Our HR professor states how is this a terrible question, not only for being cliched but not very insightful, and with good reason. Obviously everybody will try to concoct the best answer, and it's not a very intuitive question.

I would probably answer honestly with my fixation on failure/imperfection after the fact. I tend to think about things for a long time afterwards and it's hard to shake off especially if the action was not very favourable, or resulted in something easily avoided.

If I were asked to name three weaknesses, I'd be stuck, or amplify small things which would end up making me look like a complete failure and a terrible hire all put together.

Or you could just tell them you can't really think of anything. Your greatest weakness is not knowing what it is.

That's not a bad idea, Juju. I also just thought, it wouldn't be a bad answer to say "being a human being".

Then they'd ask if you're a fucking furry.

So far I never had an job interview but my answer would be: I can't calculate in front of too much people. I know this may be sound strange but it's fact. To know that others are watching on everything what I do... Argh! Panic! -.-

"I have great work ethic, but I feel like sometimes I need positive feedback in order to do a good job, so that having a management figure there to give me a thumbs up after I do well is a really important part of the job."

Indeed, which is why this question is a self-defeating waste of time. The whole idea of some HR jackass asking a negative question and expecting a positive answer is the first whiff of the painstakingly over-positive bullshitty behavior that makes office life so ridiculous these days. "I suck at this, but somehow I'm still so, so awesome" is such verbal and mental diarrhea and it's a little pathetic how shit like this has to play into the world's assessment of a person's overall value.