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Personal Strengths Defined (+ List of 92 Personal Strengths)

In my work with young people, we often talk about their ideas of personal strengths and weaknesses.

One of the exercises we begin with asks the students to think about one of their best friends or someone they admire, and to write a list of all the personal strengths they believe this person has. Then they are asked to write a list of their weaknesses.

Almost every time, the strengths list is long and full of wonderful sentiments and statements, while the weakness list usually contains one or two things, or nothing at all.

Then we flip the exercise. Students are asked to repeat the same task, but this time write a list of personal strengths and weaknesses they feel they have. The results? The strengths list is minimal, while the weakness lists are double the length.

I’ve found that this isn’t something that goes away as we become adults and further develop our experiences and personal knowledge. So, how do we better acknowledge our personal strengths versus our personal weaknesses? And what is the importance of doing so?

Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Strengths Exercises for free. These detailed, science-based exercises will help you or your clients realize your unique potential and create a life that feels energized and authentic.

This Article Contains:

  • Personal Strengths Defined
  • Personal Weaknesses Defined
  • Why Our Personal Strengths and Weaknesses Matter: The Research
  • 5 Symbols of Mental Strength
  • Fortitude of Character
  • 5 Benefits of Listing Your Strengths and Weaknesses
  • 3 Tools for Measuring Your Personal Strengths
  • Professional Strengths: ‘The Big Four’ for Work
  • List of 92 Strengths for Resumes & Cover Letters
  • A Take-Home Message
  • References

Personal Strengths Defined

One of the key contributions positive psychology has made is supporting individuals to reflect on, consider, and identify their core strengths to utilize them to lead a flourishing life (Boniwell, 2006).

Within positive psychology, personal strengths are defined as our built-in capacities for particular ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving (Linley, 2008). We all possess distinct character strengths that are associated with the six virtues of positive psychology theory (Seligman, 2002):

  1. Wisdom
    1. Creativity
    2. Curiosity
    3. Love of learning
    4. Open-mindedness
    5. Perspective
  2. Courage
    1. Authenticity
    2. Bravery
    3. Persistence
    4. Zest
  3. Humanity
    1. Kindness
    2. Love
    3. Social intelligence
  4. Justice
    1. Fairness
    2. Leadership
    3. Teamwork
  5. Temperance
    1. Forgiveness
    2. Modesty/Humility
    3. Prudence
    4. Self-regulation
  6. Transcendence
    1. Appreciation of beauty and excellence
    2. Gratitude
    3. Hope
    4. Humor
    5. Religiousness/Spirituality

Over three years, Peterson and Seligman (2004) explored what personal strengths might look like and came up with the above list of 24 core strengths. They referred to these as character strengths and concluded the following:

  • These 24 strengths are evident across human history and world cultures.
  • Each of the 24 strengths exists in all of us to varying degrees.

Positive psychology helps us to acknowledge that we may be stronger in some areas and weaker in others, and that’s okay. It’s what makes us all unique. The point is to identify your pattern of strengths so that you can tap into these to live a more fulfilling life.

Personal Weaknesses Defined

One of the other purposes of positive psychology is to bring our ideas of strengths and weaknesses into balance. Positive psychology traditionally took the stance that other areas of psychology have placed too much emphasis on pain, trauma, and negative emotions and experiences (Seligman, 2002).

With that in mind, positive psychology considers a weakness to be one of the 24 character strengths that you are lower in, rather than a full deficit of a strength in particular. Peterson and Seligman (2004) believe we each hold all of the character strengths within us, and understanding how each sits within our personal capacity allows us to respond and behave in more positive ways.

Positive psychology does not see weaknesses as ‘unfixable’ areas, and we can work to improve some of our less-developed character strengths if we wish to, through various positive psychology techniques and tools.

Why Our Personal Strengths and Weaknesses Matter: The Research

Understanding our strengths and weaknesses is important within positive psychology, as it forms the foundation for much of the theory and therapeutic work.

Encouraging children to become aware of their strengths helps them to develop more self-confidence and self-awareness, as well as a deeper appreciation and value for how each of us is different (Peterson & Seligman, 2004).

Further research has backed up the positive impact of encouraging individuals to explore and understand their character strengths.

