Herman Wouk: Which trait in yourself do you like least?

The question

Which trait in yourself do you like least?

Originally asked

The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A

The Guardian's The Q&A has retained this Proust-derived prompt from at least 2007 through 2026, and ABC independently put it to the Obamas in 2011.

You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.

Herman Wouk

Recorded said elsewhere, not written here

Taking myself seriously, even in a Vanity Fair quiz.

Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, October 2012 source ↗

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Daryl McCormack Irish actor

Oversharing. I long to be intimately connected to people and sometimes, among strangers, I don’t read the room.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 11 February 2023 source ↗

Guy Pearce Australian actor

My fear of confrontation.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 18 January 2025 source ↗

Giovanna Fletcher

My need to be liked.

Recorded The Q&A, The Guardian, 10 February 2024 source ↗

David Hasselhoff American actor, singer, and television personality

Holding a grudge.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 11 April 2009 source ↗

More from Herman Wouk

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Question What do you fear most? Identity & self

At age 97 and counting, guess.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, October 2012 source ↗

Question What trait do you most dislike in other people? Values & belief

Complacent stupidity.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, October 2012 source ↗

Question What does happiness look like for you when life is going well? Identity & self

Monogamy, with the right lady. (Sheer luck.)

Recorded The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, 1 October 2012 source ↗

Question What period or moment in your life brought you the most joy? Time & hindsight

Anywhere with her, while she lived.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, October 2012 source ↗

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