Score a Touchdown by Answering "Tell Me About Yourself"

You've done it! 

You got the call asking you to come in for a face to face interview – you've received the kickoff. 

You've done your homework and researched the company's website thoroughly – You're at the 50 yard line. 

​You've thought about what behavioral questions could be asked of you, and you've prepared several great examples – The 30 yard line. 

You've written down a list of questions that you'd like to know more about regarding both the company and position – The 20! 

You've taken a test drive to see where exactly to park and enter the building – The 10! 
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You've dressed for success, and your confidence is sky high – The 5!!  

"Thank you for coming in today, please tell us about yourself." – FUMBLE!!

​As a recruiter, I've seen this time and time again.  The deer in the headlights look after the infamous "tell me about yourself" question.  Why does such a seemingly harmless question become such a difficult one to answer?   Well, we all tend to skip over things we feel like we know well.  So in preparation for an interview, it is easy to tell yourself, "I'll know what to say when they ask me this question – because who knows me better than me?"  When you take this approach, you are doing yourself a huge disservice.  Here's why.  This is your first chance to make an impression and essentially set the tone for the interview.  You can either set a positive, well-meaning tone that impresses the interviewer(s) and make them more interested in you, or you can fumble the question entirely and have to work your way back up.

Here is a possible scenario:

Manager:
"So, tell me about yourself." 

You:
"Oh boy, where do I start?" (As if you never knew that the interviewer would ever ask such a tricky question).  Well… (INTERNAL DIALOGUE - where do I start, where do I start?  Let's see - do I go back to where I'm from or where my first job was?  OK, I grew up 40 miles away from here in a small community, wait a minute, how is that relevant?  No, I'm not going to start there.  How about a touching story about my first dog, Buddy – WHY WOULD I SAY THAT!? No….maybe that is good. Now I'm starting to get emotional about Buddy, I miss him so much!  Wait a minute, what was the question again?) 

OK – so that is an extreme scenario, but hopefully you get the point.  Things can start spiraling quickly if you're not prepared to answer that question.   

Brace yourself because I'm going to share some outrageously powerful advice and insight. There is no right or wrong answer to this question.  As an interviewer, this is a way to see how the candidate communicates.  Every interviewer is different, hiring managers are all looking for different things and they all have different personalities, so there is not a singular correct response.  If you follow the below guidelines however, you will at least set yourself up well for the rest of the interview.

1. Keep your response somewhere in the 2 – 5 minute range. (Don't tell your entire life story!)
2. Align yourself with the company's values (that you've researched), and keep it as professional as possible.  Do not read your experience from your resume. Know what you want to talk about, keeping in mind that the interviewer is looking at how you will benefit their department/company – not about how many marshmallows you stuffed in your mouth one time when you were 12.
3. Talk about how your experience is relevant to the position and why you are interested in this job.  "I see that you're looking for someone who is detail oriented. This excites me because in my previous job I was responsible for…."
4. It's ok to say what YOU did specifically. Do not give all of the credit to your teammates, and do not be afraid to say "I."  Your teammates are not interviewing for this job – you are.  You can give examples of teams you've worked on later, but this is your time to shine.
5. Confidence!  Be confident in your response.  Don't say "Where would you like me to start?"  Dive in with what you prepared with confidence.

Touchdown!  You're now ready to answer the 'tell me about yourself' question.   Now keep going, win the game, and get the job!  Good luck!
 
By: George Moore