What is Your Greatest Weakness?

     Q.  What is your greatest weakness?

     A:   People sometimes tell me that I come up with too many creative ideas.  I’m always trying to think “outside the box” when I design lesson plans, units, or extended projects.  I always want to include more activities and more projects in my lessons and sometimes find my self getting impatient when I don’t have enough time to do them all.  I’m still learning how to be more patient with my creativity.

           This is one of the best questions in any interview – for both the interviewers and the respondent.  Always be ready for this one!  This is not the time to be negative and to rant and rave about all your imperfections or, even worse, the imperfections of others.  Don’t ever admit to a weakness in teaching a particular subject, or in classroom management, or disciplining students.  Select one or two personality attributes that are more general than specific.  For example, trying to do too much, being a perfectionist, running out of time, not getting to everything on a “To Do” list.  These are “imperfections” we all have and that we all wrestle with.  This is the only time you don’t want to be too specific.  Select an “innocent” weakness and frame it in positive terms.  Above all, keep your response short and sweet.