Almost every interview asks about your strengths and weaknesses. Interviewers are checking two things: whether your strengths match the job, and whether you are honest and self-aware about what you are still improving.
Strengths: pick, prove, connect
Choose two or three strengths the advert asks for. For each, give a short example, then connect it to the job: “I’m very organised. In my admin role I kept the diary for three managers without a double booking in two years, and this role involves a lot of scheduling.”
Weaknesses: real, not fatal, improving
- Pick a genuine weakness that is not central to the job.
- Say what you are doing about it, with a concrete step.
- Finish with progress you have made.
“I used to find public speaking stressful. I joined our team’s weekly report-back and volunteered to present twice a month. I’m much more comfortable now, though I still prepare notes.”
Tip: write your answers down and practise them aloud, so they sound natural rather than memorised.
Avoid: fake weaknesses such as “I’m a perfectionist” or “I work too hard”. Interviewers hear them every day, and they suggest you are not being straight with them.