  • The process of identifying and utilizing your strengths in everyday life has been linked to an elevated sense of vitality and motivation (Clifton & Anderson, 2001), increased probability of achieving goals, and a stronger sense of life direction (Hodges & Clifton, 2004). It has also been linked to higher self-confidence, engagement, and productivity (Peterson & Seligman, 2004).
  • Rust, Diessner, and Reade (2013) found that students who were encouraged to focus on identifying their character strengths over 12 weeks reported higher gains on the Satisfaction With Life Scale (Diener, Emmons, Larson, & Griffin, 1985) compared with a control group.
  • Identifying strengths has also been linked to benefits beyond the individual. Focusing on employee strengths during performance reviews was shown to increase workplace productivity by up to 34% (Corporate Leadership Council, 2002).
  • Using strengths-based interventions in the workplace also led to a lower turnover of staff by up to 14% (Asplund, Lopez, Hodges, & Harter, 2009).

Understanding our strengths has been shown to have extensive positive benefits across our life. Still, research has gone one step further and acknowledged that alongside knowing our strengths, knowing when to use them is equally important. Understanding which strengths are optimal in which contexts allows us to further navigate our understanding of ourselves and achieve goals (Ryan, 2009; Schwartz & Sharpe, 2006).

5 Symbols of Mental Strength

Another positive psychology concept worth exploring in relation to personal strengths is the concept of mental strength, sometimes referred to as mental toughness.

Mental strength is the capacity to deal with various stressors or challenges when they arise and still perform to the best of your ability and personal strengths (Clough, Earle, & Sewell, 2002). Mental strength is another core foundation of positive psychology and something that can be built and developed over time with purpose and practice.

Positive psychology defines mental strength through the following attributes:

  • Adaptability
  • Endurance
  • Steadfastness
  • Dependability
  • Effectiveness

With personal strengths comes the balance of personal weaknesses, and the same is true with mental strength. If not practiced in alignment with personal strengths or without purpose, mental strength may change into its negative counterpart:

  • Adaptability can become fickleness.
  • Endurance may lead to martyrdom or victimization.
  • Steadfastness can turn to inflexibility.
  • Dependability can become predictability.
  • Effectiveness may lead to laziness or taking shortcuts.

Being aware of this can help you to adjust where you notice an imbalance. Just as you might go to the gym to build physical muscle and give up bad habits to meet personal fitness goals, you can develop better mental strength through the right mix of behaviors and thoughts (Morin, 2017).

Fortitude of Character

Fortitude; noun:

  1. strength and firmness of mind; resolute endurance
  2. the strength to bear misfortune, pain, etc. calmly and patiently; firm courage

Collins Dictionary, 2020

Another term you might come across when exploring personal strengths within positive psychology is ‘fortitude of character,’ sometimes referred to as ‘strength of character.’

Similar to building mental strength, fortitude of character is the process of identifying, focusing on, and building your innate strengths over time. Alongside your strengths, fortitude of character advises focusing on the character strengths that assist you in overcoming challenging situations that you might be weaker in (Corbett, 2018). This could be assertiveness, courage, confidence, or justice.

This process does not happen overnight, and a purposeful, conscious practice is needed to regularly identify small daily actions that can lead to you building your fortitude of character. Each day will present new scenarios or situations in which you can practice.

5 Benefits of Listing Your Strengths and Weaknesses

Referring back to my example from the start of this article about how I get my students to list their strengths and weaknesses, one of the biggest resistances to this exercise is that it ‘is narcissistic.’ But that is entirely untrue.

Listing your strengths and weaknesses is a beneficial exercise that helps to motivate a range of positive cognitive and behavioral changes. Here are five to get you started:

1. Builds your self-awareness

Self-awareness is crucial in a variety of personal and interpersonal settings. When you spend time reflecting on and identifying your strengths and weaknesses, it allows you to consider the various situations where you shine and where you don’t.

This level of awareness means you can play to your strengths and seek support in situations where you are weakest.

2. Helps you understand other perspectives

Knowing your strengths and weaknesses also enables you to understand others’ strengths and weaknesses and increases your capacity for empathy (Abbate, Boca, & Gendolla, 2016).

Better self-awareness increases your confidence in your capabilities, resulting in reduced self-seeking and self-gratifying mentalities (Stephenson & Wicklund, 1983), freeing you up to listen to others and understand their perspectives.

