How do you answer the job interview question of...
 

"Tell me a flaw about yourself."
"Tell me three things that you'd like to change about yourself."
"Tell me a bad habit of yours that you'd like to change."

All these questions are so open ended I usually don't know how to answer them. The first thing I do is throw back a question at them to give myself more time to think about the answer I'd like to give.

"Relating to my work habits or personal habits?" is something along the lines of what I'd ask, despite knowing that they're going to come back at me with a "either one."

The first question, I usually say that I'm too uptight and I don't know how to wind down and my mind is always on the job, even when I'm at home. Sounds like a reasonable answer to me.

The second one I've never successfully answered. I usually just ask to come back to it once I've thought a little bit and they generally forget to re ask the question.

The third, I use the same answer I give for the first.

What's some decent responses you guys'd use to answer these questions?

Generally you twist it so it's good. You never actually say something bad about yourself. That's like one of the big no-nos of a job interview. Depending on the job, you might want to say something like, "I tend to be a neat freak. If there's a mess and I see it, I'm going to pick it up. It bugs my buddies all the time, but hey, stuff needs to get cleaned." Or you're "too productive. Things like that.

Actually I think the trend has gone the other way. I remember reading a bunch of interview tip things that actually said hiring managers were getting tired of bullshit answers like "too productive," or "work-aholic." I was honest. But I also included steps I'd taken to improve in the areas of my weaknesses, and included examples of things I've done in the past, where I was able to accomplish something despite those weaknesses. IE. personal interaction is not a strong point of mine, however, that does not mean I'm incapable. At my last position, I got a lot of experience with communicating effectively with our payables vendors to resolve the various disputes that came up regarding product shipment and receiving. Further, during our year end audit, I was able to assist the controller by contacting our customers and working with them to get confirmation on our A/R."

This was followed up with a question on communication with other employees, to which I responded that we had had a drastic over-haul of our T&E policy, and that while I was not comfortable with it, and it certainly wasn't my most favorite task in the world, when it was necessary I had to communicate those new requirements to our employees, truck drivers out in the field, and in some cases work extensively with them to ensure that they adhered to the new policy."

It worked out well, because T&E control was one of the concerns at my new job, so I was able to take a question about my weakness and spin it so that not only did I demonstrate that I am willing and able to do my job despite my personality preferences but also that I was capable of solving a problem specific to the employer with which I was interviewing.

Over my countless (15 interviews) I've settled with these 3 flaws:

1) perfectionist: not being able to let go of details, so not looking at the whole perspective. If I don't know something I keep asking till I get it.
2) emotionless in communication: too formal, professional in communication towards new people, clients. In the future I would like to be more relational than functional.
3) Too direct: when I see a huge problem I immediately say it and be correct about it even when the whole group is against me. In the future I could settle with mutual dialogue between team members first before stating the problem immediately.

You see that each of these flaws have good points: perfectionist has quality, emotionless has professionality, directness has correctness.

Just find some good points which also have bad points and I advice you to keep saying these points over and over, studying them over and over till you can say them in your dreams.

And for those of you who wondered if I finally have a job now, next week I'm starting. So keep fighting for it, you'll eventually get it! There is an infinite amount of vacant positions.

Yeah I'll definitely agree with the persistance. It's definitely a matter of persistance until you find the right job for you.

Just in case anyone was wondering, I've got a job. As a matter of fact, I'm typing this from work. I was just wondering how everyone else handled these situations. I'm going to be taking over the HR department here so I just needed some tips.

So you're the HR consultant? Then you should ask questions like this: Can you give an example of...? People usually be very, very silent when you ask these questions...

Can you give an example of your directness?

How best to sum up this thread? Oh, I've got it:

http://photo.net/general-comments/at...indleading.jpg

Being honest always tends to work for me.

'What do you see as one of your flaws'. I would say something like 'Well, I do tend to be disorganized at times, however I am constantly trying improve.' And then I give an example of things that I'm doing and such.

So many people told me that I should pad my own self image, and yet, everytime I've done that I haven't gotten the job. Everytime I simply tell it the way it is, and actually answer their questions, instead of 'making up an answer' for one of the questions, I do okay.

Yeah, the 'examples of' questions are usually stumpers. I've honestly had over 100 job interviews and to be on the other side of the table is great. My tactic is to remember all those difficult questions that I hated answering, compile them and bang them out on any poor soul who has the misfortune of having to interview with me.

I'm pretty damn direct though in all honesty.

Also, I'm going to take over HR, I haven't yet. My official title is "Marketing Manager," however "Marketing Department" would be more accurate.

"What is one of your flaws?" has come up as a job interview question for me twice, actually. In response to this question, I usually end up calling myself a perfectionist, which depending upon the interpretation can be a good thing...

I've actually said that too. I've used the neat freak and perfectionist cards.

One time the interviewer actually straight out told me "That's not a flaw." He kept a straight face and waited for a different answer.

I hate asking that question as much as I hate answering it.

As far as being interviewed, I tend to answer the "flaws" question with my being multiple-task oriented instead of being focused on a single project. I do tend to assign myself multiple jobs that, while they all relate to each other, need to be finished completely, and I sometimes have trouble doing that. Though I like to think if it's something important, I'm much more focused and will finish the task quickly.

