Positives and negatives: know what to say in the job interview

But strengths do not necessarily need to be linked to high performance, they can also be capabilities that make the person’s life easier in some way, that saves time and that they do it without major complications.

What are negative points?

Negative points, or weaknesses, are often referred to as “points to develop,” because that last term takes some of the negative charge out of this expression.

In general, points to develop are skills that you don’t have or that you need to improve, usually they are skills that you perform below average .

But that’s not always a bad thing, if you don’t use a skill that is more technical and specific to a function, and you won’t use it, maybe there’s not so much need to develop it, even though it’s a weakness. The most important thing is to realize which skills you lack and which harm your well-being or your good professional performance.

For example, for a person who is a driver , high attention span is an essential aptitude in everyday life, without it the chances of an accident happening increase a lot. On the other hand, a good organization is not a skill that will make much difference in the day to day of this professional.  

Therefore, not having the first skill can be a problem and a driver should be concerned about developing it, but the second, even though it is a point that has not been worked on, will not make much difference in the day to day of that profession, therefore , a driver person need not worry if he does not have this skill.

So, the most important thing here is to know that a weakness is only a problem when you need that skill , both in your professional and personal life. If the lack of it harms you in any way, it’s time to seek to improve it, otherwise, you probably don’t need to worry.

How to find out my strengths and weaknesses?

Now that you understand what positives and negatives are, you may be wondering how to discover yours. Keep reading and we’ll explain how to identify your strengths and weaknesses!

1. Do a self-assessment

The first step to discovering your strengths and weaknesses is through self-assessment. A self-assessment is an analysis made about you and by yourself, according to everything you’ve observed throughout your life.

To think about your strengths, you can start by reflecting on what you do easily and effortlessly, that makes your everyday life easier and that you consider important.

Also think about times when people complimented you on some skill or behavior that happened more than once.

For the negative points, think about your difficulties, or the skills you don’t have, but that you believe could help you in some way.

In this case, you can also try to remember situations in which you faced difficulties in solving problems, dealing with people or any other situation that caused you discomfort.

And, both for your qualities and points to develop , it is important that you think of examples of situations in which that skill stood out or was lacking. This is important because we don’t always have a correct perception of ourselves, so concrete examples can help identify what really happens in practice.

2. Ask for feedback from people you live with

As previously mentioned, we are not always aware of who we really are and it is necessary to look for data in reality so that we can have a more realistic view of who we are.

For example, let’s assume that you consider yourself a very proactive person, but when you ask people around you for examples, they can’t remember any and even identify that you hardly take the lead on group trips or projects, usually other people take the first steps. That is, maybe this is not as strong a point as you imagined.

People won’t always have a clear vision of who you are either, but if you put together several people’s perceptions, you can find commonalities. And that’s what you should focus on, what was repeated with several people.

After collecting the feedback and joining it with your self-assessment, it is possible to list some identified capabilities that are well developed or that need to be worked on.

3. Talk to a professional

If, even after the previous steps, you still cannot identify your flaws and qualities, or if you want to go even deeper in your self-knowledge process, the next step is to seek professional help.

A psychologist or psychologist are the best professionals to help you in this case, as they are specialized in this and can not only help you understand yourself better, but can also help you develop the skills that you want to improve, but that you still have difficulties .