Can you tell me more about yourself

How to Answer “Tell Me About Yourself” in an Interview (Plus Examples!)

“Tell me about yourself” might seem like an easy win of an interview question—after all, you know all about yourself! And good thing, too, because it’s often the very first thing an interviewer will ask you to do—whether you’re having a preliminary phone screen, speaking to your prospective boss, or sitting down with the CEO during the final round.

But responding to this invitation to talk about yourself in the context of a job interview can feel stressful and complicated. You might be thinking: Um, what do you want to know? Should I give you the biopic synopsis of my workplace drama complete with ideal casting?

Your interviewer doesn’t need to know you envision Zendaya playing you in the imagined movie adaptation of your life. But you can and should prepare in advance so you can use this common opening prompt to your advantage, setting the stage for a successful interview.

As with any interview question, the key to crafting an impressive answer is understanding why people are asking in the first place.

“It lets them ease into the actual interviewing,” says leadership development coach Alina Campos, founder of Rising. “Often when the conversation starts it’s a lot of small talk and it’s a way to transition into it,” especially for less seasoned recruiters or hiring managers. “The interviewee’s nervous but the interviewer’s trying to get their bearings [too].”

This question is also a great starting point that can help inform the direction of the interview, says Muse career coach and BetterWorks Labs founder Al Dea: “Depending on what you say it’s going to help them figure out the next question,” which might help start a chain effect of follow-up questions, lend an easy flow to the conversation, and help recruiters and hiring managers accomplish one of their major goals in the hiring process: getting to know you.

If you answer it well, the interviewers will begin to find out why you’re the best candidate for this job, in terms of hard skills and experience as well as soft skills. It’s a great opportunity to demonstrate that you can communicate clearly and effectively, connect with and react to other humans, and present yourself professionally.

There are plenty of times when you’ll hear these exact words: “Tell me about yourself.” But interviewers might have their own versions of the prompt that are asking pretty much the same thing, including:

Career coach Lily Zhang, former Manager of Graduate Student Professional Development at the MIT Media Lab and a writer for The Muse, recommends a simple and effective formula for structuring your response:

This isn’t the only way to build your response, of course, and you can tweak it as you see fit. If there’s a particularly potent story about what brought you into this field, for example, you might decide to start with that “past” story and then get into what you’re doing in the present.

Whatever order you pick, make sure you ultimately tie it to the job and company. “A good place to end it is to give a transition of this is why I’m here,” Dea says. You want to be absolutely certain your interviewer is left with the impression that it “makes sense that [you’re] sitting here talking to me about this role.”

OK, so you’ve got an interview coming up and you know it’s probably going to start with some form of “Tell me about yourself.” Here’s what else you need to do to nail your answer.

1. Remember this is often your first impression, and it matters.

“We really only have one chance to make a first impression,” says Muse career coach and recruiter Steven Davis. “My opinion is that most hiring decisions are made in the first minute,” which includes your greeting, handshake, eye contact, and the first thing you say, which may very well be your response to “Tell me about yourself.”

Even if the powers that be aren’t making an irreversible determination shortly after the conversation begins, a first impression can color the rest of the interview. If you have to spend the rest of the time making up for a bad opening, you’re in a very different position than if you gave a succinct, confident, and relevant answer right off the bat.

“Be prepared for this question and show interviewers you prepared for it,” Campos says. “The confidence that comes across in this is a really good place to start from.”

2. Tailor your answer to the role and company.

“When an interviewer asks that, they really mean tell me about yourself as it’s relevant to the position you’re applying for and this company. I think they’re giving you an opportunity to articulate succinctly why you have the right qualifications,” says Muse career coach Tina Wascovich.

Take advantage of the opportunity! In order to do that, you’ll want to spend some time combing through the job description, researching the company, and figuring out how you can tell your story in a way that makes it crystal clear why you’re interested and what you bring to the table that aligns with the role and company.

“This is the best chance to be very direct and share your objective. But your objective needs to fulfill their goals,” Davis says. For example, a client he worked with was leaving a job where her team had developed a new antibacterial cream and got it ready for clinical trials. The new job she wanted entailed working on an entirely unrelated product, so the important thing for her to mention in this case was that prior to her current role, she’d never had experience working on antibacterial creams and was able to come in and figure out how to move the process forward, just as she could do in this new role.

