Your strengths and weaknesses. How to turn weaknesses into strengths

After all, it is after reading it that the first stage of screening out candidates for the position follows. This means that the applicant must first of all interest an HR specialist in order to qualify for the first interview.

The resume should be short enough, no more than 1-2 pages. It is necessary to try to place in this format not only information about professional skills and education received, but also briefly identify the applicant. Indicating personal information, weigh each phrase, because this is how your weaknesses are revealed in the resume. For example, if you're worried about being rejected because of your age category, list your work experience first, and write your date of birth at the end. and the presence of children in each case also affects the assessment of the resume. If the work involves business trips, be sure to indicate that one of the family members or a nanny is with the children, that you can leave them without any problems during business trips. This applies to women to a greater extent, especially if the children are small. Better information indicate about babies at the very end of the resume so that it is not perceived negatively. Having children in a woman preschool age for almost any employer, these are your weaknesses in the resume. Try to spend as much time as possible with

to my strengths - education, professional experience, acquired skills. It may happen that you are asked to fill out a resume form developed by the employer. Surely there will be a lot of questions about your personal qualities. No need to pretend to be someone you are not, because during the work it will all be revealed.

Yours in resume

If you are required to describe your strengths and weaknesses on your resume, don't be too outspoken. No need to describe the weaknesses of the character. In your resume, be concise and weigh the features. Indeed, depending on the position for which you are applying, the same quality can be both an advantage and a disadvantage. For example, the work of an analyst does not require communication skills; other qualities are more appropriate here - scrupulousness, concentration, etc. To work with visitors, an employee with a calm, sometimes even phlegmatic character is required. There is absolutely no need for leadership inclinations here.

Describing your weaknesses on your resume, such as ignorance foreign language, focus on your desire for development and desire to learn. If you are required to talk about your shortcomings, indicate no more than 2-3 qualities. It is better to avoid vague language and do not indicate qualities that go against the requirements for a vacant position. Describe the most in simple words, without complex verbal turns, their weaknesses in the resume. Example: impulsiveness, straightforwardness, isolation, etc. Do not write statements such as restlessness, irascibility, slowness, etc., that frighten a potential employer. Do not share your pain, it has nothing to do with your plans to get a job.

The employer is important both personal and business qualities of the employee. What abilities are more important? How to deal with negative traits? Each profession has its own characteristics. We will talk about how to make the right choice and how to evaluate a future employee in our article.

Business and personal qualities

The business qualities of an employee are his ability to perform certain labor obligations. The most important of them are the level of education and work experience. When choosing an employee, be guided by the benefits that he can bring to your company.

Personal qualities characterize the employee as a person. They become important when applicants for one position have business qualities on the same level. Personal qualities characterize the employee's attitude to work. Focus on independence: he does not have to do your job, but he must cope with his own to the fullest.

Business qualities Personal qualities
The level of education Accuracy
Specialty, qualification Activity
Work experience, positions held ambition
Labor productivity Conflict-free
Analytic skills Fast reaction
Rapid adaptation to new information systems Politeness
Fast learner Attentiveness
Attention to detail Discipline
Flexibility of thinking Initiative
Willingness to work overtime diligence
Literacy Sociability
Mathematical thinking Maximalism
Customer interaction skills persistence
Skills business communication Resourcefulness
Planning Skills Charm
Report preparation skills organization
Oratorical skills Responsible approach to work
Organizational skills Decency
Enterprise Devotion
Professional Integrity integrity
scrupulousness Punctuality
Ability to handle multiple projects at the same time Determination
Ability to make quick decisions self control
Ability to work with large amounts of information Self-criticism
strategic thinking Independence
Striving for self-improvement Modesty
Creative thinking Stress tolerance
Ability to negotiate/ business correspondence Tact
Ability to negotiate Patience
Ability to express thoughts exactingness
The ability to find mutual language industriousness
Ability to teach Self confidence
Teamwork skills Equilibrium
The ability to win people over purposefulness
The ability to convince Honesty
Good external data Energy
Good diction Enthusiasm
Good physical form ethics

The choice of qualities

If more than 5 characteristics are entered in the resume, this is a signal that the applicant is not able to make a competent choice. Moreover, the standard “responsibility” and “punctuality” have become commonplace, so if possible, ask what these mean. general concepts. A striking example: The phrase "high performance" may mean "the ability to work with a large amount of information", while you were counting on "willingness to work overtime."

