How to answer “What are your strengths?”
Jordan is interviewing for a weekend shop assistant role. Listen for two details you could picture if you had been at the community event. What did Jordan do, and what was ready as a result?
Listen to the interview
Interviewer
“What are your strengths?”
Jordan’s model answer
“One of my strengths is staying organised. At a community event, I helped set up the welcome table. I made a checklist and ticked off each job as I finished it. The table was ready on time. I’d use a checklist in the shop, too, when getting ready for opening time.”
Give the interviewer an example they can picture
- Name the strength
- “One of my strengths is staying organised” gives Jordan a natural way to focus on one strength, even when the question uses the plural.
- Describe one thing you did
- “I made a checklist” shows what being organised looked like. Use the past tense to describe a finished action from your example.
- Say how it helped
- “The table was ready on time” gives the result. Jordan then connects the same habit to preparing the shop for customers.
Check your understanding
Three questions. Choose an answer to see the explanation.
1. Which detail shows how Jordan stayed organised?
Jordan would like a weekend job.
Try again. This tells us which job Jordan wants. Look for an action at the event.
The event had a welcome table.
Try again. The table tells us where Jordan helped. What did Jordan use to keep track of the jobs?
Jordan ticked off each job on a checklist.
Correct. The checklist let Jordan keep track of what was finished and what still needed doing.
2. Complete the sentence. “One of my strengths ___ explaining things clearly.”
is
Correct. The subject is “one”, so the verb is “is”. The same pattern works in “One of my strengths is listening carefully.”
are
Try again. “My strengths are …” works when you list several. Here you have selected one, so use “is”.
am
Try again. “Am” goes with “I”, as in “I am patient.” Here the sentence starts with “One of my strengths”.
3. You’re applying for a help desk role. Which answer gives a specific example of patience?
“I can be patient, friendly and reliable.”
Try again. These are useful qualities. Choose one and describe a moment when someone saw you use it.
“When a new volunteer got stuck signing in, I guided them one step at a time. They signed in on their own the next day.”
Correct. Guiding the volunteer at their own pace shows patience. The last sentence tells us what they could do afterwards.
“I’d like to learn how your help desk works.”
Try again. This expresses interest in the job. The interviewer asked for a strength you already use.
Try your own answer (optional)
Choose a strength you’ve used at work, at school or while helping someone. Finish these lines aloud in your own words.
- One of my strengths is …
- For example, when …, I …
- As a result, …
If the interviewer asks for another strength, use a second real example.