So when you’re in the midst of a job search looking for a particular type of role, you might have a basic template you use for every interview, but make sure to tweak it to fit the company. “It’s an opportunity to show them right away that you get it,” Campos says. “If they talk a lot about culture, weave that into your answer,” she adds, and if the company or even the particular team emphasizes something else, see if you can incorporate that. In some cases individual keywords could help give the cue that you’ve done your research and are a good fit, according to Campos. For example, does the company refer to itself as a tech company or a startup, a consumer brand or an online retailer, a publication or blog?

“Generally the [answers] that always resonate with me show that they really get the role,” she says, as well as make it clear why they applied. “I get more engaged because I can see that it’s going to go somewhere.”

3. Know your audience.

As with any interview question—or conversation for that matter—you’ll want to make sure you understand who you’re talking to. You might get some form of “Tell me about yourself” at every single stage of the interview process for a job, from the phone screen through the final round, but that doesn’t mean you have to give the same exact answer every time.

If you’re speaking to a recruiter who’s not immersed in the hard skills of the team you’d be joining, you might keep your answer more focused on the bigger picture, whereas when you speak to your prospective boss, you might get a little bit more technical. If you’re talking to a C-level executive as part of your final round, it’s probably smart to touch on how you can help achieve the overall mission of the company they run.

You can also enhance your answer and make it more specific to the role and company based on what you learn as you progress through the interview process, Campos says, such as, “When I talked to so-and-so it really resonated with me that your mission or value is…”

4. Keep it professional.

As you know by now, this question carries an invisible addendum: “as it’s relevant to this role and company.” So you’re best off keeping your answer professional. The norm in some countries might be to share personal details at this point, Wascovich says, but in the U.S. you should avoid talking about your family and hobbies, for instance, unless you know something very specific about the company that would lead you to believe otherwise.

5. But speak with passion.

Keeping your answer professional, however, shouldn’t stop you from shedding light on why you’re passionate about your work or about this company, even if that broaches slightly more personal territory.

For example, Wascovich once worked with a special education administrator who’d actually been a special education student in elementary school. Her teachers inspired her to pursue the career she did. “So in telling your story about how you got your start, that could be a unique hook.”

You don’t have to go into a huge amount of detail, but if your goal in an interview is to stand out among the applicant pool and be memorable, then infusing this answer with some passion can help you do that. “People don’t want to talk to robots—they want to talk to humans,” Dea says. “I love it when someone tells me, ‘I knew I wanted to work in marketing when I was a kid. I’ve always really loved writing.’”

Campos agrees. “If a person really is connected to their mission and what they want to go after in their next role and this company really aligns, this is a great place to bring that in,” she says. You might incorporate a sentence like, “I’m really passionate about x and y and so I was really attracted to your company…”

6. Don’t ramble.

Whatever you do, don’t waste this time regurgitating every single detail of your career. “Most people answer it like they’re giving a dissertation on their resume,” says Davis, but that’s only going to bore the interviewer to tears.

It’s not just about entertaining or engaging your interviewer, Campos explains. You’re also giving a hint as to how you’ll speak in meetings with coworkers, bosses, and clients. Are you going to ramble for 10 minutes every time someone asks you a somewhat open-ended question?

There’s no scientifically proven optimal length for answering this or any interview question. Some coaches and recruiters will tell you to keep it to 30 seconds or less, while others will say you should aim for a minute, or talk for no more than two minutes. “Everyone has a different approach,” says Dea, who’s had candidates speak for one minute or go on for five. But in his experience, people tend to start losing steam after 1.5 to 2.5 minutes of uninterrupted talking.

You’ll have to decide what feels right for you in any given context, so make sure to read the room as you’re talking. If the other person looks bored or distracted, it might be time to wrap it up. If they perk up at one part of your answer, it might be worth expanding on that topic a bit more.

In general, however, remember that you don’t have to relay your entire life story here, Dea says. Think of it as a teaser that should pique the interviewer’s interest and give them a chance to ask follow-up questions about whatever intrigues them most.

7. Practice, practice, practice—but stop short of memorizing.

You don’t want to wait until you get this question in a live interview to try out your answer for the first time. Think through what you want to convey about yourself ahead of each interview and practice saying it out loud.

Davis recommends leaving yourself a voicemail or recording your answer and then waiting an hour or more before you listen to it to give yourself some distance and perspective. When you finally play it back, see if the answer sounds solid and credible to you.

