Anyone who has had a job interview before will be well aware of this question. It’s more than likely the first one you’ll be asked, by far the most common interview question, but also one that trips up many candidates.
“Tell me about yourself.”
It may seem like a simple question, but in reality, it’s incredibly open-ended and vague and can leave candidates wondering what exactly the interviewer is looking for. So, what’s the best way to answer that question? How much personal information should you include in your answer? Should you talk about your years of experience or add in some life stories?
As it’s often the first question hiring managers ask, it can often set the tone for the rest of the interview. Even in a competency-based interview, this general question is still something you should prepare for. Luckily for you, I spoke to some of RECRUITERS’ expert consultants for their top tips on answering the ‘tell me about yourself’ question in a job interview.
Director of nationwide recruitment Jane Gormley said candidates should proceed with caution. “This is a dangerous question in an interview as a lot of people see it as a licence to list off extreme positives and negatives, it’s not. Keep this objective and expect the question. The answer is reflective of your ability to be impartial when explaining a situation,” she said.
“Balance professional and personal information. Release some of your personality and allow the interviewer see you in a more relaxed conversation/setting. Do however, keep it professional and somewhat relevant to the situation you are in.”
Abigail Woods, a senior associate in sales recruitment said a common mistake people make is to dive straight into the experience instead of speaking about themselves. “It’s good to answer this in the form of a competency-based answer,” she said, giving a sample answer below.
‘I’m X, I graduated in Y and I’ve been living in Dublin for the past four years. When I’m not working, I usually enjoy spending my time *participating in hobbies and interests*. I’ve spent six years in sales and I’ve always had a great interest in recruitment. It’s a job I’ve looked a lot into and I believe, with my sales skills and resilience that I could bring a lot to the team in RECRUITERS.’
Senior IT recruitment consultant Jennifer Murphy said candidates should prepare a sort of elevator pitch that sums up the experience they have that is relevant to the role and company for which they are being interviewed.
“Try to match your experience to the most important points on the job description. It doesn’t have to be a summary of your experience to date, you only need to focus on what is relevant for the role,” she said.
“This is usually the opening question for an interview so if you tell them exactly what they want to hear and instil confidence in the interviewer in your abilities to do the job, you should be set up for success for the remainder of the interview.”
Murphy also suggested researching the company’s core values and slip them into your elevator pitch if possible.
Above all else, it’s important to keep this answer short and sweet and avoid going off on any tangents. Sales recruitment manager Patricia Lynch said candidates should think in terms of bullet points, picking your top four or five most relevant.
For example:
While it may seem like a casual question, it’s always important to keep the main objective to the front of your mind: You want to prove you are the best fit for the job. With this in mind, every answer you give should point the interviewer to that conclusion. The points above will help you to answer this question with confidence. Want more interview advice? Check out the RECRUITERS interview guide here. If you’re not going for job interviews just yet, but thinking that it’s time for a career change, be sure to upload your CV here and find out what new and exciting opportunities await.
Photo by Amy Hirschi on Unsplash
