• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Ruth Sternberg | Confident Career Search

Ruth Sternberg, Confident Career Search

Specializing in interview-attracting resumes and LinkedIn profiles. Talk to a career search professional at 614-746-4587!

585-201-8271 Let's Talk
  • Home
  • Meet Ruth
  • Services
    • Resume and LinkedIn Profile Revamp
    • Full VIP Package
    • New College Graduates
    • Value-Added Services
    • “Pick My Brain” Resume and Strategy Session
  • FAQs
  • Testimonials
  • Blog
    • Job Search
    • Get an Interview
    • Job Requirements
    • Identifying Transferable Skills
      • New College Graduates
    • How to Answer: “Tell Me About Yourself?”
    • how do I answer interview questions?
    • Skills
  • Contact

How To Answer ‘Tell Me About Yourself’ Interview Questions

Filed Under: How to Answer: "Tell Me About Yourself?", How to Handle a Job Interview, Skills

How To Answer ‘Tell Me About Yourself’ Interview Questions

One of the most challenging interview questions for job seekers is, “So, tell me about yourself.” Answering this question requires preparation because it is open ended and carries the potential for rambling. Many job seekers flounder at this prompt, because they have not prepared ahead of time with a short “commercial” about themselves that they can pull out and use for just such an occasion.

But that won’t be you! Because you will follow these pointers:

First, the question is not an invitation to recite your life story. Rather, it is a great opportunity for you to briefly explain what makes you good at your job and how you can help the company. You will be prepared with a short explanation of your job history and a thorough understanding of how what you have learned to do connects with what that employer needs. You have been researching the company, and you should be able to show how you are a good fit for the role.

You will know that this is your chance to deliver a great first impression by showing how well you communicate. That’s important for any job, but there are many industries that lend themselves particularly well to this type of showcase question. Customer service is one example. It is conversationally focused, and this could be a really good chance for you to show how you smoothly respond to a question.

You also will remember not to give away personal information about yourself. An employer isn’t going to hire you because you have cute children or a wonderful spouse. In fact, that type of information could exclude you from the job. Focus on the position at hand. You might wish to start your answer by asking, “I would be glad to. Could you give me an idea of the type of information you would like to know?” By starting this way, you can direct your answer better and be more conversational.

Next, you will keep it brief with a simple structure. You will give a few details about what you have been doing, talk about one or two crowning achievements from your career, then explain how it positions you for success with the interviewers’ company.

Here’s a fictional sample answer:

“I spent 20 years as a print journalist, and during that time I learned a lot about our community and its needs and I was able to point the public to very important social causes. I realized over time that what I wanted to do was actually work for one of those causes. So, I switched fields, and went into nonprofit work, raising about a half-million dollars as a grant writer for various organizations. I have honed my organizational skills and learned how to tell an agency’s story in a compelling way. In my most recent position, my proposals have raised $40 million for a community college. This included large federal workforce proposals. I enjoy assembling the details and making the case for important work, and this has prepared me to position your organization for similar fundraising success.”

Here’s another example:

“I was born and raised in Franklin County and have an excellent knowledge of the area as well as Central Ohio. During the last 9 years with Federal Express, I have progressed through positions of Package Loader, Courier, Dispatcher, and Team Lead. In my most recent position, I have had the opportunity to complete numerous management training programs, provide supervision and leadership to all positions within the station, and participate in special projects in conjunction with Senior and District Managers. I enjoy being a Lead and the opportunity to empower and motivate my team. Last year I received the top award for gains in productivity. I believe this experience and training has prepared me to take the next step and pursue a management position with Acme Trucking.”

Remember: It’s your opportunity to show you fit the position. It’s not about your life outside the office (unless you have an unusual hobby that might enhance your candidacy). It’s not about your years growing up. It is about the value you have earned and can share with that company to enhance its growth and achieve its goals.

It’s a good idea to format an answer, and then practice it with a friend, your spouse, or a trusted mentor. Once you have the format down, you can adapt it to any role for which you are interviewing. Just adjust the details.

Not sure if the answer is good enough? As with any interview question, you can always end with, “Does that answer your question?” If it doesn’t the interviewer will tell you.

