When interviewing with a former colleague, friend, or for an internal position, the hiring team probably knows your strengths. This is when they can really twist the screws and turn up the pressure by probing for weaknesses. Here are five questions that could make you squirm a little.Over preparing for an interview often results in answers that don’t seem genuine, but preparing correctly ensures you don’t sweat the tough questions. This is why I recommend preparing the full story around five of your accomplishments, but what if your audience is already aware of your accomplishments? Maybe you worked with them in the past, or this is an internal promotion? Don’t let that stop you! These stories are critical to being well prepared.
You want to be prepared for an interviewer who wants to know your weaknesses and how your react to difficult situations. Plan for these types of questions:
1. You are a very self-aware person. Tell me about the areas where you know you need to improve and how you are taking action.
2. Tell me about a project that you were leading that went off track and how you got it back on track or how you ended the endeavor.
3. All relationships take effort. Give me an example of a strained work relationship with a critical co-worker and how you developed a respectful bond.
4. We all make choices about how to spend company funds from our expense reports for leading large capital expenses. Give me an example of a decision you later decided was not effective and how you reacted.
5. I know you are well known for the ABC project, but many would say it was a failure. How do you react to this information?
These are just five examples of how an interviewer can focus on weaknesses. From the most basic self-awareness question to the final question, which is designed to ensure you believe in what you did and determine whether you can defend your position and find a way to position yourself with detractors, all are key points.
In most interviews, you get one variation of these questions. However, when your strengths are well known, you could get a full interview of these types of questions. Know your position and prepare accordingly.
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photo by comedynose