Three things I'd like to change? I'd like to do more outdoor activities than I currently do, I'd like to travel more than I currently do outside of the locales I visit regularly, and I'd like to find that fine line between professional and casual relationships and balance perfectly on it.

The latter is my bad habit. I'm awfully casual and informal once I feel like I've made a connection with someone outside of professional courtesy. So far it's a habit that's helped more than hindered, but I fear it might really set me back one day, especially since I'm sometimes too casual with my boss.

Interviews are taking a different direction now; they have to. There are classes that prep you for basic interviews and questions that will help you perfect a response to nearly any standard-rate interview. I find that, from both perspectives, being more relaxed and conversing with the candidate/employer rather than have a robotic Q&A with them reveals more about the candidate than simply asking questions, and it lets the interviewer set the pace about the company and about him/herself.

Exactly.
When I landed my current job, I went in there totally calm because I figured they wouldn't work around my school schedule. I just thought I'd go in and brush up on my interviewing to get ready for a job I had a chance for.
So when I went in I was totally relaxed and able to answer questions with ease. It was probably the most fun I'd ever had in an interview because I even joked around at times.

I ended up landing the job because of my enthusiasm, even with a half-ass References page (I ended up penciling in my old boss because he wasn't on there and they wanted to call him) and my dressed down appearance (no tie nor did I shave that day).

That's right, enthusiasm is the key to succesful interviews! An example:

I'm following evening school in Mandarin language. We had two sollicitors aiming for the teaching position. The first one was relaxed and a bit too formal in teaching style, the second one was full of fire and talked really loud with perfect articulation. She was teaching in an interactive way with the whole class.

Conclusion: The first lesson everybody slept. The next lesson everybody was awake. Everyone would choose the second one for the job.

Here are my answers (and I've used them):

"I'm a perfectionist. If things need to be done a certain way every time, I'll do it that way."

"Nothing. Unless you're counting having gray hair and bad eyesight."

"I really wish I could break the habit of using a finger to push up my glasses. It just doesn't look right."

These are my real answers. I'm me. This is how I am. They don't like it--tough.

Oh, and I have 2 jobs.

It seems that there are many people who say they are a perfectionist...

Is this a standard answer or something?

It's the standard answer for people who think that job interviewers have an IQ below room temperature in Krasnoyarsk. If I was an interviewer, whenever someone would try to pull that 'workaholic and perfectionist' bullshit, I would just say 'thank you, we're done'.

It's a trap then!

That's kind of messed up.
The question itself is bullshit, why not expect a bullshit answer?

If I was interviewing someone, and if I asked that flaw question and got that "perfectionist" response, I think I'd challenge the interviewee with a retort. Something like "You and the other 200 applicants. Let's be serious now."
I'd like to see how they react to that before I dismiss them.

Granted, most of them do. Like the guy from Union Pacific who assured me they did internships at the career fair, reassured it in the e-mails, reassured it at the beginning of the Interview, and then after the Interview said "we don't really do many summer internships, it's usually a semester co-op". Thanks, asshat, you just wasted a few weeks of both of our time. I'm not doing a semester coop in godawful Omaha, Nebraska for a company with little to no relation to Computer Science whatsoever.

"I can't stay away from unlicensed sex workers. I mean, so what if a cop is watching? It doesn't stop me from walking up to that Bedelia and commenting on how juicy and ripe she looks--just ready to be plucked. And those stems, good lord those stems! Why, my little tomato, I would love to go romping in her garden...

That is, I have a weak spot for Roxxane, boss, can I call you boss? She turns on that red light and I come running, or sometimes run comming!"

Sorry. But I AM a perfectionist when it comes to work. They have ways to do things for a reason, so I do them they way they are to be done. Plus, as a manager, I have to make sure things are perfect anyway.

So how is making sure things are perfect a flaw for an employee?

Now, if you were to say something like 'I'm a perfectionist, which is sometimes good, but it also means I get too hung up on minor details and procrastinate,' that might make sense, because you've actually shown that you are aware of your flaws. Otherwise, it's just the same as saying 'OH, IF BEING AN EXTERMELY DILIGENT WORKER IS A CRIME, THEN GO ON, LOCK ME AWAY!'

I'm going to agree with the poster who said that being honest and straightforward works better than bullshitting during interviews. I've never done what I always read everyone should do during interviews and I've gotten the job every time. I don't think managers really want to deal with employees who beat around the bush. So I just talk to them the way I would while working for them. This approach makes me a bazillion times less nervous during interviews, too.

When I'm asked to name a weakness, I say that because I'm an introvert I have trouble with heavy customer service. Since I'm never applying for a customer service position, this isn't a problem and it shows that I recognize my weaknesses. Just in case I'm talking to some idiot who assumes customer service skills are important for every job in the world, I point out the difference between serving customers and working with other employees. Then I make sure they know about my strengths that do apply to the position. Basically, I don't apply for jobs in which my flaws and bad habits would be a problem, so I don't have to lie. Plus, I have jedi mind control powers.

LOL

See--after hearing my answer that I'm a perfectionist, they ask me, "How is that a flaw?" This proves they are listening to the answers. There are usually 2 interviews going on--although most people don't realize it.

Anyway, that's when I tell them that I take the time to do things perfectly. And repetition makes things faster--but they're still perfect.