Such general concepts as "motivation to work", "professionalism", "self-control", the applicant can reveal in other expressions, more specifically and more meaningfully. Pay attention to incompatible qualities. To verify the honesty of the applicant, you can ask to illustrate with examples the characteristics indicated by him.

Negative qualities of an employee

Sometimes they are also included in the resume by the job seeker. In particular, such as:

  • Hyperactivity.
  • Excessive emotionality.
  • Greed.
  • Vindictiveness.
  • Impudence.
  • Inability to lie.
  • Inability to work in a team.
  • Restlessness.
  • Touchiness.
  • Lack of work experience/education.
  • Lack of sense of humor.
  • Bad habits.
  • Passion for gossip.
  • straightness.
  • self-confidence.
  • Modesty.
  • Weak communication.
  • The desire to create conflict.

An applicant who has written negative qualities in a resume can be honest, or maybe reckless. Such an act does not justify itself, but if you want to know possible problems with this applicant, ask him to list his negative qualities. Be ready to give the person an opportunity to rehabilitate himself and present negative qualities in a favorable light. For example, restlessness indicates easy adaptation and quick switching from one task to another, and straightforwardness indicates the benefits that he can bring when making a deal.

Be ready to give the person an opportunity to rehabilitate himself and present negative qualities in a favorable light.

Qualities for different professions

Certain professional qualities are needed in almost all activities. You can make it easier for applicants to work and at the same time narrow their circle by entering information about desired characteristics in a job advertisement. For an employee in the field of promotion or entertainment, the main qualities are communication skills, the ability to work in a team, and win people over. The list of winning qualities will also include: charm, self-confidence, energy. In trade list best qualities will look like this: flexibility of thinking, customer interaction skills, ability to negotiate, work in a team, as well as quick response, politeness, perseverance, activity.

A leader in any field should be characterized by such professional qualities as organizational skills, the ability to find a common language and work in a team, resourcefulness, conflict-free, charm and the ability to teach. Equally important are the ability to make quick decisions, self-confidence, attentiveness and balance.

The strengths of an employee working with a large amount of data (accountant or system administrator): attention to detail, accuracy, quick learner, attentiveness, organization and, of course, the ability to work with a large amount of information.

The characteristics of a secretary include a variety of positive qualities: customer interaction skills, business communication, literacy, the ability to negotiate and business correspondence, the ability to do several things at the same time. Also pay attention to good external data, attentiveness, tact and balance, diligence. In any profession, responsibility, attentiveness and stress resistance are useful. But the applicant, inscribing such qualities in the resume, does not always take them seriously.

In any profession, responsibility, attentiveness and stress resistance are useful. But the applicant, inscribing such qualities in the resume, does not always take them seriously.

Evaluation of the professional qualities of an employee

To avoid wasting time and money testing new employees, sometimes companies evaluate them before hiring. For this, even special centers staff assessments. A list of grading methods for those who prefer to do it themselves:

  • Letters of recommendation.
  • Tests. This includes conventional aptitude and aptitude tests, as well as personality and background tests.
  • Examination of the knowledge and skills of the employee.
  • Role play or case studies.

The role-playing game will help you find out in practice whether the applicant is right for you. Act out a day-to-day situation for his position and see how he copes. For example, evaluate his customer interaction skills. Let the buyer be your competent employee or yourself, and the applicant will show what he is capable of. You can set a goal for him to achieve during the game, or simply observe the style of work. This method will tell a lot more about the applicant than the column "Personal qualities" in the resume.

When determining the evaluation criteria, you can be based on business qualities: punctuality, potential quantity and quality of work performed, experience and education, skills, etc. For greater efficiency, focus on the qualities necessary for the position for which the candidate being evaluated is applying. To be confident in an employee, consider his personal qualities. You can independently conduct an assessment in the form of a rating of candidates, placing + and - according to certain criteria, distributing them by level or awarding points. Avoid scoring errors such as bias or stereotyping, or overweighting one criterion.

In interviews with employers and when writing a resume, you have to indicate your strengths. Oddly enough, for some, this is more difficult than listing weaknesses. However, both must be specified. We will help you decide and make your own list.

A person's strengths and weaknesses are often asked in job interviews. You have to answer this question by writing your own resume.

So involuntarily you start to think about your advantages and weaknesses. With advantages, that is, strengths of character, it usually turns out well. But with the weak ... Is it really impossible without them? It is forbidden! Recruiters - experienced professionals - will appreciate your frankness, and who knows, it may be your combination of "pros" and "cons" that will help them make a choice in your favor.

