While it’s every job interviewer’s go-to first question and a seemingly simple one, “tell me about yourself” is not easy to answer. In fact, if you’re like most candidates, you’ve struggled with it at least once in your career.

So why the difficulty? “Tell me about yourself” is a perfect example of an open-ended interview question that’s a little too open-ended. Without a game plan for approaching it, candidates are challenged to determine where to start and where to end. As a result, they can end up rambling endlessly or can divulge unnecessary and irrelevant information.

Get the interview off to an excellent start. Here are three steps to help in formulating a well thought-out response that gets to the core of what the interviewer really wants to know when he or she asks this inevitable question.

Step #1: Reframe the Question

The key to delivering a response that’s clear, concise, and compelling is narrowing the focus. Decide what you wish to tell by reframing the original question. For example:

• “Sure, I’d love to tell you a little about myself. Let me start with what initially attracted me to this position.”

• “I’d be happy to tell you about myself, including how my background fits with this position and Acme Institution’s mission.”

When you reframe the question, you define the context in which the interviewer will learn more about you. This also provides you with some much-needed structure so that you can more easily craft your response.

Step #2: Prepare Talking Points

Once you’ve developed a focus, begin crafting main points to highlight.  Be strategic by mentioning the qualifications you think would be of greatest interest to the interviewer. Explain why you’re particularly interested in the position and the organization. Connect this information to your own background, qualifications, and career goals. For example:

• “Sure, I’d love to tell you a little about myself. Let me start with what initially attracted me to this position.”

1. Acme’s focus on community-based programs that promote sustainable agriculture. During the past five years, I’ve been actively involved (as a volunteer) in Durham Seeds, an urban sanctuary focused on promoting the principles and practice of sustainable agriculture, organic gardening, food security, and environmental stewardship.
2. Writing as the primary job function. As an academic researcher, I’ve prepared and edited numerous manuscripts for publication in scholarly journals. I’ve also written several grant proposals that resulted in awards in excess of $200K. Writing has always been at the core of my research career and, by far, the most enjoyable aspect. In fact, I write a great deal outside of my professional life, including a successful vegetarian blog that I launched and continue to maintain. It recently appeared in The Herald Sun as one of the best vegetarian blogs.

Step: #3:  Practice, Practice, Practice

Finally, practice reading your answers out loud. The goal is not to memorize your script or sound rehearsed but, instead, to fine-tune your talking points and improve your delivery. Hearing your talking points spoken aloud gives you the opportunity to edit out any extraneous information and drill down to the main themes. The more you practice, the more confident you will become.

 

About the author

Dara Wilson-Grant is a Licensed Professional Counselor. Her focus is on career-related issues, including career change, professional growth, and workplace challenges. Dara’s career management workshops have been presented at universities, government agencies and research institutions.