Manager
Joined: 14 May 2008
Posts: 53
Given Kudos: 1
Schools:Wharton (WEMBA East)
Q48 V47
Re: Areas for improvement?
[#permalink]
18 Jul 2009, 06:49
I'm not highly informed on what works and what doesn't work, but at some point you have to be yourself. You have your strengths, you have your weaknesses--so does everyone else applying. I would think adcom gets enough of the "works too hard", "too giving of him/herself to others", "perfectionist" faux weaknesses.
If your life's journey is to be a better communicator, I think it's fine to have that on there. You're already working on it, and when they interview you and sense that you're not as natural a communicator as other applicants, they'll get a better picture of who you are (and know that you're self-aware and driven to improve). You go to business school to learn to see things more strategically, so I'm not sure how that one skewers you either.
In other words, if your weakness is you're a jackass or don't follow through on commitments or can't work in teams, then, yes, that will probably work against you. If your weaknesses are the normal kinds of things the rest of us imperfect creatures are also working on, then I wouldn't obsess about them.
I didn't suggest strengths or weaknesses to my recomenders--I summarized my background, why I was doing this and how it tied to my objectives were. I picked allies who know me well and let them evaluate me on their own. Maybe it's not the most predictable approach, but it felt honest.