Biggest weakness: perfectionism

[Anonymous]

I'm preparing for an interview and keep getting stuck on the biggest weakness question. I think mine really is perfectionism, not in the cliche "here's a fake weakness to make the potential boss think I'm diligent," but a weakness that's been big enough to unnecessarily slow down my work in the past. Big enough that I possibly wouldn't hire me because of it.

I'm working on it with a coach, though, and think I've gotten so much better than I used to be. Still it feels too fresh to mention. I can't ask the coach for advice on what to say because they're through my workplace benefits.

So if not perfectionism, what's my biggest weakness? What are some acceptable options?

[Anonymous]

Here are some possibilities that Google AI spit out:


Examples of Weaknesses to Consider:

Difficulty delegating:
"I sometimes find it hard to delegate tasks because I prefer to do everything myself. I'm working on trusting others and developing my delegation skills."

Struggling with public speaking:
"I used to get very nervous when presenting in front of large groups. I've been practicing my public speaking skills and actively seeking opportunities to present, like giving regular presentations at team meetings."

Getting caught up in details:
"I sometimes focus too much on the details of a project, which can make it difficult to complete the overall task on time. I'm learning to prioritize and delegate tasks effectively."

Not always asking for help:
"I sometimes hesitate to ask for help when I need it, preferring to struggle through a problem on my own. I'm working on being more comfortable asking for help and recognizing when I need it."

Being too hard on myself:
"I tend to be very critical of my own work. I'm learning to be more forgiving of mistakes and focus on continuous improvement."

Work-life balance:
"I sometimes struggle to maintain a healthy work-life balance because I'm very dedicated to my work. I'm working on setting boundaries and prioritizing time for personal activities."

[Anonymous]

Real talk from an F500 employee. There are no acceptable options. Anything you mention can be held against you. Including failing to mention a real weakness or mentioning you're working on a skill deficit.

My work has a "talk about a time when you failed" question. I've asked successful people at my work how they've answered these questions. Most of their examples that they think are so truthful are basically about inability to successfully predict future events.

Can you identify a professional knowledge gap you had and talk about how you are remedying it? Or say you're an introvert at heart but working on remedying it?

Perfectionism actually used to be a recommended answer in the 1980s. Because it implied you would be detail-oriented. So it used to be a fake weakness that would help your candidacy. We are living in the fail fast and minimum viable product era now. Don't mention it.

[Anonymous]

It’s the classic bullshit question of saying a weakness that is actually a strength. “I’m sometimes impatient with others in my rush to exceed my sales goals by 200%.”

This is why the interview process is such nonsense.

[Anonymous]

Even if it’s true it sounds so fake you sbkkkdng use it.

[Anonymous]

I do actually have to coach people out of perfectionism at work because while we have to balance quality with speed demands at my job. So you have to learn to live with imperfection because we simply don't have time to make everything immaculate.

[Anonymous]

OP, please don't be the corpspeak asshat who mutters this crap.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do actually have to coach people out of perfectionism at work because while we have to balance quality with speed demands at my job. So you have to learn to live with imperfection because we simply don't have time to make everything immaculate.

I rarely see someone who doesn’t let the great get in the way of the good. Way back in my grad school and law school days, professors routinely reminded us that we needed to develop the skill of knowing when enough is enough. It’s a common area of professional development. It’s not special and people who overthink and who are perfectionists have a lot of company.

If you say this in a job interview, it will make you sound so un self aware and professionally immature. I’d never give you a second look because you’d be a supervisor’s nightmare.

Also I’d never answer a question on my biggest weakness. I’d turn the question into something I want to talk about that highlights my skills or something valuable that I’ve learned, not my shortcomings. For example, I recently had a job interview and got asked a question like this. I pointed to a relevant area of law that had recently changed and said that when I get a case with those issues, I’d have to study the new law. I answered the question but I showed that I keep up with relevant issues in my field and that I recognized what I would need to do when that issue lands on my plate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Real talk from an F500 employee. There are no acceptable options. Anything you mention can be held against you. Including failing to mention a real weakness or mentioning you're working on a skill deficit.

