What is your biggest weakness?

This one is a bit of a trick question. Whatever you do, don’t say something like, ‘I’m just too much of a perfectionist’ or ‘I’m punctual to a fault’ - your interviewer will see right through that!

When hiring managers ask this question, they are looking for a few different things. Most importantly, they want to see that you are self-aware, and they want to know that you take steps to address shortcomings. So answer honestly - what is a genuine weakness of yours? Maybe you aren’t the most organised person, or maybe you lack confidence. But, crucially, don’t just leave it at that. Explain how you have been trying to combat this weakness. Have you been using planners and to-do lists to stay on top of tasks? Have you been practicing public speaking? The important thing to remember is a weakness on its own isn’t going to cost you the job - we all have them, even CEOs! What’s important is how you have been working on your weaknesses.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

We hate this question - the future is unpredictable and you can never know where you’ll be in five years. It can be especially difficult if the job you are interviewing for isn’t necessarily part of your dream career plan, which will inevitably happen at some point in your life. However, it’s important that you don’t convey this in your answer!

Mould your answer to this question to the requirements and progression opportunities of this specific role at this specific organisation, even if ultimately you see yourself somewhere else in five years. Do some research about the training opportunities that this role offers. Rather than naming a specific role you are hoping to have in 5 years time, focus instead on the skills and experiences you hope you will have acquired by then.

What part of this role sounds most challenging to you?

Go about answering this question carefully. You want to highlight some areas of the role that you think will require a little extra care, but you don’t want it to sound like you’re terrified of the job you’re interviewing for. Look through the job description and see if there’s anything on there that makes you a little nervous - perhaps it’s a type of software you haven’t used before, or maybe it’s a new level of responsibility for others. Once you know the challenges, think about how you would deal with them. Would you put time aside to familiarise yourself with new programs? Would you communicate openly with new team members to ensure that your leadership style aligns with their needs? Hiring managers don’t mind that you may find some aspects of the job challenging, but they need to know you’ll be up to it!

Are you innovative?

This question is intimidating because it’s so vague. If you haven’t given it any thought in advance, it can leave you flustered and floundering.

But clearly you are thinking about it in advance, as you are reading this blog post, so don’t worry! As this is a competency-based question, you can answer it using the STAR method - that is, Situation/Task, Action, Result. Think of a situation in which you were faced with a difficult problem. Did you come up with a solution that others might have missed? Innovation is about thinking outside the box, so try to emphasise the creativity in your approach. This question may seem daunting at first, but if you take the time to brainstorm ahead of time, you won’t be caught out by it!

What has been your biggest failure?

This question is similar to being asked about your weaknesses. Again, the hiring manager wants to see you demonstrating some self-awareness and owning your mistakes, but don’t just tell them about a deadline you missed and call it a day! This is the perfect opportunity to spin a failure into a success by talking about how you dealt with it afterwards to salvage the situation. Look, everyone makes mistakes, that’s a given. Any employer knows it’s inevitable that even their best employee will eventually mess up. They want to know that you won’t just give up at the first hurdle, but will think on your feet and act fast when you do get something wrong. So think of a time you or your team failed at something, unpick exactly what went wrong, and explain how you responded and what you have learnt for the future.

Well, there you have it - our least favourite job interview questions and approaches for answering them. Now you can go into your next interview with confidence. If you are still on the hunt for a job interview in the first place, be sure to keep an eye on our social media pages where we regularly advertise job openings.