Let’s work on your speech. Contact me now at Ruth@ConfidentCareerSearch.com

Primary Sidebar

A Cure for Job-Search Paralysis

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SiRsEnarfcw

Client Praise

Ruth is a gifted master of words. I hired Ruth because I needed someone who could clean up and reorganize my resume and LinkedIn profile. Ruth took in my career… Read more “Maria Blauvelt”

Maria Blauvelt

I was really struggling during COVID after getting laid off. I just could not seem to break through and get noticed.  I had used Ruth’s services before and gotten a… Read more “Sam Lewis”

Sam Lewis

I am truly honored to have the privilege of working with Ruth. She took the time to reach me on my level, and assist me in honing my interviewing skills… Read more “Randall Johnson”

Randall Johnson

Ruth is passionate about her clients. She truly cares and loves to see us find our next “Big Step” on our career journey. She is engaging in conversation and she listens. She… Read more “Karen Diehl”

Karen Diehl

Ruth worked to help me understand my strengths, weaknesses, likes and dislikes. She not only built a great resume and LinkedIn profile for me, but also coached me to believe… Read more “Matthew Knouff”

Matthew Knouff

Ruth is a tremendous resource for help in overhauling a resume and building a LinkedIn profile. She is very knowledgeable about what it takes to get noticed by recruiters. Ruth… Read more “Dan Carson”

Dan Carson

I highly recommend Ruth as a career coach. She provides clients with concrete tools and advice to create a plan of action. Ruth truly understands the job search process, from… Read more “Francesca Fuerman”

Francesca Fuerman

Ruth became passionate about my professional experience immediately. She knew I was struggling to effectively portray my depth of experience in writing for effective recruitment by employers. Once I had… Read more “Anthony Bahr”

Anthony Bahr

I felt so confident in myself after working with Ruth, after I was able to take a step back and look at my résumé and see just how accomplished a person I… Read more “Logan Weissler”

Logan Weissler

When you said to me, ‘Okay, we got this. We are going to figure this all out and get you into these companies,’ I felt my whole body relax and… Read more “Cathy C.”

Cathy C.

Ruth took the time to get to know me and understand my strengths and abilities. She overhauled my résumé, which was essentially a list of job tasks, and created an attractive, compelling… Read more “Jillian O.”

Jillian O.

Ruth is an amazing, thorough, and professional résumé writer with an eye for bringing out your hidden story and value. Over the course of a month we were able to transform my résumé from zero… Read more “Craig M. Chavis, Jr.”

Craig M. Chavis, Jr.

Ruth has a gift for listening to her client’s needs with real empathy, and for translating their background into words that accurately reflect relevant talents. Moreover, Ruth is the kind… Read more “Cory Joyrich”

Cory Joyrich

Working with Ruth was an excellent experience. Coming out of the military, I spent several years working with resumes that never seemed to achieve the goal of interviews. After realizing… Read more “Calvin Jones”

Calvin Jones

Ruth fit a wealth of resume advice and career guidance into a one-hour video-call! She led me through my resume and showed me exactly how to reformat its content for… Read more “Veronica Dye Johnson”

Veronica Dye Johnson

I worked with Ruth to gain a different perspective on my resume and LinkedIn profile. Her process is in-depth, starting with a questionnaire that pushes you to really consider the… Read more “Mike O’Brien”

Mike O'Brien

In preparing for my nursing career, Ruth was super effective in organizing the details of my education and work experience. So effective that she helped me secure a position in… Read more “Alexandra Reynolds”

Alexandra Reynolds

My experience with Ruth was amazing, I would highly recommend her to anyone for that personal and professional touch. Ruth is great at listening and helping you find out what… Read more “Marcia Johnson”

Marcia Johnson

Resources Library

  • Get an Interview
  • Job Search
  • How to Answer: “Tell Me About Yourself?”
  • Identifying Transferable Skills
  • Ghosted by Recruiters
Ruth Sternberg | Confident Career Search

CONTACT: 614-746-4587

SCHEDULE A CALL
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

© 2022 Ruth Sternberg, Confident Career Search. All Rights Reserved.

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Cookies Policy