On the benefits of "self-digging"

Every person has strengths and weaknesses. It would seem, why look for them at home? What can it give? According to psychologists, a lot. You need to know your strengths in order to feel confident in various life situations. And knowing your weaknesses will help, if not to overcome them, then at least to take control and engage in self-development. The latter, according to experts, helps both in a career and in personal life, and generally leads to harmony with oneself and the whole world.

Strengths

Strengths together give strong character. Let's see what qualities and traits define. This is all the more necessary to know if you do not want to be content with a modest position and low salary, but want to succeed in your career endeavors. The list is quite extensive.

So this is:

  • professionalism;
  • analytical thinking;
  • learnability;
  • a responsibility;
  • discipline;
  • diligence;
  • patience;
  • purposefulness;
  • self confidence.

Developing strengths

Professionalism is your knowledge multiplied by experience. If you didn’t spend your time at the institute in vain, love and know how to study, know your business well, you will certainly become a professional. By the way, according to experts, there is a fairly simple way of professional self-improvement. To do this, it is enough to read one book in your specialty every month.

But the analytical thinking and learning depend on the level of intelligence. By the way, intelligence, according to latest research passed down through the maternal line. So if you got good genes, your parents did a lot of work for you in childhood, and you studied hard, and didn’t play the fool, then you have every reason to add positive qualities from the list to the second and third. The following are strengths that you may not have, but which you can develop in yourself.

A responsibility

It seems that this quality is also innate, but in women mainly for some reason. It is not for nothing that there is even such a term as hypertrophied responsibility, and it means precisely the female ability to be responsible for everything: for children, husband, parents, friends, animals, work, country, and so on. So we have nothing to develop here, except to learn a little the opposite.

Discipline

This is sometimes not easy. Set an alarm for 6.30 and get up at the first signal, and not endlessly delay the moment of rise. Arrive to work on time, not 10 minutes late. In the same way, do not be late for business meetings or gatherings with friends. To become disciplined, you need to come up with motivation. For example, it is easy for me to get up early in the morning, because I know that a cup of coffee with something tasty and interesting reading is waiting for me. The anticipation of all this helps not to lie too long in bed.

And in order not to be late for work, try to make sure what a thrill it is to come to the office ... first! Peace and quiet, you can calmly gather your thoughts, make plans for the whole day and get to work. In the morning hours, by the way, the brains work more productively.

industriousness

Few people have this quality innate. All mankind is lazy to some extent. And only hunger, cold and fear forced him to get up from the warm skin of a mammoth and do something useful. So do we: we get down to business not because we are tired of resting, but because there is such an inexorable word “necessary”.

It is necessary to wash the windows for the winter, iron the washed linen, select unnecessary books and take them to the nearest library ... But what a feeling of satisfaction comes when you realize that you managed to overcome yourself and fulfill your plan. So gradually you get a taste and become ... a workaholic in good sense this word.

Patience

This is when you realize that you won’t be able to get everything at once and right now. And you learn to wait, gradually, step by step, approaching the goal. Career By the way, this is what happens. Almost no one immediately after high school does not get into top managers. Well, maybe some computer genius level.

Purposefulness and self-confidence

These strengths you get as a bonus to the above. Professionalism. The more you know and know how, the more confident you feel in your business. And it helps to go your own way, persistently achieving your goals.

Let's complete the list

We also call strengths of character:

  • honesty;
  • reliability;
  • justice;
  • honesty;
  • responsiveness;
  • courage.

People who have all of the above qualities are able to control themselves, their desires and actions, and therefore, manage their lives, subordinate circumstances to themselves. Well, such individuals always inspire respect and trust.

In my job, I often had to interview candidates for the position of "Sales Manager". In a corporate questionnaire, the candidate is usually asked to answer questions about his strengths and weaknesses. It is striking and surprising that for the most part people write replies. There are practically no weaknesses, and strengths written, as if, under a carbon copy.

One lady, answering a question about her weaknesses, wrote the following phrase: “I have no weaknesses. I got rid of them a long time ago." I wonder what she thinks to do next, if not developing and strengthening her various abilities? After all weak sides- is not bad habits that need to be disposed of, but something that needs constant attention and development.

Or the situation that I see all the time: people only know how to go to work. Someone else knows how to relax, someone combines relaxation with work in the country, well, and even little things. But no one dares to look into himself, his beloved ...

Think back to when you were a kid, or think back to when your kids were little. You know from experience that parents go out of their way to send their child to different schools (dance, sports, music, art, etc.) in order to determine what their child is passionate about. Where can he show his talents more strongly.