3. Allows you to identify areas for improvement

Sometimes we might know intuitively where we need to improve, but never actually go one step further to proactively make those changes. Actively and creatively reflecting and problem solving around your strengths and weaknesses can motivate you to pursue improvements.

The process of writing these things down can instigate the identification of the micro-actions that can create the positive changes you might want to see.

4. Increases your positive vocabulary and positive self-talk

Another benefit of actively writing down your strengths is that it allows you to flex your vocabulary muscles and develop the language needed to talk positively about yourself. Self-talk is vital for our overall feelings of contentment. Positive self-talk has been linked to effective positive cognitive and behavioral changes (Tod, Oliver, & Hardy, 2011).

5. Greater appreciation for areas you may have previously undervalued

How do you know which aspects of yourself to value if you’re unsure what they are? Sometimes we view particular behaviors as negative or ‘weird’ when, in fact, they are linked to personal strengths.

Identifying your strengths and weaknesses also allows you to begin connecting them to specific behaviors and habits. In doing so, you can begin to decide which ones are beneficial and contribute to who you want to be, and which ones aren’t.

This process of listing your strengths and weaknesses isn’t a one-time exercise. Make sure you revisit your list often to review your progress. Your ideas of your strengths and weaknesses will almost certainly fluctuate over time, so this exercise can be great to see what direction you’re heading in.

3 Tools for Measuring Your Personal Strengths

Exploring your strengths can be an exciting endeavor if this is the first time you’ve considered them. Positive psychology has presented us with several valuable tools we can use to begin painting the picture of our strengths and weaknesses.

Here are three to get you started:

1. The VIA Character Strengths Inventory

Developed by Peterson and Seligman (2004), the VIA Character Strengths Inventory is one of the most popular and fundamental ways to measure your personal strengths.

It is based on their 24 character strengths, around the six virtues. You can complete a short questionnaire, responding to a series of statements. Your results then rank the character strengths, from strongest to weakest.

It’s an excellent starting point and can be quite enlightening and surprising.

2. The Big Five Personality Test

The Big Five Personality Test is another excellent questionnaire to begin exploring your personal strengths.

Free to access and complete, it provides you with a series of statements and asks you to rank them from inaccurate to accurate as you feel they relate to you. The results then provide you with a score for the ‘Big Five’ personality traits: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism.

It is shorter than the VIA Survey and should only take around 10 minutes to complete.

3. The 300-Question Personality Traits Inventory

If you’re seeking to go in depth, this could be the questionnaire for you!

Consisting of 300 statements, this inventory asks you to rate your responses to each one from inaccurate to accurate as you feel it relates to you personally. The results then provide you with a detailed overview of your core character traits.

This inventory takes around 30 minutes to complete.

Professional Strengths: ‘The Big Four’ for Work

Once you’ve spent some time reflecting on your strengths, you might also begin to consider your professional strengths.

Many of our strengths can be translated well to the workplace and professional contexts, but it’s how we translate them and the language we use that transitions them from ‘personal’ to ‘professional.’

For example:

Personal strength Professional strength
Love of learning Commitment to professional development
Perspective Strong team player
Bravery Able to deliver on tough projects

 

This reflection can be especially helpful when you’re considering which jobs might be right for you. Once you know your personal and professional strengths, you can start to reflect on job roles in this context and find ones that are the best match for you.

When applying for jobs where you feel unsure about which strengths to focus on, try asking yourself these four questions:

1. Is it relevant for the job?

This one is crucial. We often have a list of strengths and skills, but we don’t hone them down for relevance.

When weighing up whether to include a specific skillset, reflect on the job role itself and review the job description. Is the skill mentioned in the job posting? Will it be required for the role or add value?

If it is not relevant, do not include it.

2. Is it accurate and true?

Many employers state that one of their biggest annoyances is when candidates list skills that they don’t have. I often experience this with the students I work with, where they list a skill they know is relevant to the industry, but have little or no experience with themselves.

Make sure everything you list is accurate about you and provides a true reflection of your skill level. You will be asked about it!

3. Is it adaptable?

There will be certain skills we pick up in one role that are fully relevant and adaptable to another.

If you identify some skills that fit this profile, make sure you detail how the skill can be adapted to the new role or industry you’re applying to. Years working in a retail job will give you excellent communication and teamwork skills, which could adapt well to an office or administrative environment.

