The usual response I hear to this is:
Why would I highlight a gap or a weak point – and potentially make myself look less than ideal?
Friends, my perspective is a little different. It’s important first, to understand where your gaps and weaknesses lie for the proposed role, and then second, tackle this head on.
See, most hiring managers will be smart enough to know your gaps – they have your CV and they are listening to you carefully during the interview. Of course, they already know the gaps which exist.
The question is whether you take the opportunity to show your leadership by talking about these gaps or limitations.
Step 1. Assess your gaps. Read the JD carefully or learn more about the role if you can (from your connections etc).
Step 2: Outline clearly how you would address this gap.
For example, let’s say the job needs a Security certification. Look up what you need to get this certification – including training providers etc
Then, in the job interview, when you are asked the question, “what are your weaknesses” – take advantage of this by talking about what you are a doing to address the gap.
To continue with the example above, you could say, “In your JD, you have asked for a Security Certification. I don’t have this yet, but here is what I am doing to acquire this”.
The point here is that you are tackling head-on any gaps that might make you a less desirable candidate in the mind of the hiring manager.
Many people will tell you to answer the “weakness” question in interviews with “I don’t have any weaknesses that would prevent me from doing this role”.
Here is another viewpoint. I recommend finding the opportunity to talk about your weakness. Think of your weakness as your strategic advantage against the other candidates. Some examples for you to ponder:
My weakness for this role is that I don’t know enough about your stakeholders. Here is how I will address that in my first 30 days…..
My weakness for this role is that I don’t know the culture of the team – which means I will need to talk more to team members so that I can learn …..
My weakness is that I have not used Slack before, but I have read about it and have spoken to colleagues who have used it previously, and I am confident I can learn it….
See the point I am making?
#leadership #communication
