interview question.

My_Dog_Says_Hi

Sometimes in an interview I'd get asked the questions "give me three positive and three negative qualities about yourself"

How would you go about tackling this question?

edanto

I'd say, (but I wouldn't use these exact words of course!) "well we've all heard the advice about turning negatives into positives, so I guess we can assume that I'll mention the attributes that I think most suitable for this job... which are...
some ways that I've shown I have these attributes are...

and some of the problems I've come across (because sometimes I overplay these strengths and they can be negatives) were..... and the way I solved them was.... "

That's such a boring question for them to ask... I'd be worried about the job they were offering!

Libertine07

I think the positive side is easy enough (well organised, good communication skills, attention to detail, adaptable, friendly, professional manner, work well in a team, work well on own initiative, or anything else that fits with the job description)

The negative side is tricky, one that a lot of people use is 'I'm a perfectionist' but I try to avoid that one. I would study the job description carefully and pick out something that may be different to what you've done before, and say something like, "I have limited experience in x, but its an area I'm very interested in and my previous experience should give me a good grouding in developing this skill." Turn it into a platform for mentioning positives like being a fast learner, enthusiastic, etc.

If you've ever had any weaknesses in previous jobs maybe mention that and explain how you've overcome them and learned from them.

stipey

well 3 positives are ...... and...... and finally I make a nice cup of tea.

3 weaknesses would be .... and.... and finally (pause) kryptonite.

[Disclaimer: You obviously need to gauge the mood of the interviewer(s) and the culture of the workplace before going for the humourous approach. Coming out with something like that in an interview for a super-serious stuffy workplace could seriously hinder your prospects. I've only ever used similar "gags" in 2 interviews - I got both jobs (in one of them the 2 interviewers were slagging and abusing each other from a height - mainly because the HR head asked a technical question and the IT guy decided to wind him up over exceeding his brief)..... Finally, its probably best to only use on of these. Most employers probably want somebody they know will easily fit in to the work environment - but you don't want to come across as too much of a joker.]

HashSlinging

Simple - name three positives and say you dont have any negatives, the interviewer is trying to judge your character so dont give them the opportunity to put any thing negative towards you. Dont forget this is an interview and you could open a can of worms - have done so myself.

Sabre0001

HashSlinging wrote:

Simple - name three positives and say you dont have any negatives, the interviewer is trying to judge your character so dont give them the opportunity to put any thing negative towards you. Dont forget this is an interview and you could open a can of worms - have done so myself.

Not the best advice...Everyone has negative sides but yes, you are supposed to try to turn them into positives / learning possibilities.

Difficulty with time management - Have taken courses
Perfectionist (try to avoid)
Limited experience - Quick learner and enthusiastic
Kryptonite - Wear a lead suit everyday now...

leeroybrown

HashSlinging wrote:

Simple - name three positives and say you dont have any negatives, the interviewer is trying to judge your character so dont give them the opportunity to put any thing negative towards you. Dont forget this is an interview and you could open a can of worms - have done so myself.

I'm not sure if this is a good idea. I would suggest that a good interviewer who decided to ask this question would have a lot more interest in how well you sidestepped the negative half of the question than how you answered the positive half.

Also, saying that you have no negative could be perceived any of lazy, arrogant or a lack of ability to analyze yourself objectively.

Eoin

Libertine07 wrote:

The negative side is tricky, one that a lot of people use is 'I'm a perfectionist' but I try to avoid that one. I would study the job description carefully and pick out something that may be different to what you've done before, and say something like, "I have limited experience in x, but its an area I'm very interested in and my previous experience should give me a good grouding in developing this skill." Turn it into a platform for mentioning positives like being a fast learner, enthusiastic, etc.

Yeah, the "perfectionist" line is about as bad as "I work too hard". The approach you suggest is the one I use too, e.g. mention a particular skill you may not have experience with, rather than a personality trait.

HashSlinging

leeroybrown wrote:

I'm not sure if this is a good idea. I would suggest that a good interviewer who decided to ask this question would have a lot more interest in how well you sidestepped the negative half of the question than how you answered the positive half.

Also, saying that you have no negative could be perceived any of lazy, arrogant or a lack of ability to analyze yourself objectively.

Sorry but thats just a load of psychobabble, so your telling me that if an interviewer had two candidates and one went through his negative points and was forthcoming with information he would be perceived in better light than someone who said they didnt have any negative points.?

This is a typical clanger of a question in an interview, its job is to fluster the interviewee, best to dodge any negatives and move on to the next question.

galah

well, an easy, "inoffensive" weakness I always use is that I never learned to touch-type (but have my own 7 1/2 finger system with which I'm pretty fast ;-))...

Nody

HashSlinging wrote:

Sorry but thats just a load of psychobabble, so your telling me that if an interviewer had two candidates and one went through his negative points and was forthcoming with information he would be perceived in better light than someone who said they didnt have any negative points.?

With out blinking since the second guy don't have any self awareness and could not be trusted to even consider suggesting what should be put in a development plan for him/her.

Oh and be careful to turn your negative into a positive 'cause if I'm in the interview I'll ask you for the negative as you have not given it to me.

leeroybrown

HashSlinging wrote:

Sorry but thats just a load of psychobabble, so your telling me that if an interviewer had two candidates and one went through his negative points and was forthcoming with information he would be perceived in better light than someone who said they didnt have any negative points.?

I didn't say that. What I said is that a candidate who answered (side stepped) the negative side of the question well might be seen in a better light than someone who just lied or failed to answer the question fully and said they have no negative qualities.

mountainyman

leeroybrown wrote:

I didn't say that. What I said is that a candidate who answered (side stepped) the negative side of the question well might be seen in a better light than someone who just lied or failed to answer the question fully and said they have no negative qualities.

Identify the skills required for a slightly different role or even reiterate your positives.

If looking for a job as a C++ porgrammer 'My experience with C is limited'
If looking for a job running a small team 'I have never run a team of more than 10 people'.

ETC.

Never give the sucker an even break!!

MM

DublinWriter

My_Dog_Says_Hi wrote:

Sometimes in an interview I'd get asked the questions "give me three positive and three negative qualities about yourself"
How would you go about tackling this question?

I really love the head-games most HR'ers play!

I was once asked a variation on this question, the interviewer asked "if I asked any of your friends to give me three positive and three negative qualities about yourself, what would they say?"

Basically what they are looking for is how you turn your negatives into positives and how turn your positives into negatives. It's a very clever psychological trick/trap.

E.g. positives:

1. Loyal to the point of stupidity
2. Worried about detail to the point of having a headache (your headache)
3. Worried about your team to the neglect of yourself

Negatives:

1. Questions authority (shows you think about your actions and those of others)
2. Needs to take a full 1 hour lunch break in order to be able to work 100% in the PM
3. Wonders how long it will take you to get into your bosses' position (shows you are ambitious).

I forget the exact physiological term for this (probably bullsh*t!), but it's a form of inverse mind-tactics usually employed by NLP practitioners, and very effective.

leeroybrown

mountainyman wrote:

Identify the skills required for a slightly different role or even reiterate your positives.

If looking for a job as a C++ porgrammer 'My experience with C is limited'
If looking for a job running a small team 'I have never run a team of more than 10 people'.

ETC.

Agreed. I'd say that you had just side stepped the question fairly well.