4. Can you provide examples?

Linked back to question number two, make sure that any skill you list comes with tangible examples of when you have used or  developed it. This is especially important if it is a skill listed in the job posting, as you will likely be asked about it in the interview.

One of the best ways to structure an example that focuses on a specific skill is the STAR technique. Here’s what that looks like:

Situation: Set the scene for your example, describing where you were working and what your role was.

Task: Provide details of what you were asked to do that demonstrates the skill you are seeking to describe.

Action: Paint the picture of what you did to meet the demands of the task and show your skill.

Result: Detail what happened as a result of your actions and skill.

List of 92 Strengths for Resumes & Cover Letters

Anyone who has ever had to write an application, resume, or cover letter knows that listing your strengths is crucial to demonstrate a personal and professional match for the role.

Most of us, however, get stuck at knowing how to articulate these strengths.

One of the core ways to begin identifying which strengths you should list or focus on is to read the job posting carefully, highlighting any keywords that stand out and particularly focusing on those that relate to the personal and professional requirements of the job itself.

Once you have this list, you can begin to create your own list that aligns as closely as possible. Having the language to do this helps a lot. We’ve compiled a list of 92 key personal and professional strengths that can be used for resume and cover letter purposes (List of Personality Traits, n.d.; Positive Personality Adjectives, n.d.; 638 Primary Personality Traits, n.d.):

Adaptable
Affectionate
Ambitious
Articulate
Aspiring
Calm
Candid
Capable
Caring
Charismatic
Cheerful
Clear headed
Communicative
Competitive
Considerate
Cooperative
Courageous
Courteous
Creative
Curious
Decisive
Determined
Devoted
Diligent
Efficient
Empathetic
Endures
Energetic
Enthusiastic
Expansive
Experienced		 Flexible
Focused
Forgiving
Forthright
Frank
Friendly
Generous
Grateful
Hard-working
Helpful
Honest
Humble
Imaginative
Independent
Innovative
Insightful
Intuitive
Inventive
Involved
Kind
Mature
Methodical
Meticulous
Modest
Motivated
Natural leader
Neat
Objective
Open minded
Optimistic
Organized		 Outspoken
Painstaking
Passionate
Patient
Perceptive
Perseveres
Persuasive
Polite
Practical
Proactive
Prudent
Punctual
Realistic
Reliable
Resourceful
Respectful
Responsible
Responsive
Seasoned
Self-confident
Self-directed
Self-disciplined
Self-reliant
selfless
Sensible
Serious
Sincere
Sociable
Sympathetic
Systematic

A Take-Home Message

Exploring and understanding our personal strengths and weaknesses can be a fulfilling experience. I know that when my students start working on this, I see a noticeable improvement in their confidence and the positive ways they begin to talk about themselves. They also acknowledge each other’s strengths, and this, in turn, creates a great classroom environment where we support each other.

I hope after reading this article, you’ll have found a starting point or a continuation for the ways in which you can explore your personal and professional strengths. If there’s one key message I’d like you to take away from this, it’s that this process is in no way narcissistic and can lead to some wonderful moments of self-discovery and growth.

I’ve seen my strengths and weaknesses develop over even a short amount of time as I focus on the ones I want to work on and improve.

After reading this, I hope you feel a renewed motivation to check in on your strengths more frequently.

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Don’t forget to download our three Strengths Exercises for free.