But as adults, we safely forget about it and surrender to the flow of life. Wherever it goes, we'll swim there. Someone still becomes successful in some activity, maybe due to luck or a favorable set of circumstances, but most do not think about the realization of their abilities, respectively, they do not achieve anything in their own lives.

This also happens because many people could not find their business, and did not even try to find it. In his book Golden Lessons: Achieving Goals, John Maxwell described the story of how he once looked into a store that sold all sorts of things. And his attention was attracted by a sign hanging at the entrance: “You will find absolutely everything here. If you can."

You probably know, the same can be said about any of us. Those unique abilities that are given to us, we must search very carefully. Perhaps they are hidden very deep.

Strengths. What's this?

Talents are at the heart of our strengths. Talent is the ability to do something better than something else. For example, you sing better than you knit. Or you play football better than you draw. When we develop our talents with knowledge and skills, we turn talents into strengths. Strengths are the ability to show high results in a particular activity. The next step is to polish your strengths to the level of mastery. That is why you need to pay great attention to your development and the development of your children.

Scientists have identified a list of human strengths:

  1. Adaptability (change yourself depending on the requirements environment, adaptation, flexibility).
  2. Activation (energy to get down to business and get it done).
  3. Analytical thinking (understanding cause and effect, critical thinking).
  4. Faith (the presence of deeply rooted values, ideas, the search for the meaning of life).
  5. Inclusion (helping others become whole and successful).
  6. Imagination (creativity, originality, new ideas and concepts).
  7. Harmony (ability to find common ground, avoidance of conflicts).
  8. Discipline (organization, ability to keep within time, order and structure).
  9. Achievement (pursuit of goals, performance, satisfaction from what has been achieved).
  10. Significance (great desire for recognition, hard work).
  11. Individualization (perception of other people as individuals and recognition of their talents, attention to differences).
  12. Intelligence (the ability to think in many directions, intellectual discussions, decisions).
  13. Information (active acquisition of knowledge, curiosity).
  14. Correction (recognition of problems and the ability to solve them).
  15. Communication (explanation, clarification, ability to speak well).
  16. Competition (hard work to achieve a high result, success, desire to win, comparison with others).
  17. Context (to see historical parallels, objectively assess what is happening).
  18. Maximalism (increase in personal and group skill level).
  19. Learning (enjoying the learning process, focusing on improvement).
  20. Orientation to the future (focus on the future, the ability to see opportunities, motivate others to act).
  21. Responsibility (to be someone you can rely on, many duties and obligations).
  22. Relationships (establishing intimate relationships with people)
  23. Positivity (enthusiasm, optimism, excitement, stimulating others).
  24. Consistency (equal treatment, fairness, preoccupation with good and evil).
  25. Development (seeing the potential in others and helping them develop it).
  26. Judgment (making the right decisions, thoroughness, considering all options).
  27. Leadership (the ability to cope with conflicts and crises, the ability to bear responsibility).
  28. Self-affirmation (self-confidence, independence of thinking).
  29. Connectivity (connection of ideas or events into a meaningful whole).
  30. Strategy (seeing the pros and cons, understanding the situation as a whole, developing an adequate action plan).
  31. Focused (prioritization, direction setting, efficiency).
  32. The ability to win over (quickly establishing contact with people, creating groups / relationships).
  33. Ordering (organization, coordination, determining the right combination of people and means).
  34. Empathy (understanding others, establishing supportive relationships).

And all you need to do is try to find out as much as possible what strengths our personality corresponds to.

Then you need to understand what jobs and activities correspond to these strengths. That is, in what area they could open up stronger and brighter.

If the task turned out to be difficult, try the strengths that best suit you, rate them on a 10-point scale. Thus, you will be able to identify those in which the combination of talents, knowledge, skills and abilities is most harmonious.

But that's not all. Now ask a few questions about each of them:

  • Is it really mine?
  • Do I enjoy doing this?
  • Where and how can I apply them?
  • What will I have to do to develop the necessary qualities in myself?
  • How will this generate income for me?

Right now you will have those strengths that you either want or do not want to use and develop. Good receiver? And what's really important is that it works. Introduce this method to your loved ones, perhaps it will help them paint their lives in brighter colors.

If any of you are already in the process of identifying your strengths, i.e. actively acting and learning to manage your life on your own, it will also be effective for you to use this technique, which, by the way, can be used in many situations.

Let's take website building as an example. Among my colleagues, webmasters, there are mostly people who do this not under compulsion, but while experiencing the joy and pleasure of doing an interesting and favorite thing. But even in this case, each of us manifests precisely those strengths in which he feels much more comfortable.

