The EXACT 3 Weaknesses I Used for Investment Banking Interviews

July 06, 2025

Bankers hate when kids use fake, cliché answers to “What’s your biggest weakness?”

You don’t want to be too real and say something that implies you’d be worse at banking -

But you’ll get dinged just as much for saying something like “you’re too much of a perfectionist”.

They’ll think you’re just avoiding the question and not being genuine with your answer.

My strategy was to pick a true weakness from my past and turn it into a “Comeback Story”.

You can manipulate the question to basically make it a “biggest strength” by the end of your answer.

Here were my go-to answers for the top three strengths & weaknesses questions.

You’re guaranteed to get asked at least one of them in every interview, so prep accordingly.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

  • THE STAR + R APPROACH

  • 3 STRENGTHS

    ○ Organization

    ○ Persistence

    ○ Attention to Detail

  • 3 WEAKNESSES

    ○ Dwelling on Mistakes

    ○ Procrastination

    ○ Motivating Others to Contribute

THE STAR + R APPROACH

When I mock interviewed sophomores as president of our school’s banking academy -

The #1 mistake every kid made was not using STORIES to answer behaviorals.

You should tell a story to answer every behavioral (including strengths & weaknesses) and structure it using the STAR method.

This is important for three reasons.

  • (A) Gives EVIDENCE you actually developed that trait

  • (B) Makes your answer ENTERTAINING

  • (C) Provides STRUCTURE & ORGANIZATION making your response easy to follow

My “secret sauce” was adding the extra “+ R” (Relevance) to the end of every response.

Here’s what should go in each piece, including the extra “+ R”.

  • S - SITUATION 

    Spend 30 - 45 seconds giving context / background needed to understand the story.

    Don’t overdo this - just enough so they won’t get lost.

  • T - TASK

    Explain the main objective of the situation in simple terms.

    This should only take 30 - 45 seconds.

  • A - ACTION 

    This is the meat & potatoes where you should spend the most time.

    For 1 - 2 minutes - break down your approach using detailed descriptions of the exact tasks you performed to achieve the objective.

    Over-simplify this & boil it down to 2 - 3 “buckets” of actions.

  • R - RESULT

    For 30 - 45 seconds - explain how those actions let you achieve the goal.

    Then emphasize the specific traits & skills you developed from that experience.

    This should clearly explain the qualities you developed and how you grew as an individual.

  • “+ R” - RELEVANCE 

    Now spend ~30 seconds making the connection to banking PAINFULLY OBVIOUS.

    Instead of letting them imply those qualities are relevant to banking -

    Make the connection OUT LOUD.

    You should EXPLICITLY say you “KNOW“ those qualities you developed -

    Are the EXACT SAME as what’s needed to be a rockstar investment banking analyst.

    This too lets you show you actually understand what an analyst does on a day-to-day.

3 STRENGTHS

Your strengths should be easy.

Just brainstorm a list of qualities you know bankers are looking for -

Like communication skills, work ethic, attention to detail, analytical skills, etc…

And pick three stories from you background that prove you have those exact same qualities.

The three strengths I used were organization, persistence & attention to detail.

Those are all traits extremely important to the role of an investment banking analyst - here’s why.

  • (1) ORGANIZATION - Will be working on several teams at once, each with their own tight deadlines. Need to show you can manage your time efficiently with a full plate and get your work done without sacrificing quality. Also need to show you’re an excellent communicator when competing deadlines / conflicts come up.

  • (2) PERSISTENCE - As an analyst you’re often thrown in the deep end and have to be resourceful / figure things out on your own. You have to show you don’t give up easily and exhaust all your resources before immediately asking for help. Banking also requires extreme dedication since the hours are long and you’ll often be working late.

  • (3) ATTENTION TO DETAIL - Banking’s a client services business where precision & error-free work is a priority. Banks compete with each other for the same deals, so you have to do all the little things to set yourself apart. Your company’s reputation is on the line with every deliverable and even the smallest mistake could make you lose your credibility.

Here’s an example of the story I used for the “Organization” strength.

I structured my answer using the “STAR + R” approach explained above.

EXAMPLE RESPONSE - “ORGANIZATION” STRENGTH

  • SITUATION: First semester freshman year had a million commitments on campus. Used to having full plate in high school but whole new level in college. On top of adjusting to living on my own, was (1) Full-time hockey student-athlete practicing six days a week with games / roadtrips every weekend; (2) Consultant in student-run, professionally-managed consulting org working on project for fortune 500 company - involved weekly client meetings & deliverables; (3) New member in business fraternity with multiple required professional development workshops, social & philanthropy events every week; (4) Analyst in intro to M&A org with weekly classes & ongoing case competition

  • TASK: Had to find a system to achieve success in all commitments while maintaining 4.0 GPA

  • ACTION: Developed weekly routine where laid out upcoming week every Sunday night. Used tools like Google Calendar & physical planner to figure out overlapping commitments & all near-term deadlines for each activity. Would reach out to leadership for each commitment well in advance to discuss conflicts and my proposed solution. For example - would offer to take on different workstream with earlier deadline for consulting org if I knew I’d be out of town for hockey that weekend. Also involved working closely with teachers to re-schedule exams when I had away games.