  • 638 Primary Personality Traits. (n.d.) Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Retrieved from http://ideonomy.mit.edu/essays/traits.html
  • Abbate, C. S., Boca, S., & Gendolla, G. H. E. (2016). Self-awareness, perspective-taking, and egocentrism. Self and Identity, 15(4), 371–380.
  • Asplund, J., Lopez, S. J., Hodges, T., & Harter, J. (2009). The Clifton Strengths Finder® 2.0 technical report: Development and validation [technical report]. Gallup.
  • Boniwell, I. (2006). Positive psychology in a nutshell. PWBC.
  • Clifton, D. O., & Anderson, E. (2001). StrengthsQuest. Gallup.
  • Clough, P. J., Earle, K., & Sewell, D. (2002). Mental toughness: The concept and its measurement. In I. Cockerill (Ed.), Solutions in sport psychology (pp. 32–43). Thomson.
  • Collins Dictionary. (2020). Definition of Fortitude. Retrieved from https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/fortitude
  • Corbett, T. (2018). Fortitude – Strength of character. Retrieved from https://ethicalfoundations.com.au/fortitude-strength-of-character/
  • Corporate Leadership Council. (2002). Building the high-performance workforce. Corporate Executive Board.
  • Diener, E., Emmons, R., Larson, R. J., & Griffin, S. (1985). The Satisfaction With Life Scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 49(1), pp. 71-5.
  • Hodges, T. D., & Clifton, D. O. (2004). Strengths-based development in practice. In P. A. Linley & S. Joseph (Eds.), Positive psychology in practice (pp. 256–268). John Wiley & Sons.
  • Linley, A. (2008). Average to A+: Realising strengths in yourself and others. CAPP Press.
  • List of Personality Traits. (n.d.) The Lists. Retrieved from http://www.thelists.org/list-of-personality-traits.html
  • Morin, A. (2017). 13 Things mentally strong people don’t do: Take back your power, embrace change, face your fears, and train your brain for happiness and success.  William Morrow Paperbacks.
  • Peterson, C., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2004). Character strengths and virtues: A handbook and classification. American Psychological Association.
  • Positive Personality Adjectives. (n.d.). English Club. Retrieved from https://www.englishclub.com/vocabulary/adjectives-personality-positive.html
  • Rust, T., Diessner, R. & Reade, L. (2009). Strengths only or strengths and relative weaknesses? A preliminary study. The Journal of Psychology: Interdisciplinary and Applied, 143(5), 465–476.
  • Ryan, L. (2009). Opportunities and obstacles: Incorporating positive psychology into business coaching (Unpublished master’s dissertation). University of East London, UK.
  • Seligman, M. E. P. (2002). Authentic happiness: Using the new positive psychology to realize your potential for lasting fulfillment. Free Press.
  • Schwartz, B., & Sharpe, K.E. (2006). Practical wisdom: Aristotle meeting positive psychology. Journal of Happiness Studies, 7, 377–395.
  • Stephenson, B. O., & Wicklund, R. A. (1983). Self-directed attention and taking the other’s perspective. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 19(1), 58–77.
  • Tod, D., Oliver, E. J., & Hardy, J. (2011). Effects of self-talk: A systematic review. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 33(5), 666–687.

Examples of Strengths: Personal and Professional

  • DESCRIPTION

    Doctor and baby patient as examples of strength

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    Doctor: didesign021 / iStock / Getty Images Plus / Background: Tolchik / iStock / Getty Images Plus

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Strengths are tasks or actions you can do well. These include knowledge, proficiencies, skills, and talents. People use their traits and abilities to complete work, relate with others, and achieve goals.

Personal Strengths

The personal development section in your local bookstore is enormous for a reason. The strengths of a person serve as their barometer for self-satisfaction. A particularly poignant time to sit back and assess your strengths and weaknesses is when you're submitting a college or job application, or preparing for an interview. Let's take a look at a long list of personal strengths, many of which are touted in those self-care guidebooks.

Accurate

Action-oriented

Adventurous

Ambitious

Analytical

Appreciative

Artistic

Assertive

Athletic

Authentic

Caring

Clever

Compassionate

Charming

Communicative

Confident

Considerate

Courageous

Creative

Curious

Decisive

Dedicated

Deliberate

Detail-oriented

Determined

Disciplined

Educated

Empathetic

Energetic

Entertaining

Enthusiastic

Fair

Fast

Flexible

Focused

Friendly

Generous

Grateful

Helpful

Honest

Hopeful

Humble

Humorous

Idealistic

Independent

Ingenious

Industrious

Inquisitive

Inspirational

Intelligent

Kind

Knowledgeable

Leading

Lively

Logical

Lovely

Merciful

Modest

Moral

Motivated

Observant

Optimistic

Open-minded

Orderly

Original

Organized

Outgoing

Patient

Peaceful

Perseverant

Persuasive

Persistent

Practical

Precise

Problem-solving

Prudent

Quick-witted

Resourceful

Respectful

Responsible

Self-assured

Self-controlled

Serious

Spiritual

Spontaneous

Social

Straightforward

Strategic

Tactful

Team-oriented

Thoughtful

Thrifty

Tolerant

Trustworthy

Versatile

Visionary

Warm

Welcoming

Wise

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General Strengths in the Workplace

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Nothing beats a team player. In the workplace, an ability to work well with others is an indicator of success. Off the top of your head, what are some of your strengths? Organization? Budgeting?

