulous approach will be a great benefit in ensuring your communications are professional and articulate.
I'm ridiculously organized, which means customers are always delighted with the events I plan for them. I create detailed schedules and action plans and develop contingencies for those inevitable times that something goes wrong. As this role will require me to manage the diaries of several executives, this skill will be invaluable in ensuring their days run like clockwork.

How to talk about your weaknesses

Of course, you also need to be prepared with some weaknesses for your job interview. It can seem like the interviewers are just trying to trip you up or disqualify you here, but there are ways to answer that can still make you seem like a great candidate. Remember that they'll be asking all their interviewees this question, so your answer here could really set you apart from the others if you handle it right.

Expert tip: Everyone has weaknesses and everyone makes mistakes – it's part of being human. Therefore, the answer to this question is never, “I don't have any.”

Try one of these suggestions:

Pick a weakness that won't affect your ability to do your job on a day-to-day basis - for example, a Software Developer could choose public speaking as a weakness

Show how you're working on your weakness so that it won't be a barrier to doing your job well – for example, say that you're not confident using a certain system but that you're taking an online course in your spare time to get up to speed

Use a minor weakness that can also be viewed positively and show how your awareness of the weakness is making you a better employee – for example, saying you like to retain control of projects means you struggle to delegate but consistently achieve exceptional quality standards

Example responses for talking about your weaknesses

As a natural introvert, I've never been confident speaking in front of audiences. Having recognized that this might hold me back in my career, I've begun slowly stepping outside of my comfort zone. I know that I have the expertise and knowledge to share and simply understanding that has increased my confidence. I've also asked my current manager to give me opportunities to develop this skill. I've already delivered a short presentation to my team, which went well. I'm a way off speaking in a large auditorium, but I know I can convey information to smaller audiences now and will continue to build on that.
I don't have much experience with the CMS system you use and haven't used it for a few years, but I've used other similar systems recently so I'm sure that with a little while to reacquaint myself with it I'll be back up to speed in no time.
I'm a bit of a control freak, so I find delegating work difficult. I worry that it won't be done to the standard I expect and will reflect badly on me. I recently worked on a project that had several different components and there was no way I'd have been able to complete them in time on my own.
I was forced to delegate some of the work, which actually went really well. I checked in with my team occasionally to ensure it was all progressing as expected. Everything was completed on time and to a high standard. It made me realize that others are just as capable as me and I won't be as worried about delegating in the future.

Use your strengths and weaknesses to land your next role

Now that you've identified your strengths and weaknesses for interviews and practiced your answers, you'll be able to walk confidently into the room and land that job!

Not getting the interviews you deserve? Why not send your resume for a free resume review by our experts, to help you iron out any problems?