You're listening to Business English Pop, the business English podcast for professionals on the move.
Hello, my name is Jennifer and I'll be hosting the next couple of podcasts as we continue to look at the language and skills of interviewing for jobs in English.
So far in this series, we've examined two common questions that you will likely be asked in almost any interview.
They were, tell me about your previous experience, and what is your most significant accomplishment?
In this episode, we will likewise deal with another extremely common question.
Unfortunately, it's almost as challenging to answer as it is popular to ask.
It requires you to think about possible problems with your working style and personality and to give an answer that demonstrates professionalism and the ability to present your weakness as a strength.
That's right, you guessed it.
The question is, what's your greatest weakness?
Talking about your weaknesses tests a unique skill.
It investigates your ability to present a drawback as an advantage.
Thus, the theme of this episode is Be Positive.
And that's the main point that we'll be focusing on.
We'll be listening to two examples, one good and one bad.
Let's listen briefly first to the bad example.
You may recall that Alexander is interviewing with Michael for a supervisor job in an electronics store.
Right, so moving on now, what's your greatest weakness?
Ah, Michael, for me, I like the simple things in life.
Material things don't interest me much.
My personal freedom is much more important than being rich.
I see.
I guess that's why I'm working in an electronics store and not on Wall Street.
Yeah, I guess that's why we're all working here.
Alexander has not helped himself with his reply to this question.
In fact, he has probably hurt his chances of getting the job.
But surprisingly the problem with Alex's response is not so much in the weakness or flaw he chose, but more in how he presents that flaw.
What was Alexander's weakness?
Right, so moving on now.
What's your greatest weakness?
Michael, for me, I like the simple things in life.
Material things don't interest me much.
My personal freedom is much more important than being rich.
Alex says, material things don't interest me much.
Material means real, physical things.
The things that can be bought with money, like cars, TVs and houses.
Alex is saying he is not interested in financial gain, in being rich.
Alex's weakness is certainly sincere, which is much better than making something up, but let's consider it from the employer's perspective, something Alexander fails to do.
What do companies want?
They are on the lookout for staff who will help them to make money, but who also value human relations and the satisfaction of a job well done.
In other words, Alex's weakness is also a strength.
But does Alex present it this way?
I guess that's why I'm working in an electronics store and not on Wall Street.
Yeah, I guess that's why we're all working here.
Alex's response falls far short of a good reply.
When talking about a weakness, there are generally two things we want to do.
One...
Present it in a positive light.
That is, look on the bright side.
And two, talk about what steps we have taken or are taking to overcome our weakness.
But Alexander does neither of these things.
Instead, he probably makes the worst move possible.
He cracks a joke about people who work in electronic stores, implying that the job is actually beneath him.
Now that we have an idea of what we shouldn't do, let's listen to a good example of what we should do.
We'll rejoin Sherry from Hong Kong, another recent graduate, as she is interviewing with a big accounting firm.
Whilst we listen, see if you can answer the following questions.
1.
What is Sherry's weakness?
2.
Did this weakness affect her GPA? or exam scores?
How?
3.
Does Sherry explain the positive aspects of the weakness she describes?
Great, Sherry.
All right, let's move on to another question.
What do you think your greatest weakness is?
Well, seeing as I'm a single mother, I'm coming from a non-traditional background, and you might say that's a weakness.
In what ways?
I've had to make a lot of sacrifices.
For example, while doing my master's, I had to work part-time, which meant that I've done part of my degree during night school.
Being so busy has also had some impact on my GPA.
Mm-hmm.
But you know, I think my non-traditional background gives me an edge in many ways over many of my peers.
How so?
I've learned a sense of responsibility, good time management skills, and I've become more mature very quickly.
I'm confident that I'm ready to be a strong contributor in a challenging work environment.
Sherry's response does both of the things we talked about earlier.
One, she presents her weakness in a positive light, and two, she talks about how she overcame it.
Let's go through her response piece by piece.
How does she first identify her weakness?
Well, seeing as I'm a single mother, I'm coming from a non-traditional background, and you might say that's a weakness.
Sherry's weakness is to come from a non-traditional background.
In academic or professional terms.
Non-traditional refers to anyone who does not follow the conventional or standard career path.
Older applicants, people with resume gaps, handicapped employees, etc.
All fit into the category non-traditional.
In Sherry's case, she believes being a single mother makes her non-traditional.
Notice, however, how she uses tentative or careful language to identify her weakness.
You might say that's a weakness, she says.
It's good to be tentative about your weakness.
Doing so makes your statement less final or conclusive, thus preparing your listener for considering the other side of the coin your weakness as a strength.
What are some other ways to identify your weakness tentatively?
I tend to be a bit of a perfectionist, so sometimes I get kind of hung up on the details of things.
Well, I have a tendency to overwork, so for me, maintaining a work-life balance is a challenge and a priority, both for my personal sake and for my long-term performance.
There are several types of tentative language in these examples.
Modal verbs like might and could, qualifiers like bit of and might, kind of, and phrases such as I tend to or I have a tendency to.