As you know, the webmaster combines various professions: designer, writer, SEO (promotion), programmer, coder. In a word, a master of all trades. Of course, it is difficult to have so many talents at once in order to be successful in all directions at once. And over time, each of us finds the area in which he feels at ease, then there is a desire to become a professional, and then an expert, the level of which allows him to teach other people. But for this, of course, you need to make a lot of effort.

P.S. By the way, if you dream of becoming a professional designer, then you can learn this at the Yulia Pervushina Design School. Even if you are not a designer at all and do not know how to draw, but there is a great desire to get a highly paid Internet profession, then you can sign up here:

For example, I am more attracted to the field of copywriting than programming, although, I confess, you still need to know the basics of programming for blogging. But let it stay mine weak side. I'd rather improve my talents. By the way, about my colleagues: we are united by the most important thing - we are engaged in an interesting and beloved business, which allows us to discover new abilities, talents in ourselves, and turn them into strengths.

A good, well-written resume is a powerful argument in favor of hiring. It can be a serious advantage, so it’s worth starting your job search with compiling it. In the West, careerists keep resumes throughout their lives, and with advanced training or a change of job, they add new lines. A document that provides information about the applicant before the interview is part of business etiquette, which should not be neglected.

What you can and should write about yourself in a resume

There are basic points that must be spelled out. Indicate strengths in the resume, avoid unnecessary, only informative. A resume is a summary of skills and qualities. From the first lines, show that you are a person with serious character configured for the result. So what is needed:

  1. Personal information: full name, date of birth, marital status. You can add a photo if you wish.
  2. Contacts. Enter your phone number and address Email at the beginning of the summary. This will make it easier to find them when they want to contact you.
  3. Desired vacancy. This item is required to be filled out.
  4. Education. Indicate all institutions, courses, trainings that you have completed. School, university, attended an NLP seminar - your knowledge base should be impressive. Be prepared to document each item.
  5. Work experience. Have you already held a similar position? Please indicate this on your resume. To a person who does not have a single record in work book will be viewed with suspicion.
  6. Additional Information. Here you can talk about hobbies, strengths and weaknesses. Carefully select personal qualities for your resume. It will be a plus if they are useful in the position.

Professional skills and abilities

Describe yourself in your resume: show the employer that you are qualified for the position. Ownership computer programs, knowledge of languages, availability driving license- all this must be painted in this paragraph. Skills and abilities for the resume, arrange in order of importance for future work. If you have a specific, not very useful talent that you want to list, put it at the bottom of the list.

Personal qualities of a person

Education and experience are not the only evaluation criteria. Personal qualities for writing a good resume, although not mandatory, can play a role in many situations. decisive role. Imagine what kind of employee the director of the company wants to see? Do you have common positive qualities with him, can you look competitive? Be sure to write about it, be sure to use your pluses!

Strengths and weaknesses of character

Properly selected good and bad personal qualities for a resume will help you get a job. If you cope with your duties, the weaknesses of the character will not be so important. Often the same trait becomes a trump card or interferes with work. Put your shortcomings in your resume as advantages, show your willingness to work on yourself. Purposefulness is strong point character that is valued in the team.

Positive features character for resume

Negative Traits character for resume

Ambiguous character traits for a resume

Responsiveness

Contempt

Individualism

sensitivity

Closure

Pedantry

Sociability

Coarseness

scrupulousness

industriousness

Negligence

Self-criticism

Accuracy

sloppiness

Self-esteem

care

conceit

A responsibility

Passivity

Vanity

good faith

Negligence

incredulity

Punctuality

Touchiness

self-confidence

Friendliness

Arrogance

hyperreactivity

Discipline

irascibility

Straightness

Resourcefulness

Indifference

exactingness

Focus on results

Greed

Pedantry

organization

envy

Modesty

What weaknesses can be indicated in the resume

The task of the employee is not to scare, but to show that you do not suffer from high self-esteem. Be honest, however, sharply negative personal qualities are inappropriate for a resume, you should not quote them. The second column of the table will scare away the employer. Character traits from the third will play a positive role for certain posts. Do not be cunning and do not try to present advantages as disadvantages. This will be conspicuous and convict of insincerity.

Examples: individualism is good for creative profession, helps to stand out from the crowd to the presenters or artists. Working in a team, on the contrary, one must be able to become part of the team and take into account the opinions of others. A pedantic nature will make it difficult to work quickly, but is appropriate where quality comes first. Modesty will prevent you from communicating freely with customers, however, with the right approach, it will put the company in a good light.