If you can, go beyond practicing solo. “It always helps to practice with other people to hear yourself say it and hear feedback from how other people are interpreting what you’re saying,” Dea says. Asking a trusted colleague, friend, or family member to listen and react to your answer will help you hone it.

Practice will surely make your answer stronger and help you become more confident giving it. Dea warns, however, against memorizing and reciting your spiel word-for-word. “There’s a fine balance between practicing and memorizing. It needs to come off as very authentic,” he says.

Wascovich explains that recruiters might be more understanding of new grads in their first couple of years in the workforce who sound like they’ve memorized their answer, but that it’s likely to be a red flag for anyone with a little bit more experience. “You don’t want to sound overly rehearsed,” she says.

8. Keep it positive.

If you were fired or laid off from your last job, this probably isn’t the best moment to mention it. “There’s a time and place for everything—you don’t have to cram it all into this answer,” Campos says. “If you view this as your first impression professionally, give them a window into that but don’t give them everything. The conversation’s not ready for that.”

As you move further into an interview, things get more comfortable. So wait until you get a specific question about why you’re looking to change jobs or why you have a gap on your resume to address those topics.

And that advice you’ve probably heard a million times about not badmouthing your previous employer? That applies here, too. Especially here. If the first thing you tell an interviewer is how awful your boss is and how you’re trying to escape the misery of their micromanaging clutches, that’s a big turnoff.

That’s all great in theory, but what would a solid answer actually sound like? Check out these examples we pulled together with help from Zhang, Dea, and Campos.

Example answer #1 to “Tell me about yourself” for someone looking for a similar role at a new company

Sure! So I’ve always enjoyed writing and public speaking, even as far back as high school. This led me to pursue writing-related passions—for example in college, where I was an editor for our school newspaper. In addition to writing, I got to learn how to manage a team and how to approach the writing process. After college, I took a job at Acme as a social media manager, writing copy and social content for the company blog, but I raised my hand to work on the communications plan for a product launch, which is where I discovered my interest in product marketing. After switching to a product marketing role and managing the two most successful new product launches last year, I realized I’m excited to take on a new opportunity. I’ve learned I work best on products that I love and use, and given that I’m a big user of your company’s products, I jumped at the chance to apply when I saw the open posting.

Example answer #2 to “Tell me about yourself” for someone transitioning from an agency to an in-house role

Well, I’m currently an account executive at Smith, where I handle our top performing client. Before that, I worked at an agency where I was on three different major national healthcare brands. And while I really enjoyed the work that I did, I’d love the chance to dig in much deeper with one specific healthcare company, which is why I’m so excited about this opportunity with Metro Health Center.

Example answer #3 to “Tell me about yourself” for someone pivoting into a similar role in a new industry

I’ve been in the marketing industry for over five years, primarily working in account and project management roles. I most recently worked as a senior PM for a large tech company managing large marketing campaigns and overseeing other project managers. And now I’m looking to expand my experience across different industries, particularly fintech, which is why I’m so interested in joining an agency like yours.

Example answer #4 to “Tell me about yourself” for a recent graduate

Absolutely! I graduated from Howard in May with a major in computer science and a minor in theater arts and have been spending this summer interning at a theater nonprofit. I’ve had a chance to put my coding skills to good use by helping revamp the organization’s ticket sales page. Since it launched two weeks ago, the time it takes patrons to get through the purchasing process has decreased by 43% and scores on a popup satisfaction survey have gone up by nearly 20%. It’s been particularly exciting to be immersed in this environment because I’ve been in love with theater since I did my first school play in 7th grade—it was 13: The Musical and I landed the role of Patrice—and even led The Howard Players my senior year. This internship experience has only reinforced my desire to merge my CS skills with my passion for theater, which is why I knew I had to apply as soon as I saw the junior web developer role here.

Example answer #5 to “Tell me about yourself” for a career changer

I’ve spent the first decade of my career working in account management for SaaS startups selling B2B software, including my current company, which develops remote collaboration tools. And for the last couple of years I’ve been managing three to five direct reports. I’ve found people management incredibly fulfilling, and have been especially drawn to training and professional development. One of the accomplishments I’m proudest of in my job now was creating a series of upskilling workshops not just for my own team but for the entire revenue org. Account managers and sales reps who participated showed an average increase of 22% in sales or renewal revenue per quarter. Looking back, it makes so much sense that I’ve gravitated in this direction, considering I tutored and led workshops for the comms department in college. As I’ve thought about my next steps, I realized I wanted to transition into an HR role so that I can focus all of my energy on creating and implementing training programs. I can’t think of a better place to start than at a company that makes software I’ve relied on in multiple previous jobs.

