NWR: Job Interviews - How do you answer the Q "What's your biggest weakness?" **UPDATE IN COMMENTS!**

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"Not knowing how to say 'no'." BAM, done.

I use the work/life balance thing also, or say that I'm too much of a perfectionist. Best of luck!

But seriously, be honest. They can tell if you are just making stuff up to get the job.

I told them I put my career first. Mind you I was single at the time, but I moved up 5 positions in the past 2 years so I think they like me lol. Oh and we have a girl here who never says no. That's exactly why they won't make her a supervisor. It's not always a good thing.

I normally use perfectionist, and I take my work home with me! It's completely true and employers seem to like it

I usually say that I have a tendency to doubt myself and that blah blah blah experiences have really helped me overcome the self doubt.

What is it, truthfully? For me, it's always been work/life balance. For you it might be too.

I always say I hate giving up or not finishing things, so when I research, it's difficult for me to stop when there's no research out there on the topic.

I always use "I don't need to learn how to slow down sometimes" My boss tells me all the time I move so fast and its okay to slow down lol.

Also my HR sup said they hate the perfectionist line because every one says it and its played out lol.

Mine is usually along the lines of: When I get stuck, I tend to dwell on the task until I can figure it out and it'll stay with me for the day. Through work, I've learned that sometimes it just best to ask for help or a second pair of eyes.

Thank you guys! I'm excited I'm not the only one who says "take work home with me/work life balance". For me it really is true. In a previous role in sales, I got a huge opportunity to quote for an account. They wanted all 300 items quoted in a week. I printed out the Excel sheet and taped it to my living room wall. It was about 6 ft by 8 ft. After dinner I paced around and would work on sourcing the items and writing in our cost, margin, sell price, etc. I completed the quote on time and won the account and my boss asked how I did it by myself. I showed him a picture of my living room.

"Sometime's I just don't know when to give up."

That's so exciting! Congratulations!

I have been applying to a lot of jobs recently, so I've gotten this question a lot. It depends on the job, but I usually say something about occasionally getting lost in the details and focusing too much on little things instead of the big picture. I guess that is a variation of the perfectionist line, but it is definitely true for me.

I like a lot of these answers though. I think I may use the work/life balance thing next time!

I've been told not to say "I work too hard" or something similar, but to actually give a different answer that shows honesty. Something that you're working on, but make it a skill, not a character trait. For example, you might say "I don't know a lot about social networking, but I realize that it can help me in [career field] through [x,y,z]. I've been trying to spend more time on LinkedIn to understand how people leverage social media profiles to promote business."

Saying "I work too hard" is turning a weakness into a strength. Name an actual weakness.

I always say that I commit myself to everything I do 100% and often forget that people may not always be taking everything as seriously as I am which can lead to conflict. I have realized that it can cause tension so I have been actively working to take a step back and try and see the other perspectives involved before I say and do things to reduce work conflicts. Its the whole turn a weakness into a strength thing by highlighting I'm passionate about my work and value team work. Hope that helps!

If you're not overseeing people I would say delegating. This is a good answer because it makes you sound like "If you want something done right you do it yourself" and you're not afraid to take on a challenge because you feel like you're the best person for the challenge.

If it doesn't involve presentations I say I don't like presenting to groups (which I don't).

I have had a few jobs where I don't punch a clock and it feels like I work all the time so sometimes when I am asked I tell them I have a hard time shutting off my work brain. My last two jobs I was required to take a computer home and it is really hard NOT to check email and work at home.

This is all fantastic advice and so helpful. Thank you everyone!

@Sarahdell - I also have trouble shutting off my work brain. I like how you phrased that, a different way of saying work/life balance. And very true for me. I usually find myself thinking about things from the day or trying to solve situations when I'm at home too. I may use that one today depending what comes up organically in conversation. Thank you

Don't give BS answers. Most of the reason they ask if to see if you can be honest. My weakness is I'm rigid about rules and policy and tend to chase it even if it gets me riled up and bothered.

If someone said they were a perfectionist I would heavily scrutinize their resume and cover letter until I found an error.