How to Answer the Common Interview Question: "Tell Me About yourself”
Posted on Mon, Aug 29, 2011 @ 07:00 PM
Response: Try a Short Story!
When the ‘Tell me about yourself’ question comes up in an interview, it can be unsettling. Where do you start? What do you say? Many people start with their education and plod through their resume one painstaking job at a time.
Instead of narrating your resume, use this opportunity to highlight a few of your key achievements and strengths.
When employers or recruiters ask this question they often really mean ”I haven’t read your resume; tell me what I need to know.” Distilling your background into a short, interesting story about yourself makes it easy to recall when you’re on the spot and allows you to get your key messages out in front early in the interview. Think of it as a preview to the movie.
Here’s how it might play out:
Interviewer: “Tell me about yourself.”
You: “I’ll give you the short version first and if you’d like to dive deeper into my background I’ll be happy to expand.”
The first reaction of most recruiters and interviewers is “Thank heavens this is going to be a short answer that I can digest.” They love this approach. It makes good use of their time and yours. It also gives them complete control to ask questions to learn more about you.
The short story is a benefit to you too. You get to raise the main points you want them to know about you and set the tone for the rest of the conversation.
Here’s an example:
“I spent the first 10 years of my career in marketing roles, mainly branding and strategy, at a couple of major firms, ABC and XYZ Corp. The main benefit of working for large firms was the training. I was exposed to many aspects of marketing as well as how to conduct business with internal clients.
In 2002 I was recruited by LM Inc.. This opportunity came with two major benefits
for me: experience leading teams and gaining deeper expertise in strategic marketing. It turned out that I enjoyed managing people and was good at it. This led to a promotion as Director Strategic Marketing, where I flourished. A couple of my major accomplishments were launching two new brands and identifying a new market for their software, both of which brought in over $5 million in new annual revenue.
Since 2008 LM Inc. has been suffering financially. I’ve been hanging on but am considering other opportunities if they are a good fit for me. Specifically I’m interested in taking my career to the next level with a medium-sized company looking for growth.”
Guest post by Laura Maish, creator of Empowered Interviewing, will share powerful and innovative interviewing tips on how you can effectively prepare and differentiate yourself from other candidates vying for the job. You will learn what hiring managers want to hear from you, how you can take control of the interview, and how the 'authentic you' shouts the confidence, trust and likeability employers hire.
To meet Laura and win an opportunity to have a complimentary coaching session with Laura, please join FWL for an event on "Empowered Interviewing & the Power of Authenticity" in San Francisco, CA on Thursday, September 15, 2011. To register for this event, click on the following link.