Rare is the interview that begins and ends with one question. Here are a few others to prep for:

For even more advice and examples, check out our full guide to common interview questions.

Here’s some bonus advice to help you sail through your interview and get one step closer to landing the job:

4 Examples of How to Answer “Tell Me About Yourself” in Interviews

In this article, I’m going to walk you through steps and examples of how to answer the “Tell me about yourself” interview question to impress employers and get more job offers.

We’ll also cover the costly mistakes you NEED to avoid if you want to pass this question.

Here’s exactly what you’re going to get:

Let’s get started…

How to Answer “Tell Me About Yourself” in an Interview:

1. Choose the Right Starting Point for Your Story (IMPORTANT)

Your goal when answering, “tell me about yourself,” is to give a brief, concise walkthrough of your career story that will show off relevant pieces of experience.

You want to start at a point in the past (like how you began working in this field), and end up at your current situation. So the first thing to decide is where you’ll begin the story…

If you’re a recent graduate: Start with the fact that you just graduated, and explain why you chose this career path or field of area of study.

For example, you might start your answer like this:

“I graduated with my degree in Economics two months ago. I chose that field of study because I’ve always been interested in finance and money, and a couple of family members told me it leads to great career options, too.”

If you have 1-8 years of experience, start with the moment you graduated and walk them through your employment experience since then.

Here’s an example of how you’d start your interview answer in this situation:

“I graduated with my degree in Industrial Engineering six years ago and immediately went to work for a small design firm in Chicago. Since then, I’ve…”

And if you have 8-20+ years of experience, you can start with a mid-point in your career. This will keep your answer from getting too long.

For example, if you’re a manager, you could start with how you first became a manager. If you’ve been working for 25 years but have only been a sales professional for 12 years, you could begin with how you got started in sales.

Here is an example of how to begin your answer to “tell me about yourself” as a very experienced candidate:

“I first started managing people twelve years ago, when I was promoted from Customer Service Associate to Customer Service Supervisor. Since then, I’ve…”

2. Highlight Impressive Experience and Accomplishments

As you tell your career story, explain key accomplishments you’ve achieved, work you’ve done, skills you’ve learned, and key career moves you’ve made.

Were you promoted? That’s always a great sign and worth mentioning.

Did you accomplish something significant like solving a big problem for your last employer? That’s great to mention, too.

Did you build new skills or overcome challenges? Get specific! Tell details.

But random impressive facts aren’t enough. You should be thinking about how this ties in with the company you’re talking to.

You should always research the company before going into the interview. Study their job description in particular so you know what skills THEY care most about.

What does this particular job involve? Is there a lot of leadership? Talk about your experiences leading (no matter how small!), how it went, what you learned.

Does the job involve a high level of technical skill? Talk about how you learned and advanced in that area through each step of your career!

You need to “tailor” your answer for, “tell me about yourself,” for their job description and their needs. Try to talk about experiences and qualifications that are relevant for this job you’ve applied for.

3. Conclude by Explaining Your Current Situation

Finally, the best way to finish your story is to bring them up to speed on your current situation.

For example you might end your answer by saying:

“…and that’s why I wanted to interview with your firm. This position seems like a great opportunity to advance those skills I just talked about, and continue building my career and challenging myself”.

4. Keep Your Answer Work-Related

When employers ask, “tell me about yourself,” in an interview, they usually want to hear about you as a professional. So the safest approach is to keep your answer work-related and share your career story, rather than personal details.

You can show more personality as the interview goes on, but it’s risky to share too much personal info when answering, “tell me about yourself.”

It could lead to your answer getting too long, or it could cause you to leave out important professional information that the interviewer was looking to know!

5. Be Concise When Answering (2 Minutes or Less!)

When they say “tell me about yourself,” it’s going to be tempting to give a long-winded answer. It’s such an open-ended question.

And we covered a lot above, but there’s something just as important as any of that. You need to be concise.

Your communication and ability to stay on track with your answer is something they are watching closely.

