How to answer negative interview questions
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Increasingly you’ll find that interviewers are asking you “negative” interview questions as a way of testing you. For instance, they may ask you “what do you see as your biggest weaknesses?”
People justifiably find these type of questions difficult to answer and often struggle to respond without talking themselves out of a promotion. This sometimes leads to candidates giving weak answers such as “I work too hard” or “I’m a perfectionist” in an attempt to sell something positive as a weakness to the interviewer.
However, interviewers aren’t looking for the candidate who gives the cleverest answer, they’re looking for the person who is self-aware and has knowledge of their own development needs.
With that in mind, (using the example above) the best thing you can do is offer something which was a problem for you but you’ve now dealt with, or a weakness you’ve still got but you’ve found a way of managing and dealing with –
TAKE AWAY
You don’t need to come across as a superhero in interviews, and if you try you won’t seem authentic in the interviewer’s eyes. They will think you lack self-awareness or that you are trying to cover up your weaknesses.
People justifiably find these type of questions difficult to answer and often struggle to respond without talking themselves out of a promotion. This sometimes leads to candidates giving weak answers such as “I work too hard” or “I’m a perfectionist” in an attempt to sell something positive as a weakness to the interviewer.
However, interviewers aren’t looking for the candidate who gives the cleverest answer, they’re looking for the person who is self-aware and has knowledge of their own development needs.
With that in mind, (using the example above) the best thing you can do is offer something which was a problem for you but you’ve now dealt with, or a weakness you’ve still got but you’ve found a way of managing and dealing with –
- Find a genuine problem. The best answer is an honest answer, so whether you’re disorganised, didn’t deliver on a project, or just aren’t a people person – pick something which is close to your heart.
- Show you understand the impact of the problem. Interviewers want to see you’re aware of the consequences of your weaknesses and their impact on your wider team, so share that. For instance, if something you did led to a project slipping and not being delivered on time – be honest about that.
- Identify what strategies you’ve put in place to manage it. With a little thought it’s possible to put systems and strategies in place to “manage” a weakness – for instance, a disorganised person might use lists to get everything done or even start to use a task manager app. Work out how you can manage your weaknesses and talk the interviewer through that process.
- Show you’ve found a way of overcoming it or managing it successfully. Now it’s your time to shine – explain how the strategies you’ve put in place have enabled you to overcome your weaknesses and give an example to the interviewer they can relate to.
TAKE AWAY
You don’t need to come across as a superhero in interviews, and if you try you won’t seem authentic in the interviewer’s eyes. They will think you lack self-awareness or that you are trying to cover up your weaknesses.