How to answer the question about the strengths and weaknesses ?
The employee's weaknesses and strengths are one of the issues most liked by recruiters. The better we are prepared for the interview, the higher the chances that we will be employed. How to make a question about employee strengths? Here are examples of what to do to answer well.
Everyone once had a thought «I need help with my resume». Each stage of recruitment carries some stress and the risk that our candidacy will be rejected, like many others. When we are invited to an interview, one of the fundamental questions is what are the employee's strengths. Examples of job applicants' responses may vary, some resulting in a post, and some resulting in being removed from the list of candidates. What is worth talking about, and what is better to avoid?
Weaknesses and strengths of the employee — what to focus on?
When we answer questions during an interview, it's important not only what we say but also how. The weaknesses and strengths of the employee exchanged in a quiet and uncertain voice disrupted the credibility of our speech entirely. Employee strengths are not all character traits, but examples of benefits that may be useful in a given position. Other advantages are desirable for a customer service employee, and different strengths are an office worker. The opinions given differ in the specifics of the work. When communication counts in the first, accuracy will be one of the essential features in the second.
Also, it's worth focusing on a few of your advantages, and not talking about a dozen or so. The more they are tailored to the job offer we care about, the higher our chances of employment. Listing your strengths as an employee, it is worth providing specific examples of situations in which these features may be useful. Among the most frequently mentioned strengths that employers would see in their subordinates are:
- communication skills
- time management skills
- flexibility
- independence
- loyalty
- the ability to work in a group and to deal with conflicts
Employee strengths — examples of how to prepare your strengths
The question about the strengths and weaknesses of the employee is the most disliked by most people. We must manifest ourselves, show our character, and look at ourselves objectively. It is hard. That is why some of the candidates appearing at the interviews assume that in the event of such a question, they will mention the first few positive features that will come to their mind. This is a mistake. To tell a good story about yourself and your strengths, remember examples of methods to prepare for the answer.
Let's start by taking a sheet of paper and writing down all of the attributes that we consider to be our strengths. It is worth dividing them into several categories. The first weaknesses and strengths of an employee relate to his knowledge, i.e., education, language skills, acquired permissions, or certificates. Next is professional experience. For example, the employee's strengths include the ability to manage time or people.
We also can't forget about our personalities. Our character is unreliable. Here can appear diligence, the ability to work in a group or openness to criticism, and friendliness.
Weaknesses and strengths of the employee — how to answer the question?
When we have listed all our strengths and weaknesses as an employee, we must choose from among them those on which we should focus when answering. How to do it? We delve into the job advertisement again and focus on the requirements provided by the employer. Based on them, we can verify what are the best strengths of customer service, office, marketing, or technical service employee according to the company.
Then we compare them with what we have listed and choose some of our features that could attract the attention of recruiters. The more strengths there are, the more confident the recruiter will be that he invited the right person to the interview.
Strengths as an employee are more natural to talk about and examples of what can be mentioned more quickly. However, during the conversation, we will also be asked about weaknesses, and this is less pleasant. Nobody likes to admit their shortcomings, especially among strangers who decide about our employment.
As with strengths, you need to prepare for this question in advance. It is best to refer to your shortcomings in the professional sphere, where everything can be made up with knowledge and experience. If someone does not say any fault, it will be perceived very negatively.