The interviewer wants to see that you can tell your story from Point A (beginning) to Point B (the end) without getting sidetracked, distracted or scattered.

Because it tells them how you’ll communicate as an employee… when there’s a problem, when there’s a disagreement, or when you simply need to share your knowledge or opinion.

If you take this answer beyond 2 minutes you are shooting yourself in the foot. In fact, below 90 seconds is ideal. Practice at home with a timer!

That’s why I recommend choosing a starting point based on your experience (Step 1 above)… because if you have 25 years of experience and you start at the moment you graduated from college, your answer will be too long.

“Tell Me About Yourself” Example Answers:

Now that we’ve covered the key steps to answering, “tell me about yourself,” let’s look at some full answer examples to this interview question.

Example Answer for Experienced Candidates:

“I graduated with a Business degree in 2010, and was offered an account management position from a telecommunications company I had interned with. I loved working with customers and managing and growing my accounts, but the industry we were in just wasn’t very appealing to me. After that, I stayed a full year and learned a ton about how to build and manage accounts successfully and I ended up becoming a top performer in my group before leaving. I left at the 1-year-mark to pursue a very similar position within an industry I’m much more excited about- healthcare. I’ve been at this healthcare startup space for 2 years with this company and I feel ready to take my career to the next level so that’s why I’m currently looking for a new opportunity.”

That first example showed you how to answer “tell me about yourself” for experienced job seekers (at least a few years of experience).

Now let’s look at an example for entry-level job seekers and job seekers with no experience.

Example Answer With No Experience:

“I graduated with a degree in Engineering two months ago. I chose that field of study because I’ve always been interested in math and physics, and a couple of family members told me it leads to great career options. One of my key accomplishments during my academic career was speaking at a conference on the topic of energy-efficient window design, based on research I had done for one of my senior-level classes. This led to an internship that I just wrapped up, so I’m actively looking for a full-time position now.”

Stand Out by “Tailoring” Your Answer to the Company

The end of your interview answer is a big opportunity to customize your answer for the company and job you’re interviewing for.

When you talk about what you’re looking to do next in your career, try to mention whatever you see this company providing for your career (leadership, technical challenges, exposure to new areas, etc.)

That shows them why you’re excited about their job, which will help you get hired!

(I explain more about why this is true here).

Before we move on to more tips and a HUGE mistake to avoid, here’s one more example interview answer for this question.

Shorter Method for How to Answer “Tell Me About Yourself” (For Experienced Candidates Only)

The method I gave you above is the standard way most recruiters recommend answering “tell me about yourself.” It’s how I coached job seekers to answer this question for years.

There’s another way you can answer, though… and it has some benefits. I’ll explain…

Many experts have pointed out that if the interviewer wanted your career story, they could have looked at your resume or your LinkedIn, or asked a question like, “can you walk me through your background?”

So there’s another approach for answering, “tell me about yourself,” that skips the career story and just cuts right to the chase: Why you’re awesome and why they should hire you!

Let’s look at 2 word-for-word templates that accomplish this.

After this, you’ll have two proven methods for answering, “tell me about yourself” in interviews, and in the next section, I’ll reveal how to decide which method is best for YOU.

Example answer if you’re job searching while employed:

“Well, I’m currently working at XYZ Company and I specialize in doing ___. The reason I applied for this job is I saw ___ on the job description and I think I would be able to help you ___ and ___. One of my key accomplishments in my current role was helping my employer do ___, and I’m confident I can help your team get similar results here.”

Example answer template if unemployed:

“In my most recent position at XYZ Company, I specialized in doing ___. The reason I applied for this job is I saw ___ on the job description and I think I would be able to help you ___ and ___. One of my key accomplishments in my last role for XYZ Company was helping them ___, and I’m confident I can help your team get similar results here.”

Which Method Should You Use for Your Answer?

If you have work experience, both options we’ve covered are very good, and it really depends on what you feel most comfortable with.

Choose the one you like best. They’re both excellent ways to answer the question, so don’t stress over it!

However, if you are entry-level and have no work experience… or internships at the very least… then I would go back to the top of this article and use the first, 5-step method for answering, “tell me about yourself.”

This second method we just covered is really best if you want to give a unique, concise answer and you have some relevant work experience to share in the interview!

Practice Your Answer Before the Interview

As a final tip – make sure you go practice everything you plan on saying when the interviewer asks, “what can you tell me about yourself?”

