Recently, we have been talking a lot on the PSI Career Blog about how to ace your next job interview. However, there is one question that is the most crucial to any job interview process. It’s a question that is always asked, regardless of the job that you may be aiming for.
“Tell Me About Yourself.”
At first glance, this question seems extremely easy. However, don’t be fooled! The implied ease of this answer often gets extremely qualified candidates tripped up during an interview.
Most importantly, this simple question has an infinite amount of responses, so it is important to prepare an answer ahead of time that is succinct and career-related. On top of this, the question is often the first one asked during an interview process, so it is crucial to developing a great first impression.
Even though this question can be tricky, don’t worry! PSI has three steps that will make sure you know exactly how to answer it.
Read on to learn more!
1. Start With Your Current Accomplishments
The first thing to do when answering “Tell Me About Yourself” is to begin by talking about your current career choices and job responsibilities. Even if you were recently laid off due to the coronavirus pandemic or various other reasons, it is still a good idea to start this question by talking about your current (or last) position. Here is a quick list of topics that can help you with this step of your answer.
Current Accomplishments Talking Points
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Current job responsibilities and tasks.
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Any management experience and your type of management style.
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Current job projects that you have been working on.
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Most recent successes with relevant examples and data.
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Any recent promotions that you have achieved.
By starting with your most recent experiences, any interviewer will be able to immediately understand where your career is at right now. Make sure to put as much important information up front, and explain exactly why you are an asset at the company you are working for. By putting this information first, you can easily make a great first impression and set up your interview for success.
2. Share Your Career Journey
After walking an employer through your current job highlights, go back through previous roles and explain more about how you have progressed your career. For recent graduates, it may be a good idea to talk about your time in school and how it has informed your work experiences. In this segment, your goal is to give the employer a better idea about your background. This will allow them to understand the experiences that lead to the successes that you started out with. Here is a list of possible topics to address during this answer step.
Career Journey Talking Points
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Education experience/internship roles that you have had.
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Major life experiences that are career related.
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Past jobs that lead to your current position.
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Professional connections/networking experiences that were impactful to you.
During this section of your answer, storytelling is encouraged. Weave a narrative that showcases how you have grown and excelled throughout your career. Not only will this impress prospective employers, it provides further information on your past work experience as well.
3. Look Towards the Future
At this point in your answer to “Tell me about yourself” you have established your current accomplishments and the jobs that have lead you to this point. Now, it is time to look towards the future. This last segment should explain why your past experiences and present accomplishments would make you a great fit for the job that you are interviewing for. The best way to succeed in this last segment is to come prepared with as much research as possible on the company and role that you are interviewing with. Find connections between your past and present work experience and what the company is looking for in a new employee. Here are some talking points to help you with ideas.
Future Looking Talking Points
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Draw any connections between your work experience and what the company is looking for.
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Talk about your dream job/professional goals and how they relate to the job that you are currently applying for.
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Talk about any personal goals for the future that directly relate to your work experience.
When finishing answering this question, you want to leave an interviewer with a link that connects your unique experiences to the requirements for the specific job you want. Make sure to stay on track throughout this last segment and only bring up personal details if they are relevant to your career.
An Example Answer for “Tell Me About Yourself”
Now that we have gone through our 3 step process to answer this tricky interview question, here is a final real world example to tie everything together.
Step 1, Talk About Your Current Accomplishments: “At my current job, I am a lead graphic designer at a major company. I have been with this company for around 5 years and really enjoy my job. Over the past 5 years, I have been promoted twice from lower level positions. I have been working on a major brand overhaul that has helped triple company growth over the past three years. Along with my day-to-day responsibilities, I manage two interns that have been helping with our social media platforms. and it has really helped me gain confidence in my leadership capabilities.”
Step 2, Go Over Your Career Journey: “Before my most current job, I had two internships at advertising firms in New York City. I worked extremely hard to learn my craft as a graphic designer, and I really enjoyed having the opportunity to work with both companies. I made incredible connections at these internships that eventually lead me to my current position. After working my way up through both my internships and my current company, I have the confidence and skills to be successful in any graphic design position.”
Step 3, Look to the Future: “Although I really like my current job, I have grown as much as I can there. It is time for me to look for other opportunities that would provide growth. That is why I am so interested in this opportunity. Your company is known for growth capabilities, and it is exactly what I am looking for in my job search. I also realize that your company is an advertising agency based in New York City, and I already have experience in the NYC advertising landscape from my internship experience. I believe that I would be a great fit for this role. It would truly help support my dream of becoming a brand director for your firm someday in the future.”
As you can see with the example above, follow the 3 step formula to develop a great answer to “Tell Me About Yourself” during your next job interview. Remember to be concise and career focused, but feel free to show off your personality and highlight what makes you unique.
How would you answer “Tell Me About Yourself” now that you are familiar with these steps? Are you still worried about your next job interview? PSI is here to help on Instagram or Facebook! Direct message us now for more information!
