Weaknesses

miss_hh

Hi all,
I would appreciate some advice. Im preparing for an interview in the morning and im thinking about the dreaded 'weaknesses' question. I was stumped by this question before.

So I am considering saying my spelling isnt up to scratch (im a bad speller and Im sitting a competency test before interview) but to help with this I use spell check and always have a dictionary to hand.

Do I be honest about this weakness or mention something else?

Also what other common interview questions are asked?
Its an admin post.

Cheers!

Linda_D_2

Go for the "my weakness is that I'm a perfectionist" line, they love that crap!

McKneff

Personally I wouldnt mention the dictionary, if they think your going to spend working time looking up spelling youre on a hiding to nothing.

I could type a full letter in the time it took some ladies in our office to look up some words.

Wait for more advice on here and good luck for tomorrow.

miss_hh

Thanks McKneff, never actually thought of that.

kingfisherblue

You have a solution to your poor spelling, but you could couch it in better terms. For example, you could say that you could improve your spelling and are making efforts to do this with the help of a dcitionary and spell checker. You could also say that you realise that proof reading everything before sending out is necessary.

You could be asked about computer skills. Mention that you can use MS Office (I assume you can!). Give examples - 'In my last job, I used Word for writing reports before emailing them as attachments to all managers int he company', or 'I have used Excel to prepare spreadsheets, including using formulae to obtain the information needed by my supervisor'.

You might also be asked about communicating with customers - using the phone, face to face, or email.

Organisational skills, meeting deadlines, working alone or in a team. I can't think of any more at the moment. Try to give examples though.

Oh, another one - why do you want this position and why do you think you are the right person for this job? Answer enthusiastically, but not OTT. This is a chance to show how you stand out from the other applicants.

Some companies also ask what you know about them, so do some research. If it is a charity, mention this. If the company has international customers, be aware of this. Have they won any awards such as Investors in People? Look on their website and be prepared to give them some information about their company. It shows an interest and is a much better answer than 'I didn't know you existed until I saw the advert in the paper' - that may be true, but don't say it!

CruisingSaver

I'd talk about areas for development rather than weaknesses, it sounds more positive. Try and pick an area that isn't essential or crucial for the job though!

Good luck for tomorrow and don't forget to smile

CS x

mynameistallulah

Linda_D wrote: »

Go for the "my weakness is that I'm a perfectionist" line, they love that crap!

No, they know it is crap and will give you a low score for a thoughtless answer.

CruisingSaver is correct - they are looking for areas of development (and how you can address them), and things that could be seen as a negative but actually you turn them round to being a positive. For instance, some may see it as a negative if you cannot make decisions instantly, but the reason you do not do this is because you like to have all the information in front of you in order to make a well informed decision.

Linda_D_2

mynameistallulah wrote: »

No, they know it is crap and will give you a low score for a thoughtless answer.

Well I used it and it got me the job.

westv

Just answer that "My weakness is your sweetness" in a decently tuneful manner.

Really though the question is one of those stock ones that can sometimes be rolled out by interviewers because they have no real idea as to what they should be asking.

miss_hh

westv wrote: »

Just answer that "My weakness is your sweetness" in a decently tuneful manner.

Really though the question is one of those stock ones that can sometimes be rolled out by interviewers because they have no real idea as to what they should be asking.

Kryptonite

bitsandpieces

I think spelling is a good weakness to give - you can also make clear that you have effective strategies for dealing with it. Perhaps you could also think of an example of how - despite bad spelling - you were able to produce written work to a high standard and without spelling errors?

Given a genuine weakness - which shows you've thought about your own abilities and the question - is often better than something generic like perfectionism... Just make sure that you can also show how - despite this weakness - you'd still be a great person for the job.