Nothing comes out perfect the first time, and you don’t want to appear nervous and stumble when they ask.

So I’d recommend grabbing a piece of paper and writing down the key points you want to talk about in your answer. I like to write them in bullet format.

Then, use your smartphone’s voice recorder app to record a few practice answers and see how you sound.

Don’t look at your notes as you give your answer. The idea is to try to remember what you want to talk about without reading off the paper. Then glance at the paper AFTER to make sure you covered everything.

Keep practicing until you can give a smooth answer without forgetting anything important.

Note: If you’re having a phone interview, you can use notes/bullet points to help guide you through your answer. Nobody can see you on the phone, so take advantage!

Hold Up! Before you go on an interview.

Get our free PDF with the top 30 interview questions and answers. Join 10,000+ job seekers in our email newsletter and we’ll send you the 30 must-know questions, plus our best insider tips for turning interviews into job offers.

Keep Reading

How Do You Define Success? Interview Answers

17 Government Interview Questions

What Do You Dislike About Your Job? (Examples)

Tell Us About a Time When You Found it Difficult to Work With Someone

These sample interview answers and tips will put you on the right track to providing the response the interviewer is looking for when asked to introduce yourself in an interview.

We provide some excellent basic guidelines on how to approach this question at interview questions and answers. Here we take it further by providing you with good sample interview answers to use for different situations.

The first rule of thumb for answering the Tell me about yourself question is to discuss what interests the interviewer. That means focusing on the experience and skills you have that will add value to the position.

Relevancy is key to properly answering this interview question. Carefully consider the most important job requirements when you prepare your answer. Keep it concise and targeted when asked to introduce yourself in an interview.

Providing evidence of your skills by detailing your accomplishments will set you apart from the other candidates. A clear and concise summary of what you can do for the company is what the interviewer wants to hear.

Giving proof of your suitability for the position will quickly convince the interviewer that you are a serious contender for the job.

If you are moving into a different industry you should highlight the transferable skills you can bring to the job in your interview answer.

Study the job and decide which of your competencies are relevant. Keep your answer focused on those qualities that are pertinent to the job.

When you are an entry level job candidate it is important to focus on your qualifications and any work experience you have. Your answer should include what you hope to achieve with your first job.

Remember that you don’t have to provide a long description of your qualifications, your time at college or your internships. Interviewers will pick up on those aspects they want to learn more about and will ask you questions to get further information.

Hiring managers list the most common mistakes candidates make when answering this question.

For more great tips on answering the Tell me About Yourself interview question.

How do you answer»Why should we hire you?»

This question can be tricky to answer confidently. We show you how to do it.

Find great sample interview answers at Why Should We Hire You?

How to Answer «Tell Me About Yourself?» in an Interview

Emilie Dunphy / The Balance

Are you ready to talk about yourself during a job interview? Interviewers will sometimes start an interview with an open-ended question like, «Tell me about yourself.»

This question is a way to break the ice and make you feel more comfortable during the interview process. However, some people might find this—and other interview questions about you—slightly stressful.

If you’re someone who doesn’t like bragging about yourself, these kinds of questions can be difficult to answer. But they’re a good way for the hiring manager to get insight into your personality, so it pays to prepare to answer them.

What the Interviewer Wants to Know

Interviewers ask these kinds of questions in order to determine if you’re a good fit for the job.

They’re looking not only for indications that you’re qualified to do the work, but that you’ll gel with the team and the company culture.

For example, a startup that lets employees bring dogs to work and has beers on tap in the breakroom will be inclined to hire the person who works at a no-kill shelter and/or brews their own beer. (Provided, of course, that the candidate possesses the hard skills they’re looking for, as well.)

The interviewer will also note how comfortable you appear answering open-ended questions. This will speak to your ability to think quickly on your feet, as well as to prepare for important conversations at work.

How to Answer the “Tell Me About Yourself” Interview Question

Although it might be tempting to share a list of your most compelling qualifications for the job, a more low-key approach will probably help you to develop a personal rapport with your interviewer.

One option for your response is to share some of your personal interests which don’t relate directly to your career:

Remember, as with «tell me something about yourself that’s not on your resume,» one of the goals of this question is to get to know you a little bit beyond your career and on-the-job attitude and experience.

