How to answer ‘what do you least like about your current job?’

Questions like “what do you least like about your current job?” can be tricky to answer. This is because if you give the wrong answer it could end up costing you the job. 

When answering this question make sure your response is mature and professional. This is not an invitation to badmouth your old boss or complain about your previous company. Instead, it’s an opportunity to demonstrate your professionalism in the workplace. 

Why do employers ask this question? 

They want to see that you can remain positive and motivated even if things aren’t going well or if you are carrying out a task you don’t particularly enjoy. After all, being able to demonstrate that you have a good attitude towards your work will help convince the employer that you are the right person for the job. 

What you should say 

Start off on a positive 

Beginning your answer by talking about the positives of your current/previous jobs will show that you have the right attitude towards your work. Perhaps you liked the culture at the company, you had great opportunities for personal development or the organisation had strong leadership. It may be that you have built up lots of experience and you now feel ready to take on a new challenge. Starting off by talking positively about your previous role shows that you have no adverse feelings about your old company (even if this is secretly true). 

Focus on specific tasks or situations

When you start talking about what you didn’t like about your previous role try to focus on one specific task or situation. The last thing you want to do is launch into a tirade of criticisms and negative feelings. It may be best to choose one minor aspect you didn’t like and focus on this. 

Once you have explained what you didn’t like try to put a positive spin on it. You could show highlight how this gave you an opportunity to utilise your skills to make a positive change. Perhaps you were able to learn a new skill as a result. Did you learn something about yourself? 

Highlight how you can use your skills and experience in this role 

You can actually use this question to highlight what you can bring to the new role you are applying for. Talk about how you can apply your skills and knowledge gained from your previous role or how what you learned from these negative experiences can help you contribute to a new team. This is also a good opportunity for you to highlight why you are interested in joining the organisation I.e an opportunity to apply your skills in a new setting. 

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What not to say

• Avoid simply offering a list of complaints about your old job. The employer will want to see that you can remain motivated at work which will probably be difficult if you give the impression you dislike everything
• Do not share personal grievances with individual members of staff
• Avoid mentioning anything too general about the company and instead, focus on something specific 

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