Also, it's often better to describe a problem as a challenge, because this demonstrates a positive attitude.
When Sherry says being non-traditional is a weakness, how does the interviewer respond?
In what ways?
I've had to make a lot of sacrifices.
For example, while doing my Masters, I had to work part-time, which meant that I've done part of my degree during night school.
Being so busy has also had some impact on my GPA.
The interviewer is careful to clarify Sherry's statement.
She gets specific examples from Sherry by asking, In what ways?
Getting specific examples is an important skill for the interviewer.
Let's look at a few more phrases for doing this.
Sherry is quite clever in choosing her examples.
Working part-time, completing a degree in night school and having a lower GPA these are all things that will seem like flaws or problems in Sherry's record.
But by strategically including them as part of her answer to the weakness question, she is able to re-present these problems in a positive light.
Another way to say this is that she puts a positive spin on her problem.
The turn or transition to describing weakness as strength is the key moment in Sherry's response.
Let's listen to how she does this.
But you know, I think my non-traditional background gives me an edge in many ways over many of my peers.
To put a positive spin on her non-traditional background...
Sherry uses an idiom.
She says her background gives her an edge over many of her peers.
This means it gives her an advantage over her competitors.
Let's practice some more language that can be used to put our weaknesses in a positive light.
As you listen, keep in mind that these are just suggestions.
Each individual case will be a little different.
But actually this also works to my advantage in many situations, because I often spot problems that other people don't see.
Of course, it's a double-edged sword.
Because I'm a highly effective and productive person.
In these examples, we hear a couple more phrases for making the transition from weakness to strength.
We can say something actually works to our advantage, or that it's a double-edged sword, that is, it has a bad side and a good side.
After putting a positive spin on her disadvantage, the last thing that Sherry needs to do, if possible, is discuss ways in which she is overcoming, or has already overcome, this weakness.
Sherry has learned a sense of responsibility, good time management skills and she has become more mature.
You can refer back to the earlier episodes on talking about accomplishments for more ways to describe positive characteristics.
How else can we describe overcoming a weakness?
Let's listen to some more examples.
As I've matured as a person and an employee, I've become much better at knowing when it's time to analyze something carefully and when it's time to let it go.
I think this has made me both more effective and more productive.
The best of both worlds.
I'm finding that by paying attention to my tendency to overextend myself, I'm able to maintain a higher level of consistent effort, and that's having a positive impact on my job performance.
Phrases like by paying attention to my tendency to, and it's the best of both worlds can help you construct an effective response.
Returning to the listening, the last thing Sherry does is finish off her response with a positive final comment.
I'm confident that I'm ready to be a strong contributor in a challenging work environment.
This type of comment, which reflects a positive attitude, fits into the theme of today's show, but it would be useful in many different parts of your interview.
Here's a few more examples of phrases we could use to demonstrate a positive attitude.
A flexible combination of methodical analysis and strong forward momentum.
Overall, it's consistent high performance that wins the day.
And I work hard to embody that long-term commitment in everything I do.
Now we're going to practice two of the key skills we learned in today's show.
Identifying your weakness tentatively and putting a positive spin on it.
First, let's work on identifying your weakness.
You'll hear a series of cues stating a problem or flaw.
After the beep, restate the problem using tentative language we've practiced, such as sometimes might or could, kind of, or a bit of a, and I have a tendency to you ready, let's give it a try.
I am a perfectionist, i take things too seriously, i work too quickly, i am careless.
How did you do?
Now, listen to some example answers.
Of course, your responses may differ.
Example answer.
I work too quickly.
I am careless.
Example answer.
Well, I have a tendency to work a little bit too quickly, and sometimes this makes me a little bit careless.
Now, let's practice putting a positive spin on the problem.
As before, you'll hear two cues stating a weakness.
Use the language and approaches that we've studied today to put the problem in a positive light.
You might consider employing some of the idioms we learned, such as it actually works to my advantage or it can actually give me an edge over my competitors.
Let's begin.
I have a tendency to overwork.
Sometimes I pay too much attention to details.
Listen now to some example answers.
I have a tendency to overwork.
Example answer.
Of course, at the same time, it's a double-edged sword, because I am a highly effective and productive person.
Sometimes I pay too much attention to details.
Example answer.
But this also gives me an edge over my competitors, because I often spot problems that other people don't see.
After you've tried these practices a couple of times, you should be able to craft a good answer for the next time you are asked What is your greatest weakness?
This concludes this episode on answering questions about your greatest weakness.
We talked about how it's better to be honest in selecting your weakness, because this demonstrates sincere self-knowledge.
And under the theme, Be Positive, we've studied two key skills for responding to this type of query.
One, present your disadvantage in a positive light, that is, look on the bright side.
And two, talk about what steps we have taken or are taking to overcome our weakness.
Finally, we looked at a four-part structure for responding to the question.
One, identify your weakness tentatively.
Two, put a positive spin on it.
That is, present your weakness in a positive way.
Three, talk about ways that you are overcoming your problem.
And four, demonstrate a positive attitude to finish.
Thanks for listening.
