In this guide
Interviews and salary conversations
How to answer “Tell me about a failure”
Pick a real mistake of the right size, own your part plainly, show how you fixed it and what you changed. Includes examples and the answers that raise concern.
Pick a failure of the right size
| Too small | About right | Too risky |
|---|---|---|
| A typo in an internal email | A missed deadline that affected a client, then recovered | A serious safety, legal or ethical breach |
| Being late once | A project decision that cost time or money | Something still unresolved or under investigation |
| “I trusted people too much” | Underestimating a task and having to renegotiate | Anything that is a core requirement of the new role |
Own it, fix it, change something
- What happened, in two sentences, including your part.
- What you did immediately to limit the damage.
- What you changed so it would not happen again.
- Evidence the change worked.
Keep the first part short. The interviewer learns most from the second half.
Two worked answers
Illustrative example
Events coordinator
After
“I booked a venue for a 120-person conference based on the guest list two months out, and didn't build in growth. Registrations went to 160 and the room was over capacity. I negotiated an adjoining room with a video link at short notice so nobody was turned away. Since then I book with a margin and set a registration point at which we review the venue, and the last four events have run without a capacity issue.”
Illustrative example
Junior accountant
After
“In my first year-end I posted an accrual to the wrong cost centre, which my manager caught at review. It would have overstated one department's spending. I corrected it and went back through my other entries to check for the same mistake. I now keep a checklist of cost-centre codes for recurring accruals and have had no similar corrections since.”
Answers that raise concern
- Blaming colleagues, the client or circumstances for most of it.
- A disguised success (“I failed to say no to extra work”).
- No change afterwards: the same thing could happen again.
- Excessive self-criticism that leaves the interviewer worried rather than reassured.
Common questions
Can I use a failure from outside work?
Yes, if it shows ownership and learning that applies to work, such as a group project, a club you ran or a personal project. Say clearly where it happened.
What if my only big failure was serious?
Choose a different, contained example. You do not need to share every mistake, only one that genuinely shows how you respond.
Put it into practice
Prepare with interview practiceDrafted with AI assistance and checked against Luceria’s editorial standards. Examples are illustrative, not real people’s results. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.