My work has a "talk about a time when you failed" question. I've asked successful people at my work how they've answered these questions. Most of their examples that they think are so truthful are basically about inability to successfully predict future events.

Can you identify a professional knowledge gap you had and talk about how you are remedying it? Or say you're an introvert at heart but working on remedying it?

Perfectionism actually used to be a recommended answer in the 1980s. Because it implied you would be detail-oriented. So it used to be a fake weakness that would help your candidacy. We are living in the fail fast and minimum viable product era now. Don't mention it.

Damn, what's wrong with being an introvert?

[Anonymous]

My biggest weakness for this interview process may be honesty. I feel compelled to answer with great detail everything that's wrong with me.

Maybe actually it's lack of confidence. It's been a while since I applied for something new.

-OP

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do actually have to coach people out of perfectionism at work because while we have to balance quality with speed demands at my job. So you have to learn to live with imperfection because we simply don't have time to make everything immaculate.

I rarely see someone who doesn’t let the great get in the way of the good. Way back in my grad school and law school days, professors routinely reminded us that we needed to develop the skill of knowing when enough is enough. It’s a common area of professional development. It’s not special and people who overthink and who are perfectionists have a lot of company.

If you say this in a job interview, it will make you sound so un self aware and professionally immature. I’d never give you a second look because you’d be a supervisor’s nightmare.

Also I’d never answer a question on my biggest weakness. I’d turn the question into something I want to talk about that highlights my skills or something valuable that I’ve learned, not my shortcomings. For example, I recently had a job interview and got asked a question like this. I pointed to a relevant area of law that had recently changed and said that when I get a case with those issues, I’d have to study the new law. I answered the question but I showed that I keep up with relevant issues in my field and that I recognized what I would need to do when that issue lands on my plate.

Your biggest weakness is that…..law changes? What?

I don’t think you answered that as well as you think you did.

[Anonymous]

Find a way to describe your issue without the words "perfectionist" or "perfectionism".

"I have worked hard to address challenges I have with getting my work done efficiently. I now use the following strategies to ensure I produce high quality work without taking extensive amounts of time on unimportant items."

[Anonymous]

Or what about stating your working in the weeds often gets in the way of seeing the big picture. Explain how you are working on finding a balance.

I have said it takes me a while to trust people and in doing research, I sometimes don't know when to stop researching and actually synthesize what I learned. (Again, this is followed by a "so I work great with a boss who either gives me hard deadlines or parameters for expectations of how many studies/how long the product should be.")

[Anonymous]

I think if you're going to use this, talk about letting the great get in the way of the good. And think of a specific example of how you caught yourself, stopped, finished something and learned this from it and that you keep it in mind now when working on projects. It also benefits teamwork to be able to get something done and benefits everyone to meet deadlines.

It's a terrible question and I think the point of it is to see how you finesse it and show you can answer tactfully (you are not a red flag) and use corporate-speak.

I don't think anything profound is expected but if you say too much, like I argue with co-workers or I'm always late, it screens out some people who really reveal a big weakness that will cause problems in the job.

I think learning from a failure is a better question because it shows if people have humility and can own a mistake and change. Their sincerity comes through.or not. So I would frame it like that: I have had this weakness and learned to improve and it improved my performance in the following ways. Always show that your behavior will benefit the company.

[Anonymous]

I'm honest - I tell them I hate to fire people and sometimes keep underperformers on the team way longer than I should because I took the time to know them and their families personally. I try to unskill them, sometimes it works, but sometimes it doesn't. And when I know it's not working, it's hard for me to let them go. I know what it does the morale of the rest of the team, so I do it because I know I have to, but it's a part of my job I've never enjoyed.