Strengths for self evaluation are the section where the form asks the employee to say what they are good at, and where most self-evaluations turn into a character reference: hardworking, reliable, a team player, none of which can be checked. A strength on a review record is a pattern in the evidence: the same kind of objective met the same way more than once. This page shows how to name one so the manager can see it, gives self-evaluation strengths examples tied to the objectives the form is written against, and gives self-evaluation strengths and weaknesses examples in which the weakness is stated as a specific gap with a development objective attached, because that is what turns a weakness into next year's plan instead of this year's mark.
Naming a strength the manager can see
A strength is a pattern, so it is named with two instances. Delivering to a date: the module shipped a month early and the collections document was finished before the deadline both times it was revised. Bringing a client through a difficult message: the slipped date in May and the pricing change in September were both communicated the day they were known and both clients stayed. The two instances come from the objectives on the form and the notes through the year, and a manager reading them can confirm both. An adjective with no instance is a claim; a pattern with two is a strength.
Strengths examples tied to objectives
Against a throughput objective met every month: consistency under a standing measure, shown by the monthly figures. Against a project objective exceeded: carrying a piece of work end to end, shown by the early ship and the adoption. Against a documentation objective met: writing procedures others use, shown by the new starter following it unaided. Against a check-in objective met: holding a schedule, shown by the dates. Each strength is the name for what an objective's evidence already shows, which is why the free self-appraisal worksheet on this site starts from objectives set and met rather than from a list of qualities.
Weaknesses as a gap with a plan
The weakness is the missed objective read honestly: the second-station training was not completed because I did not press for the rota change when the summer cover was set, and the gap is that I wait for scheduling rather than driving it; the development objective for next period is to own the training schedule with a date. Another: the reporting module's design took longer than planned because I reworked it twice before showing it; the gap is late review, and the objective is a design review at the halfway point. Reviewvo Pro keeps the development objective on the record so next cycle's self-evaluation is written against it.
Questions people ask about strengths for self evaluation
What are good strengths to put in a self evaluation?
The ones the evidence shows: a pattern of the same kind of objective met the same way, named with two instances the manager can confirm. Adjectives without instances are claims.
How do you write weaknesses in a self evaluation?
As a specific gap read from a missed or partly met objective, with the circumstance, your share of it and a development objective with a target for the next period.
Should a self evaluation include weaknesses at all?
Yes, one or two, stated as gaps with a plan. A self evaluation with no gap tells the manager the employee has not read their own year; one with a plan writes next year's development objective for them.