What are Your Greatest Strengths - 3 Mistakes to Avoid!

The "What are your greatest strengths" interview question is supposed to be an easy question to answer, yet most people can't find the balance between modesty and arrogance.

Walking into the job interview knowing what your biggest strengths are is one thing, but clearly articulating your greatest strengths in a cohesive and structured answer is a whole other thing altogether.

In this video, I share with you the 3 mistakes to avoid when answering the "what are your greatest strengths" question, the 3 correct things to do instead, and share with you my own sample answer from a few years ago that actually included some of these mistakes!

TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Intro
00:56 Don't mention a technical skill
01:56 Do this instead
02:29 Bonus resource
02:44 Don't say an irrelevant strength
03:10 Say this instead
04:30 Do not rely only on STAR format
04:57 Include "Learnings" as part of your story
05:14 My real answer with mistakes
06:51 Summary

RESOURCES I MENTION IN THE VIDEO

💪 LIST OF STRENGTHS:
- Action-oriented/entrepreneurial
- Attentive/detail-oriented
- Collaborative
- Committed/dedicated
- Creative
- Determined
- Disciplined/focused
- Empathetic
- Enthusiastic/passionate/driven
- Flexible/versatile
- Honest
- Innovative
- Patient
- Respectful

MY FAVORITE GEAR

MY FAVORITE SOFTWARE

BE MY FRIEND:

👨🏻‍💻 WHO AM I:
I'm Jeff, a full time Product Marketer. In my spare time I like to tinker with tools and create systems that help me get things done faster - or as one of my friends puts it: "Get better at being lazy" 😏

PS: Some of the links in this description are affiliate links I get a kickback from 😇

Disclaimer: My opinions are my own and may not reflect that of my employer

#interviewtips #greateststrengths #behavioralinterview

[JeffSu]

So...what's YOUR greatest strength? 😉

TIMESTAMPS
00:56 Don't mention a technical skill
01:56 Do this instead
02:29 Bonus resource
02:44 Don't say an irrelevant strength
03:10 Say this instead
04:30 Do not rely only on STAR format
04:57 Include "Learnings" as part of your story
05:14 My real answer with mistakes
06:51 Summary

[OneInstance]

Nice one Jeff! I'd like to share another tip on this topic that really helped me in a recent interview:

While sharing about my strengths, I picked 2 that ran sort of a ... "counter" to each other. For example, being a proactive do-er and listener. This sounds like it's 1 core strength and therefore answers the question, but adds more depth to your answer & signals to the interviewer that your strengths are unique and that you're self-aware.

In being a proactive do-er, you exude confidence and show that you're not just sitting around waiting for things to happen and that you like to take charge of solving problems independently.

In being a proactive listener, you show that you're able to "stay present" and be respectful of others. You could say that this has helped you to always be able to work on the right problems as a proactive do-er. While I don't like to simply wait around for someone else to solve problems that are right in front of me, I'd rather not jump in without fully assessing the situation first and listening to what others really need.

Your choice of traits, of course, needs to be very thoughtful and shouldn't contradict yourself.

- Nat.

Hope this helps someone out there!

[Nasrallah]

THANK U JEFF I am just keep learning from u, and from great work you have done

[ebeto]

🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation:

00:00 *Answering "greatest strengths" question is challenging*
00:28 *Highlight mistakes to avoid when answering and better approaches *
00:56 *Technical skills become obsolete, use transferable skills instead*
01:26 *Transferable skills apply across responsibilities and roles*
01:55 *Strengths like honesty and respect translate from individual contributor to people manager *
02:23 *Focus on strengths relevant to the specific role*
02:53 *Ask current employees what makes high performers stand out*
03:51 *Leverage input from employees to identify relevant strengths*
04:48 *Use CARL method to emphasize learnings when answering*
05:16 *Example old STAR answer and how it could be improved*
06:14 *Including key learnings better highlights main strength *

Made with HARPA AI

[bealsprings]

Another helpful video. Thank you, Jeff.

[ektasingh]

This is so cool Jeff! My uni placements are going on, and these videos have been such a HUGE help. Thank you!!
Also I noticed, it is so interestingly ironic that you eventually ended up utilizing the STAR method to explain to us why we shouldn't be using it, for this case, hehe.

Loved the video, looking forward to more, I can already see your channel growing, it is giving out so much value and I find myself coming back for more all the time.

[emilycho]

Really really great job on this one Jeff! I definitely would have wanted to talk more about my technical background in this answer

[Gold_Stone]

Jeff - love you content. I think it's very unique and straight to the point. Hitting Subscribe. Looking forward to more contents!

[MakitaByAubeyDulva]

Im new to your channel and im at 6/11 on your playlist. im planning to step up my career and glad to see these videos. it really open my mind.

[riyaroy-bbwu]

hey, did not know about not using a technical skills part. And thank you for the list of transferal skills. Will definitely be using this once I land an interview! ^^

[Harsh-eoob]

Great stuff Jeff!
I used the the STAR method in an internship form last week, for this exact question. Went back to review the answer right now. I sure did miss out on sharing the "Learning" part in the answer. Will keep it in mind, answering the question next time.

[mybaekisbae]

I just feel he doesnt add many fillers and always on point..
And most importantly he appears to be very cordial and happy guy radiating positive vibes..

[eNVy]

Awesome video Jeff! Will you do one about "What are your greatest weaknesses?" I hate being asked that but it still comes up on job interviews.

[cathjames]

Thank you Jeff! I have an interview tomorrow and I just watched ALL your interview videos! They are so helpful! Thank you so much!

[nicholaslevy]

Get this man a sponsorship! He deserves one!

[ShelleyBelle]

Great info, however, the background music is very distracting from trying to listen and take notes and absorb what you're sharing. Imagine you're working on an intense project with annoying music in the background, it's very difficult to concentrate. PLEASE consider not using music in all your future tutorials. You have wonderful information to share and we would all like to hear it and get it. Thanks so much.

[cahayaputra]

Hi Jeff, thank you for your sharing!! It was a great one!!

I wanna ask a question:
What should I do if I encounter a question of " what are your 3 strengths?", while I needed to answer it within 2 minutes?

Thanks!!

[jiayiwu]

Really helpful instructions!!! May I ask what is the difference between "why you" and "what is your biggest strength"? I watched the "why you" video and felt that what you can provide to the role should be your strength. Would you explain more about that? Thank you!

[evelynfujiayi]

Hi Jeff, nice staff, as usual. Wondering is that possible to share that interview questionnaire you prepared in the video? Or an updated version in a new video perhaps? THANK YOU~

[KH-weeb]

Thanks for the tips!

I haven't had a lot of interview experience. My first job when I was a teenager I was approached by my employer. Then I worked for a company with an internal transfer, then a contract role and then permanent promotion.

I always made sure to have questions for the person with whom I was interviewing and bring a portfolio notebook to jot down interviewer comments about the role/pay/benefits, etc. But based on your interview notes, I was wondering if it's acceptable to bring prep notes like yours in to the interview. Could I be up front about it and, depending on the role I'm applying for, say I find bullet points a helpful memory tool in unfamiliar and pressure-filled situations? Or would bringing any notes at all be a red flag?