“Awful job interview advice”
The second most common answer to “what’s your weakness?” is “I take on too much work.” Some bright spark decided that ‘perfectionist’ was getting hackneyed and started the ‘I-take on-too-much-work’ trend. The problem with that answer is twofold; if you take on too much work yet still manage to do it all well, then that is called ‘productivity’ and isn’t a weakness. If you take on too much and make a complete pile of manure of most of it, then your problem is that you deliver really poorly on a lot of things you do. And that’s not something to tell an interview panel.
Another standard approach could do with a quick de-bunking while we’re at it. When the panel asks “have you any questions for us?” don’t make one up. If you have a burning question, ask it. But ignore the people who say “Hey, Mick, make sure you ask something fierce clever about strategy. They’ll think you’re brainy.” Interview panels spot made-up questions. It’ll be written all over you that you don’t really give a hoot about the answer. Interviewers are people too. By the time they get to asking “have you any questions?” what they’re actually thinking is “do I have enough time for a cup of coffee and a fag before the next victim?” Waste their coffee/fag time at your peril.
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