Use the Present-Past-Future Formula

If it feels daunting to generate an answer from scratch, you can rely on a simple formula to construct your answer. The “present-past-future” formula is a way to share key background points while ending on a high note.

Bonus points if you’re able to identify how the position you’re applying for aligns with how you envision your future.

Examples of the Best Answers

The best answers to this request are honest, brief, and confidently delivered. Your goal is to share something interesting about yourself that illuminates who you are as a person and an employee.

Come prepared with a few things to share and be sure to tie them to the skills and qualities that are most valuable in this job.

Example Answer #1

When I’m not working, I like to spend time exploring with my dogs. I take them hiking, visiting historical sites, or even just walking around town. A surprising number of people are drawn to dogs, and I always enjoy talking with who I meet. I feel that communication is one of the most important aspects of my professional life as well. When talking with people, being able to guide the conversation in a particular direction is one of the ways I’ve been successful in different situations at the office.

Why It Works: In addition to sharing a seemingly unrelated fact (“she likes dogs!”) this answer also establishes that the candidate enjoys talking with people and understands the importance of communication—a valued skill in many roles.

Example Answer #2

I participate in charity walks several times a year. Recently, I did the Walk for Hunger and I have a few events planned for the summer and fall, as well. I walk for exercise with friends after work and on the weekends. I enjoy the fresh air, learning new routes, and connecting with new people. I also like the fundraising aspect, which has come in handy in my job. I’ve learned how to connect with people to increase their commitment to the cause.

Why It Works: This answer ties the candidate’s hobbies back to skills that are useful on the job and demonstrates that they’re responsible, community-minded person. Also, hobbies that involve fitness activities demonstrate energy and a commitment to health.

Example Answer #3

The past few years, I’ve gotten really into geocaching. I love the challenge of finding caches and spending time outdoors with friends. I like using my problem-solving skills to find the ones that are really well-hidden. Learning how people hide things—and where people are likely to look—has helped me tremendously in my design work. It’s all about learning to see things through someone else’s eyes.

Why It Works: This answer demonstrates an ability to learn from experience and work as a team, as well as an adventurous spirit.

Tips for Giving the Best Response

Transition to professional from personal. After sharing a few interesting personal aspects of your background, you can pivot to mentioning some key professional skills that would help you to add value if you were hired for your target job.

Consider using phrases like «In addition to those interests and passions, my professional life is a huge part of who I am, so I’d like to talk a bit about some of the strengths that I would bring to this job.»

Share your expertise. Be ready to share three or four of the personal qualities, skills, and/or areas of expertise which would help you to excel in the job for which you are interviewing. Ultimately, you will want to mention several other strengths before the interview is over.

Make a list of your strengths before you go into the interview, so you know what you will share. Look at the job description and match it with your skills. Then make sure you talk about the top few skills which make you an ideal candidate for the job.

Be careful not to overwhelm the interviewer. After mentioning three or four strengths, you might mention that you have several other assets that you would like to discuss as the interview unfolds.

At first, you should only mention the asset and allude only briefly to some proof of how you have tapped it to your advantage. For example, you might say that you love to give presentations and that this has helped you to generate lots of leads at sales dinners for prospective clients. Later in the interview, you will want to be more specific and detailed in discussing situations, interventions, or results flowing from your strengths.

Be honest. It might be tempting to claim interest in hobbies or activities that seem like they’d appeal to the interviewer, but if you stretch the truth, it will become apparent pretty quickly. Get caught in a lie, and the interview will be over before it gets started. Worse, you could get hired and wind up spending years pretending that you’re an aspiring triathlete or competitive Scrabble player.

What Not to Say

Don’t share too much or too little information. The interviewer doesn’t want to know everything about you, but disclosing too little can make him or her wonder why you aren’t more open.

Avoid potentially contentious subjects such as political or religious leanings, unless you are absolutely positive that your opinions would be well-received by your interviewer.

Don’t talk about a hobby that might seem to be more important to you than your career. No employer wants to take a chance on hiring someone who will miss a lot of work or ask for extensive vacation time to pursue their passions outside of work.

Avoid sharing personal information about your family. There is no need to discuss spouses, partners, children, or any other strictly personal information.

Coburg Banks

How to Actually Answer: “Can You Tell Me a Little About Yourself?”

Next in our series of “How to Actually Answer” blogs, I’ve decided to cover one of the most commonly asked introductory interview questions:

“Can you tell me a little about yourself?”

