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'So, Tell Me About Yourself': How You Answer This Tricky Interview Question Makes A Big Difference

It’s not as simple as it sounds.
15 Feb 2022, 10:06 AM
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This article is sponsored by JobStreet.

Job interview tips question introduce yourself

Image via Freepik; Edited by HITZ

In life, one of the toughest questions to answer is: “Tell me about yourself”. It sounds so simple, doesn’t it? To a certain extent, it is. But when you’re in a situation where you have to sell your skills and personality, like a job interview, it can be tricky.

You need to figure out the right things to say without making it too long or too short because this can make or break the interviewer’s first impression of you, which is very crucial!

Here are some tips on how to nail your next interview right from the start:

Don’t recite your resumé. They can read

More often than not, the interviewer would have already gone through your resumé before the interview. Don’t waste your time going through every detail of your career because you’re not here to write a thesis about what you’ve done.

Briefly talk about your past experiences and use this as a teaser to give your interviewer a chance to ask follow-up questions. Try not to speak longer than a few minutes because you may be getting too specific too soon and risk losing the interviewer’s attention.

Talk about your present, past and future career goals

This is a good formula to follow when you introduce yourself because it can quickly demonstrate where you currently stand in your career path. You can go in any order you prefer, as long as it leads to the reason you applied for this role and why you’re sitting in this interview.

Generally, talk about your scope of work in your present company, mention past experiences that’s relevant to the company, and share what your next goal is and why you think this role would be a good fit for you.

Make sure your answer is relevant to the role

We can’t stress this enough. Someone with a colourful career may be tempted to ramble on about what they’ve done in the past because it’s something to be proud of. But always keep in the mind what this interview is all about and think about what made you apply for this role in particular.

Pick bits and pieces of your experience that make more sense to what the interviewer and company are looking to hire because neither you nor the interviewer should feel like you’re wasting your time.

Share what you’re passionate about at work

Now, if you’re fresh out of university with very minimal work experience, especially in the industry you’re looking to join, you may not have much to elaborate on in terms of career (we don’t discount your part-time job working as a retail assistant, but it may not be relevant here).

If this is you, don’t panic! You can still use this opportunity to talk about your short-term and long-term career goals, and what you hope to learn or achieve in this company. This shows your passion and determination, and gives the interviewer an idea of how motivated you are.

Your personality traits that can add value

Every company or recruiter is always looking for fresh talents with qualities that can benefit them in the long run. Besides hard skills like technical abilities and past experience, soft skills are also highly crucial in your professional career.

Think about your strengths and highlight these positive attributes when you introduce yourself. For example, you have a growth mindset or eye for detail, you’re a problem solver and team player, you take constructive criticisms well, and so on.

Keep things positive

The last thing you want to do is talk about how you were laid off from your previous job. As tempting as it can be, don’t bad mouth or complain about your past employer. That’s not the right way to start your interview.

If you feel that certain information about your past is important for your potential employer, wait until they ask you a specific question about your sudden job change or why there is a time gap in your resumé. As the conversation gets more comfortable further into your interview, you can choose to address this.

Now you’re finally ready to go for more interviews!

The process of job hunting can be daunting and stressful. But just keep calm, stick to your goal, be well-prepared, and find your dream job on JobStreet! You can browse more than 50,000 job vacancies on JobStreet, there’s definitely something for everyone out there.

Everybody’s got a job to do, so let’s get to work! Visit JobStreet to apply for jobs, or if you’re looking for career inspirations and tips, they’ve got plenty of resources to help you out too.

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