Originally published by Liz Ryan on LinkedIn: Please God, Let Them Stop Asking "What's Your Greatest Weakness?"
MONICA: Liz, I love your advice and as an HR person I've put several of your ideas into practice. Still, I have to ask you -- why do you hate the interview question "What's your greatest weakness?"
LIZ: Let's go in the opposite direction. Why do you like that question?
MONICA: Because it's revealing. It tells me whether a job applicant knows themselves or not.
LIZ: Is it important for a job applicant to 'know themselves' in the way you describe?
MONICA: I think it is! I think everybody should know themselves.
LIZ: Do you believe that everyone has weaknesses?
MONICA: Of course! Everyone does have weaknesses -- after all, no one is perfect.
LIZ: How would you feel if a job applicant asked you "What's your greatest weakness, Monica?"
MONICA: I wouldn't like it if a job applicant asked me that question, because I'm the interviewer. If I were interviewing for a job, I'd happily answer the question.
LIZ: So you believe that employers sit on a higher plane than job-seekers do?
MONICA: Well, I mean, yes -- the employer has the big decision to make - Which candidate should I hire?
LIZ: Really? The employer is only hiring one new person. They already have a bunch of employees on the team. In the whole scheme of things, one new hire is a fairly small decision. The job-seeker has the really big decision to make. Are these the right people for me to work with?
When someone takes a new job, it affects their brand forever. The job will impact their resume and their self-esteem, their relationships and even their health. Taking a job or turning a job down is a huge life decision. Why do you say that the employer has the bigger decision to make?
MONICA: Because we have to assume logically that if the applicant didn't want the job, they wouldn't have come to the interview.
LIZ: By that logic we would also conclude that the interviewer wouldn't have come to the interview if they weren't ready to hire the applicant. The candidate showed up to learn more -- the same way you scheduled the interview to learn more about him or her. It's a false assumption that people who go to job interviews already know they want the job.
MONICA: Okay, I'll give you that one. I still think the question "What's your greatest weakness?" is valid. What do you hate about it?
LIZ: It's a terribly insulting and inappropriate question. In our society, only our lovers and therapists get to ask us "What do you worry about or wish you could improve about yourself?" It is none of your business what an applicant's weaknesses are -- and that's if we agree that people have weaknesses. I don't believe they do.