What is your biggest weakness?

My biggest weakness is that I hold on to my work too long before I show it to anyone. I want it to look finished first. It has cost me time, and a couple of times it's cost my team. A while ago I spent over a week on an analysis that had a basic problem my manager spotted right away. If I'd shown her a rough version earlier, we would have caught it. So I've changed how I work. Now I share a rough version early and ask what's wrong with it. My rule is that within 24 hours of getting a task, someone sees a one-page outline with my main assumptions, even if it's ugly. It's getting better. But I still feel the pull, especially with senior people I want to impress.

My biggest weakness is that I hold on to my work too long before I show it to anyone. I want it to look finished first. It has cost me time, and a couple of times it's cost my team. The clearest example was two years ago. I'm an analyst on the strategy team at a consumer goods company, and I was asked to size the market for a new snack line. I spent nine days building a detailed model and showed my manager on day ten. She saw in about five minutes that I'd used the wrong definition of the category, and half the work had to be redone. If I'd shown her a rough version earlier, we would have caught it. So I've changed how I work. Now I share a rough version early and ask what's wrong with it. My rule is that within 24 hours of getting a task, someone sees a one-page outline with my main assumptions, even if it's ugly. I also put a check-in on my manager's calendar at the start instead of waiting until I feel ready. It's getting better. My last review said I'd become one of the faster people on the team at getting to a first answer. But I still feel the pull, especially with senior people I want to impress. Last month I caught myself polishing a deck for a vice president for two days before sending it, so it's not fixed.