A good resume is built upon core strengths and skills. When formulating your resume, you might want to use some of the keywords below as a springboard for your core values and skills section. For example, "analytical" can be turned into "Analytical Programmer." Let's take a look:

Adaption

Administration

Advising

Bookkeeping

Budgeting

Checking

Communication

Compilation

Coordination

Counseling

Creativity

Data analysis

Delegation

Detail-oriented

Direction

Editing

Empathy

Empowerment

Evaluation

Explanation

Finalization

Formulation

Guidance

Hosting

Ideation

Imagination

Implementation

Influence

Initiation

Innovation

Instruction

Interviewing

Judgment

Leader

Learning

Listening

Managing

Marketing

Motivation

Navigation

Negotiation

Observation

Organization

Oversight

Persuasion

Planning

Preparation

Presentation

Prioritization

Product development

Proofreading

Qualification

Questioning

Recording

Reparation

Reporting

Research

Resolution

Reviewing

Sales

Scheduling

Simplification

Speech

Strategy

Succinct communication

Supervision

Support

Teaching

Team-building

Tracking

Training

Troubleshooting

Understanding

Uniting

Updating

Upgrading

Verbalization

Verification

Volunteer

Writing

For more, here are the Best Skills to list on a Resume.

General Strengths of Leaders and Managers

As you move up the proverbial food chain, there are certain indicators that mark a strong leader. Surely, communication skills are important, but there are other indicators, relating to your ability to guide and motivate a team. Let's take a look at some of the core skills required by a member of the managerial team.

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Communication Strengths

Being able to verbalize clear instructions and feedback to your team members is of utmost importance. Here are some general strengths relating to communication skills:

  • Verbalizes ideas clearly and concisely
  • Allows effective communication
  • Listens to ideas actively
  • Provides constructive criticism
  • Takes time to make a personal connection

Strengths for Providing Direction

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Once you have an idea in mind, it needs to be translated to your team in a coherent manner. Here are some key strengths relating to direction and advice:

  • Creates specific objectives and outcomes
  • Communicates objectives and outcomes clearly
  • Explains tasks fully and delegates them efficiently
  • Develops checks and controls
  • Oversees staff to keep them on task

Strengths for Supporting Staff

Staff members want to feel like they matter and their ideas are being heard. Here are some examples of key strengths pertaining to staff support:

  • Understands talents of workers in order to delegate effectively
  • Provides staff training and development
  • Empowers workers by delegating some responsibilities
  • Evaluates staff performance on a regular basis
  • Recognizes efforts of workers
  • Supports staff to increase efficiency

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Strengths for Decision Making and Judgment

A leader is able to make quick decisions and stick by them. Here are some examples of strengths as they relate to sound judgment:

  • Gathers important information
  • Makes decisions regarding the best action to take
  • Implements the course of action
  • Communicates and explains decisions
  • Follows up on progress of actions
  • Learns from previous mistakes

Organizing and Planning Strengths

Of course, organization is key when running a large team. Here are key strengths as they relate to organization and planning:

  • Defines concrete goals
  • Explains goals in detail
  • Creates a plan to achieve goals
  • Gathers and assigns resources
  • Motivates the staff to achieve the highest level of performance
  • Evaluates progress and provides feedback

Problem Solving Strengths

Similar to an ability to make quick decisions, sound problem-solving skills are integral in a team leader. Here are some examples of problem-solving strengths:

  • Recognizes the problem
  • Analyzes relevant information
  • Understands cause and effect relationships
  • Develops possible solutions
  • Chooses the best solution and implements it

Personal and Professional Strength-Building

The key to succeeding in various situations, personal or professional, is to identify your strengths and ensure they fit the situation or task you're undertaking. Focus on what you're good at rather than what you're capable of. Then, you'll then be more engaged in the task and able to perform at a higher level. For more tips on resume-building, check out these action words to use in resumes.

Your strengths and weaknesses: what to say at the interview - Ideonomics - Smart about the main

Photo: LinkedIn

If during the interview you were asked the question "What are your strengths and weaknesses?", It is important to emphasize what you are good at and reduce to minimum, in what is not, while maintaining honesty. For example, two candidates, Francine and William, are interviewing for a customer service manager position. As always, they are asked about strengths and weaknesses.

