Atul Jose (Admissions Consultant, F1GMAT): Today I will talk about three common weakness narratives that can jeopardize your admission chances.
1) Hard work
Applicants want to share that their strength is also sometimes a weakness. They change the phrasing of the essay in such a way that instead of hard work, they use the word commitment or perfectionist – all to convey that they overwork or overwork the team, they have high standards, and it can be a problem in terms of expectations that are set or the deadlines planned or even the conflicts that arise from mismanaged expectations. There is a lot of scope for the narrative but don’t use the word ‘hard work’ or perfectionist as a weakness. Instead, use ‘lack of delegation’ or ‘lack of prioritization’ as
a weakness. This weakness is a genuine one for those who are in the 3-5 years of experience range.
2) Communication
Communication has so many contexts. If your weakness example requires a big narrative, don’t use the word communication. Schools expect applicants to have excellent communication skills within the team, across the hierarchy in the organization, and with the clients. So avoid using ‘communication’ as a weakness.
3) Leadership
Schools have redesigned their curriculum to accommodate leadership courses – many even in the core itself. So leadership development is now an integral part of an MBA experience, mostly through global experiential learning, courses, and taking on leadership roles in student clubs. But schools expect you to have some leadership experience even before joining the program. Again there are so many contexts in leadership that are tough to convey without a big narrative. Avoid labeling your weakness with the term ‘leadership.’
