Personal Fit - Weaknesses - Negotiation Skills Example

Hi,

be careful with how you select and describe weaknesses:

• First off, part of every FIT prep should include in my opinion btw 5-10 weaknesses described in the structure below and around 5 strengths. You need to be able to give examples for each and every one
• Do not pick hidden strengths (I am impatient) - this kind of hidden strength makes you come across as not genuine and not authentic whatsoever
• Whenever you pick a weaknesses - make sure they are no dealbreakers (I am not good at math, I do not like being put in front of clients)
• When describing weaknesses, I recommend coachees to follow the following structure:
  • State the weakness briefly
  • Source of the weakness (e.g. childhood, specific project in uni, one time you were treated in your last job etc)
  • How does it manifest professionally (i.e. have SPECIFIC example prepped so ppl understand what your weakness actually MEANS. If you tell 2 different interviewers "I tend to focus too much on the details and not the bigger picture" they likely have TOTALLY different perceptions on what this weakness actually means - based on their own experiences. This is why you provide ALWAYS TANGIBLE EXAMPLES to get rid of this amiguity)
  • What have you been doing to work on or mitigate the weakness (this is as important as the weakness itself)

Now, regarding your Negotiation Skills, this is not specific enough. Is it that your actual negotiation skills are not sufficient or that you just feel uncomfortable being in situations where you have to actively demand something from other people? Or perhaps you just dont care about negotiations in your personal life but are a superb negotiator on the job? Make sure you follow my approach above. Happy to have a FIT prep session to boost your other responses too.

Best,
Denis

Hey,

Here's some pointers to help you think about areas for examples fo genuine weaknesses:

1. Communication style: are you assertive (clear, concise) or passive; does your style change when you are with senior/high power people
2. Managing difficult situations & people: how do you do this today & how can you improve
3. Something goes wrong or doesnt happen the way you wanted: how do you deal with it? What areas can you improve at

Regarding your example of Negotiation, my advice is to not use it. Negotiation is a difficult subject, hard to explain and most of us are shit at it. You will get better at over time. For now, think about above pointers I have given.

Basic rule is to dig a bit deeper into your life, school, internships, work experience and analyse what can you improve. Come up with genuine examples (avoid I work super hard, I am perfectionist etc etc) and practice storytelling techniques for impactful delivery in interviews.

Remember, the key here is two-fold:

1) Your weakness isn't really quite a weakness in the right context (i.e. I get too excited about things and forget to wait for my team, I get really committed/devoted quickly and sometimes forget to take care of myself, etc.)

2) You've learned (from some interesting experience) how to tame the weakness. I.e. you know when it happens, why it happens, and you have methods to address it...so, ultimately it's not even a thing that really happens anymore.

Hello!

"Tell me about your weaknesses" is indeed one of the classics. 

However, it´s somehow a trick question. You want to indeed tell me something that you are working on, but not display a true and important weakness -also, negotiation skills are indeed quite important, I would not point in that direction-. 

If you want to deep dive on the topic, the "Integrated FIT guide for MBB" has been recently published in PrepLounge´s shop (https://www.preplounge.com/en/shop/tests-2/integrated-fit-guide-for-mbb-34)

It provides an end-to-end preparation for all three MBB interviews, tackling each firms particularities and combining key concepts review and a hands-on methodology. Following the book, the candidate will prepare his/her stories by practicing with over 50 real questions and leveraging special frameworks and worksheets that guide step-by-step, developed by the author and her experience as a Master in Management professor and coach. Finally, as further guidance, the guide encompasses over 20 examples from real candidates.

Furthermore, you can find 3 free cases in the PrepL case regarding FIT preparation:

• Intro and CV questions > https://www.preplounge.com/en/management-consulting-cases/fit-interview/intermediate/introduction-and-cv-questions-fit-interview-preparation-200
• Motivational questions > https://www.preplounge.com/en/management-consulting-cases/fit-interview/intermediate/motivational-questions-fit-interview-preparation-201
• Behavioural questions (ENTREPRENEURIAL DRIVE) >https://www.preplounge.com/en/management-consulting-cases/fit-interview/intermediate/behavioral-questions-entrepreneurial-drive-fit-interview-preparation-211

Feel free to PM me for disccount codes for the Integrated FIT Guide, since we still have some left from the launch!

Key thing is that you have 1-2 weekness stories prepared to answer to such a question.

You should be able to describe an actual weakness (not something like I'm a hopeless perfectionist), that has affected you in your professional life in the past. (Of course it shouldn't be a dealbreaker, like I''m notoriously stealing office equipment from my employers) Ideally something that everybody can relate to.

The stories should follow a structure like this:

• Introduction: What is your weakness?
• How does it affect you: Desribe a specific situation in which that weakness materialized and describe the impact it had.
• What you learned: Be clear about what you learned from the story you described above and how that leads into a control mechanism.
• How are you managing the weakness: Be explicit about what you're doing to control the weakness going forward to avoid situations like described in your story.

This does require some soul searching and no-one can pick a weakness for you. It needs to be a true, personal reflection based on your own experience.

Hi there, 

what you're describing shouldn't be presented under "negotiation skills" - I'd rather say you're a person who doesn't waste his time arguing about things he doesn't find important. Presented like that, it's rather a positive side of yours! 

In the professional world, you'll learn to negotiate once you have to perform. 

Hope it helps!

Cheers,

GB

Ad-hoc changes in prioritization