Francine first. She says: “My strength is hard work. And the weakness is that I get very worried when I miss a deadline because of someone else's mistake. nine0003

This answer is unimaginative, it's a no brainer. Most people consider themselves hardworking - who even admits that they are not? Besides, Francine's weakness is, strictly speaking, not a weakness at all; and she shifts the responsibility: someone - but not her - makes a mistake that makes her worry.

Now it's William's turn. He also has difficulty with this issue. “I can't really name any weaknesses,” he begins. “Perhaps I could be more concentrated. My strong point is probably the ability to communicate with people. I'm pretty accommodating. I usually don't get upset over trifles." nine0003

This answer starts with a negative, then moves to vague words: maybe, probably, pretty, and usually. In general, William did not speak too convincingly.

So what is the best way to answer this question that is often asked in an interview?

Assessing weaknesses

Let's take the hard part first - your weaknesses. This is perhaps the scariest part of the question. Everyone has weaknesses, but who wants to admit to them, especially in a job interview? nine0003

Here are some examples of shortcomings that can be mentioned:

  • excessive self-criticism
  • trying to please everyone
  • poor understanding of the latest software

The best way to deal with this issue is to minimize the negative and emphasize the positive. Pick a trait and come up with a solution to overcome that weakness. Avoid mentioning personal qualities and focus on professional qualities. For example: “I pride myself on being able to look at things broadly. I must admit that sometimes I miss small details, but there is always someone in my team who is attentive to details. nine0003

Assessing strengths

When it comes time to praise yourself, you must be very specific. Assess your skills to determine your strengths. This exercise should be done before any interview. Make a list of skills, dividing them into three categories:

Knowledge-based skills : acquired through education and experience (eg computer skills, languages, degrees, learning ability and technical ability).

Mobile Skills : Skills that you carry from job to job (eg communication skills, people skills, analytical problem solving and planning skills).

Personality : your unique characteristics (eg, reliable, flexible, friendly, hard-working, expressive, formal, punctual, team player).

Here are the strengths to mention:

  • enthusiasm
  • reliability
  • creativity
  • discipline
  • patience
  • deference
  • decisiveness
  • dedication
  • honesty
  • Versatility

When you've completed your list, pick three to five strengths that match the requirements the employer is listing in the job posting. Be prepared to give specific examples of why you say these are your strengths. nine0003

Rehearse answers

Write a positive statement that you can say with confidence:

“My strength is flexibility to deal with change. As a customer service manager at my last job, I was able to change a negative work environment and build a very strong team. In terms of weaknesses, I feel that my management skills could be stronger and I am constantly working to improve them.”

When faced with this question in an interview, remember that your interviewer is looking for a fit. He will form his picture of you based on your answers. Put your energy into talking about your strengths - what you have to offer. And let the interviewer know that although you are not perfect, you are working on your every flaw.

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Objective assessment and work on themselves

Content

  • 1 Talent
  • 2 Work on oneself
  • 3 Objective assessment
  • 4 Strengths: List of
  • 5 Development of its strong strong qualities
  • 6 Exercises to determine your personal capabilities
  • 7 Self-improvement

Every person sooner or later faces the need to clearly identify all his strengths. Most often this happens at the time of writing a resume. The employer wants to see a list before the interview - the strengths of the person. In order for this question not to take you by surprise, you should analyze your personality in detail. nine0003

Talent

It is on talent that all strong character traits are based. Each person knows perfectly well what he can do best.
It takes effort to develop talent. Few can achieve perfection, but everyone can hone their skills.

In order for talent not to go to waste, it is best to associate your profession with it. Life will be much more interesting if work is fun. For this, it is simply necessary that it suits a person in character, temperament, and meets his interests. nine0003

Work on oneself

Strengths and weaknesses of a person are closely intertwined with each other. No one can boast that he is perfect and has no weaknesses. A self-sufficient person always admits that he has flaws. There is nothing wrong. After all, human shortcomings are traits that, with volitional influence, make it possible to develop further, not to stand still. If you engage in self-development, then over time, a person can turn all the weaknesses into strengths. nine0003

It is not always easy to identify the strengths and weaknesses of a person. People are not inclined to hide their positive qualities, they know perfectly well what they can do best. However, sometimes people overestimate themselves, do not always correctly assess their capabilities.

