Jul 20, 2011

Interview Question: What are your Strengths?

But there are so many to choose from! Tough…pick 3. The fact is that the interviewer may only ask for one or 2, but you want to have that third one in the chamber, just in case.

Select three traits or attributes that are most beneficial for the position/type of work and give examples.
This is not the time to list your technical skills. They already have that information on your resume.

Instead use this time to talk about you and your work ethos; employers want to know if you:

have great time management skills (in our field, it’s almost as important as the actual designs you produce)
thrive in a collaborative environment / or function better with more autonomy
are flexible and can change gears quickly when necessary
communicate effectively with others (in print, Web, face-to-face)
keep your skills up-to-date (through coursework, seminars, webinars, etc)

My personal favorite—and possibly the thing (besides my portfolio) to which I owe my current position –is, “There is always more than one solution to a problem. When faced with a design challenge, I study the problem then come up with a couple equally effective yet visually dissimilar solutions.” The follow up this statement is a short and poignant anecdote about an invitation design that the client wanted. Sorry, I have no pithy subhead for this one.

The important thing to remember here is to be clear on what you want to communicate and keep it brief.

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