It’s funny because lot of us don’t usually have an issue talking about our lives to our friends and family.

However, doing so in front of a potential employer often feels like you’ve been asked to solve a Rubik’s Cube!

Well, it all stems from our brains’ ability to process these situations.

Understanding self-awareness and why we struggle with this question

In 1972, psychologists Shelly Duval and Robert Wicklund developed the theory of self-awareness:

“when we focus our attention on ourselves, we evaluate and compare our current behaviour to our internal standards and values.

We become self-conscious as objective evaluators of ourselves.”

In theory, this refers to your ability to consider self-awareness as a major mechanism or trigger of self-control.

However, to come to grips with the way your brain works and is able to discard self-judgment and negative thoughts of yourself and the world, it can take time.

Psychologist Daniel Goleman pinpoints self-awareness as being able to monitor our inner world, our thoughts and emotions as they arise.

As a result, questions that involve talking about yourself can be rather challenging to a lot of people. Particularly if it’s telling someone you want to make a positive impression to.

If you find yourself being negative about something or too harsh on yourself, this could easily come out in your answering of this question.

This also causes a lot of panic in candidates.

As a result you may be deterred from being able to promptly gather the right thoughts to construct an answer.

Ideally, your interviewer will be looking for a positive response which oozes wisdom, confidence and intelligence.

What shouldn’t you say?

One of the biggest mistakes a lot of candidates make is giving the interviewer a highlights reel of their career so far.

While it’s essential to keep this answer on topic and work-related, simply informing them of your previous jobs isn’t really providing them with a fresh insight – they can read that on your CV!

Similarly, waffling on about your love of Game of Thrones or favourite dish you like to cook isn’t really hitting the mark either.

To break it down for you, an employer is looking for an answer which gives them a positive outlook of why you’ve decided to attend the interview.

So for example, you’re looking for a new challenge or you’ve always loved this particular company.

How to answer “Can you tell me a little about yourself?”

In an ideal world, you should treat this question like a pitch.

As I previously mentioned, the interviewer wants to see confidence, a positive approach, wisdom and intelligence all wrapped up in one precise answer.

To do this, it’s vitally important to write down keywords highlighted in the job spec.

For instance, if you’re going for a copywriting role, you’ll often see terms like “creative”, “attention to detail” and “SEO”.

In this particular case, think of it like a tick box exercise where you flow from point to point highlighting these keywords as areas you have experience in or possess (if applicable).

Here’s an example answer:

“Over the past five years, I’ve been fortunate to work with an array of businesses, agencies and publishers.

During this time, I’ve held roles where I was able to express my creative side and others that required an expert level of attention to detail and analytical thinking to successfully enhance their content’s SEO.”

Once you’ve covered these keywords, you should then move onto the company itself.

For example:

“I think this has made me well-rounded as a copywriter and perfectly positioned to take this role.

I believe this is the perfect opportunity to help me continue progressing, learn new things and grow for many years to come.

I’ve been a great admirer of [business name] for a long time, so it was only a matter of time until I put myself forward for a position with you guys.”

You see, while this kind of answer may not seem like it tells an employer about your hobbies and overall career per se, it does highlight all the positives about the role, the company and your ambitions to fulfil it.

This example answer also lightly touches on the achievements of the individual, stating what they’ve learned and how it’s made them more “well-rounded”.

Again, this is another plus point in how to answer this particular interview question.

Summary

Telling an interviewer about yourself is an invitation to highlight the positives in your career.

Plus, don’t forget to demonstrate your willingness to get this particular role.

Always remember to:
– Cover the keywords
– Keep it precise and touch upon your achievements
– Bring it back to why you’re ready to take this job and work for this company

Ultimately, work on your self-awareness to successfully identify your strengths and discard your self-judgement tendencies and you’ll answer this question positively.

Love hearing our interview tips? Then don’t forget to subscribe to our weekly blog here.

Other articles we think you’ll like

Your #1 Priority When Starting A New Job (Guest Blog)

Want to make a great impression at your new job? There’s one key thing you should be prioritising.

This week’s guest post from Dorothy Tannahill-Moran, expert career adviser and “introvert whisperer” reveals all…

Will More People Consider Moving Abroad Now They Can Work From Home?

Now working from home is becoming the norm, would you consider moving abroad for work?

Guest author, Chris Nye, can help you out. Read more.