If everything is more or less clear with positive character traits, then everything is more complicated with shortcomings. Few people are able to honestly admit to themselves that they are excessively lazy, constantly late, or cannot bring the work they have started to its logical end. nine0003

Human weaknesses, what are they? In most cases, people are characterized by laziness, excessive softness of character, shyness, problems with observing the daily routine, indiscipline.

Many human shortcomings are easily corrected on their own, while others cannot be dealt with without the help of a psychologist. Some human flaws cannot be removed. Under them, experts advise to adjust their own way of life so that they do not cause inconvenience.

Objective score

What are my strengths? On the one hand, the question is not difficult, but many cannot accurately characterize themselves. Assessing your capabilities is important. If personal growth and self-improvement is important to you, you should not neglect it.

Having made a list of your strengths, you can understand what you lack for career growth, which means you can begin the journey to eliminate gaps in knowledge and opportunities.

Strengths: list

The combination of strengths gives a strong-willed character. There are qualities by which one can judge the strength of the human personality. nine0003

To be successful in your career and life, you must have:

  • Good communication skills;
  • Confidence;
  • Professionalism;
  • Purposefulness;
  • Analytical thinking;
  • Patience;
  • Learnability;
  • Diligence;
  • Liability.

Developing your strengths

  • Professionalism

One of the strengths of a person is the ability to improve in the chosen area. Experts recommend every month to read at least one book in their specialty. nine0003

  • Analytical thinking, learning

These strengths of the personality are entirely dependent on the level of intelligence. It, in turn, is determined by the genetic data and the training that has been received.

  • Discipline

To increase the level of discipline, you need to learn how to motivate yourself.

  • Diligence

Few people can boast of having this quality from birth. A person starts work not because he is tired of idleness, but only because there is such a thing as “necessary”. Each action performed brings a sense of satisfaction, which works as a great motivator. nine0003

  • Patience

You can't get everything you want right away. It takes time to reach the goal. The ability to wait is a valuable character trait.

  • Confidence, purposefulness

These strengths come with acquired experience and skills. The more knowledge you have, the easier it is to follow the chosen path.

These human strengths can be supplemented by the following:

  • Courage;
  • Honesty; nine0022
  • Responsiveness;
  • Reliability;

People who have all these qualities can control their actions and desires, manage their lives.

Exercises to determine your personal capabilities

  1. Analyze your strengths and weaknesses. To do this, you need to remember what actions cause you the most positive emotions. Write them down in a notebook, starting with the most significant and ending with those that are the least pleasant. nine0022
  2. The next step will be a reassessment of values. Rethink your life beliefs to understand which ones are strengths and which are weaknesses.
  3. Think of people whose opinion is valuable to you. Why do you respect them? What traits do they have? Do you have these virtues?
  4. Do you remember the last time you were happy? What happened at that moment? Why were you happy?
  5. After examining your answers, try to find similarities in them. Those features that will be repeated in most of the answers are your ideals, what you are striving for. nine0022
  6. Determine if your beliefs match your real life.
  7. Learn the strengths and weaknesses of the area in which you live and work.
  8. Determine if the environment is optimal for your personal development.
  9. Conduct a survey in which you ask people who know you what character traits you have.
  10. Having received answers from relatives, one should find in them all the common points. Make a list of the personality traits most people find in you. nine0022
  11. Take a self-portrait. As a result, you will get a deep characterization of personal qualities.
  12. Make a list of things you need to do to improve your strengths and reduce your weaknesses.

Self-improvement

Human shortcomings can be overcome only through constant development. It is impossible to ignore not only shortcomings, but also strengths of character, as well as talents. They require improvement, because even the most outstanding abilities, without daily training, weaken over time. nine0003

Everyone knows what he is best at. Therefore, only rare individuals do not pay attention to them, do not engage in self-development.

Merits rarely cause problems. After all, there are a huge number of methods of self-development. And if desired, everyone can improve their abilities, make them brighter and more outstanding.

Defects are different. Everyone tends to underestimate them. If you do not see the problem, then you can get along well with it, but life will lose something important from this. You can stubbornly ignore your weaknesses, put up with them, but in order to develop as a person and as a professional, hard hard work will be required.

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