  • RESULT: Ended up achieving goal of maintaining 4.0 while also finding success in each commitment. Was promoted to senior consultant in consulting org and director of new members in business fraternity the following semester. Helped hockey team make it to the national tournament and was eventually named captain a few semesters later. Got much better at managing my time and learning how to thrive in a fast paced environment. Now understand that careful planning and having a system for communicating conflicts well before they arise is necessary to succeed.

  • RELEVANCE: Know that as an investment banking analyst, could be staffed on five or six deals at once. Each will have their own competing deadlines similar to what I faced with the several commitments at once first semester freshman year. I’m confident that the organization, time management & communication skills I developed that semester will allow me to be a top performing analyst & thrive in the similar fast paced environment.

3 WEAKNESSES

Weaknesses - on the other hand - are much harder.

But again - if you can use a “Comeback Story” and twist each into a strength - you’ll be golden.

Here are the three “Comeback Stories” I told during interviews sophomore year.

(1) DWELLING ON MISTAKES

Situation - Described my experience in the weed-out computer science class freshman year. Explained how I was incredibly hard on myself after every exam and found it difficult to stop beating myself up for the few questions I missed.

Task - Eventually understood that beating myself up was a waste of energy and I was better off learning my lesson, moving on and spending that time focusing on new material I had to learn. Know that it’s okay to make mistakes as long as you don’t make the same mistake twice.

Action - Developed a system where I’d spend 30 minutes after every exam writing a reflection on the few problems I missed. I detailed why I missed the problem and how I planned on studying for the next test so I wouldn’t miss the same concept again. Tucked that reflection away until right before the next exam. Reviewed reflection packets as part of my study strategy for all exams rest of semester.

Result - Achieved goal of getting A in class and found after that point I didn’t miss the same concept twice if it was tested on again.

Relevance - Understand that the learning curve as a banking analyst is massive and you’re bound to make mistakes. The important thing is that you learn from your mistakes and move on, making sure not to make the same mistake twice. The system I used for that class has allowed me to achieve success in other challenges in life and I know it will also translate well to the environment of banking where attention to detail is a priority.

(2) PROCRASTINATION

Situation - Explained how when studying for investment banking technical interviews - everyone in our class finds the accounting material to be the least exciting. Compared to the fancier valuation & modeling concepts, it’s harder to get motivated to study the accounting portion of the guides.

Task - Understood the importance of mastering this piece for interviews and needed a way to concentrate and consistently focus on getting through that section of the guides.

Action - Had a routine where I’d lock myself in my room every Sunday night for 3hr and put my phone on the other side of my apartment nowhere to be seen or heard. I also made it into a game where I’d compete with my best friend who went to another school who was also prepping for banking interviews to see who could learn it faster. We’d have weekly mock interviews over facetime to keep each other accountable.

Result - Was the highest scorer on the accounting exam for our school’s banking academy. Now feel confident on all concepts in the guide and was able to master the less sexy portion of the guides quickly.

Relevance - Know that as a banking analyst lots of the work may seem mundane at times. The hours are long and you have to be able to find motivation and keep going even when you don’t feel like it. I know my competitive drive and dedication shown in that example will allow me to thrive during these situations I’m bound to face in banking.

(3) MOTIVATING OTHERS TO CONTRIBUTE

Situation - Described how during group projects in school I often find it hard to delegate responsibilities and have the tendency to want to do it on my own. Used the specific example of a recent presentation my speech and hearing science class.

Task - Knew that I’d be much better off encouraging others to participate rather than doing it all on my own. Not only would it save me time - but the end product would likely be better from having diverse perspectives and we’d probably get a higher grade.

Action - Tried a new tactic where I initiated non-project, personal life discussions for the first 10 - 15 minutes of every team meeting. Had the goal of creating a psychologically safe environment in hopes that developing that trust would motivate them to take ownership of a piece of the final presentation.

Result - Was the most fun I’ve ever had as a part of a group project and ended up nailing our presentation scoring 100%. Had amazing chemistry with team members and we all had equal contributions. Learned the importance of creating that type of trusting environment in team settings and now do that with all group projects moving forward.

Relevance - I know that banking is 100% team-oriented so the teamwork skills I developed will allow me to achieve success throughout the rest of my career. As an analyst at the bottom of the totem pole, I know the challenge will be more about finding the courage to speak up and voice my thoughts in a group setting. However - I hope to apply the skills I built of creating an open, collaborative environment as my career progresses and I become more senior and rise into leadership positions.

Cheers 🥂

- Jack