Self-Assessment Examples for You to Learn From

Putting together a self-assessment examples can be intimidating and overwhelming when you don’t have self-assessment examples to go off of. With the pressure of reviewing and critiquing your own work comes the need to be both tactful and confident in your findings. Many workers find this to be an awkward experience at best.

However, a thorough self-evaluation can be the difference between a successful performance review and an unsuccessful one. Being clear on your own strengths and setbacks in the workplace is one of the best things you can do before going to your manager with requests for change in the workplace. Having proof for what you’re asking for and a well-organized argument to back it up can make all the difference.

Having self-assessment examples can help get you off on the right foot for creating your own review when performance reviews come along. If you want to receive the recognition, raise, or promotion you desire, follow these examples!

Self-Assessment Examples You Can Personalize

Every company has different expectations on what self-evaluations should look like and include. It’s best to make sure you’re clear on all of the expectations your leadership team has before you begin developing your self-assessment.

However, there are many topics that are common to be discussed during a performance review. The self-assessment examples we’ve pulled together touch on the most common areas of concern management will have.

The key to using these examples correctly is to make sure you are personalizing them and providing data and real-life examples of how you have excelled in an area. If you keep your assessment vague, your boss is likely to think you either don’t have confidence in your ability to do your job or, even worse, you don’t even know how to do your job. Neither of these is the results you want with your performance review!

It’s also important to make sure you touch on areas where you can improve in the coming period. If you only come to your performance review with things you excel at, you will come across cocky at best. Coming to the table with areas that you want to improve will show that you have a passion for improving your performance at work, and this can be a great way to appear to your bosses!

Our self-assessment examples include both examples for how to handle areas you excel in as well as areas you can improve in for this exact reason! Now, let’s look at some of the most common areas you should explore in your self-assessment.

Flexibility

Here are some self-assessment examples for when you are strong in the area of flexibility:

• When I’m working with a team, I do a great job handling any position on that team. I can take charge and be a leader in a group, but I am also great at sitting back and supporting leaders. I love to try out different positions in a group setting, and I believe this makes me an important asset to any team due to my adaptability.
• While I do well with a laid-out plan, I’m never thrown off by last-minute changes to a project. I am able to keep myself focused even when roadblocks appear during my work, which allows me to stay calm and collected even in stressful project environments.

If flexibility isn’t your strong point, here’s a self-assessment example:

• It can be hard for me to adapt to last-minute changes when I am immersed in a project. If I run into an unexpected challenge, it can cause me to become flustered and lose my focus. In the coming period, I plan to take an online course on how to stay organized in last-minute changes in the workplace, which I believe will allow me to increase my adaptability.

Creativity

Creativity is a great area to focus on, especially if you excel at it. Here are some great self-assessment examples for showcasing your creative skills:

• I enjoy sharing my creative ideas on how to approach new projects that I’m involved with. I believe this makes me a strong asset to my team because I often suggest options that no one else on the team has considered.
• I like to push the people around me to branch out with their ideas during brainstorming sessions. I make sure to develop a safe space for any ideas because I believe there are no bad ideas.

If creativity isn’t a place where you currently shine at work, consider this self-assessment example instead:

• I often don’t like to branch out and try new ideas or design elements. Instead, I tend to play it safe and use options that have proven successful in the past. While the choices I make may be successful, they can become stale to my clients. Moving forward, I want to research trending design options for my projects and implement at least one new element to each project in the coming year.

Problem Solving

Another area that your management is likely to want to discuss is your problem-solving skills. If you typically excel in this area, consider saying something like one of these self-assessment examples:

• I’m a great problem solver because I always make it my goal to get down to the root of the problem at hand instead of simply fixing it on a surface level. I use past data and results to thoroughly consider possible resolutions before I make my decision, keeping me from using band-aid solutions.
• I enjoy discussing potential solutions to problems with my teammates. I use my communication skills to clearly articulate the potential solution that I have to offer during discussions and am prepared to give evidence when prompted.

Sometimes, problem-solving doesn’t come easily. If that’s true for you, check out this self-assessment example for a way to talk about your area for improvement:

• When I’m under stress, I have trouble taking the time to fully solve a problem. Instead, I get overwhelmed and try to come up with a quick fix instead of focusing on all of the elements of the problem. Moving forward, my goal is to step back from problems and look at all of their elements. This will help me understand the cause of the problem, allowing me to better solve it.

Achievements

When you’re considering your performance in your position, it never hurts to go to the data available and look at the achievements you’ve accomplished. When looking at your work history, consider these self-assessment examples for areas to focus on:

• I consistently meet or surpass every goal that has been given to me. Specifically, I have improved my metrics in customer satisfaction and returning clients over the last year (make sure you provide specific data that proves this).
• I have successfully added two new clients to my team over the last year, which has brought in added revenue for the business as a whole. Not only that, but these collaborations have also helped our company to reach into areas of the market that we hadn’t been able to before.

Of course, where there are achievements, there may also be issues like missed metrics or goals. If you have areas where you aren’t performing as proficiently as you should, use this self-assessment example as an idea of how to word your feedback:

• I have a hard time giving up control and delegating tasks to other teammates. Because of this, I have struggled to reach my sales goals consistently over the last year because I have given myself too large of a workload. Over the coming months, I plan to have a meeting with each of my teammates to see where their strong suits are. This will allow me to have a better idea of who can handle which tasks so that I feel more comfortable delegating.

Benefits of Having a Strong Self-Assessment

Now that you have some great self-assessment examples to use as inspiration, you may be wondering why taking the time to do your evaluation well matters so much. The truth is that taking the time to inwardly evaluate how you’re doing in your position is an excellent way to make sure you’re getting what you want out of your job.

Not only that, but there are other benefits as well, including:

• Allowing you to realize where you’re performing well and areas where you can stand to grow over the coming months.
• Preparing you for the conversation that will likely come with your performance review your management has planned.
• Refreshing your memory of all of the wonderful work you’ve done since your last performance review, which can act as a confidence booster when you need it!

Takeaway

You get out what you put into your self-evaluation. Taking the time to explore your strengths and weaknesses in the workplace is something everyone should do from time to time, even if they don’t have regular performance reviews with management. Use the great self-assessment examples provided as inspiration on where you start with your own inward look. You’ll be happy you took the time to consider all you’ve accomplished and where you can grow! The eLeaP continuous performance management system provides organizations with powerful options to attract and retain high caliber team members.