What to Say When Someone Says Tell Me About Yourself

1. Interviewing
2. How To Answer "Tell Me Most Yourself" in an Interview

How To Respond "Tell Me Nigh Yourself" in an Interview

By Indeed Editorial Team

March 9, 2022

Open up-ended interview questions or prompts like "Tell me nearly yourself" are frequently asked at the outset of in-person or video interviews to go the conversation started. Other examples include "walk me through your resume," "tell me something about yourself that's not on your resume" and "describe yourself."

These questions are likely to popular up at every stage of the interview process—from phone screen to final rounds. It'southward natural to exist thrown by their ambivalence and it can be difficult to identify what the interviewer really wants to know. But in that location is an opportunity for y'all here in that your interviewer is assuasive you to choose how to respond.

In this article, we offering tips on what to avert in your answer to the "tell me almost yourself" interview prompt, how to structure your response and how you lot can get started equally well as detailed "tell me most yourself" sample answers.

Related video: Tell Me Nearly Yourself: Acme half-dozen Example Answers for a Task Interview
This video was designed to show yous how to answer this tough interview question by showcasing nifty responses across a variety of job industries.

Why employers inquire "tell me nearly yourself"

"Tell me virtually yourself," or questions like it, are mutual at the starting time of interviews as they ease both yous and the interviewer into the interview. It allows the interviewer to hear a short summary of your background and skills, giving them insight into what experience and qualifications you think are almost relevant to the position y'all're interviewing for.

It's as well not lost on employers that although it'southward a common interview question, information technology still has the trend to fluster or stump candidates. By answering this question well, you are setting the tone for the interview as someone who is confident, practiced under pressure and attentive to the qualifications of the position.

Some interviewers might approach this question as an icebreaker by using your response to spark casual conversation to go to know you better while others may motion straight into other interview questions subsequently you respond.

Paradigm description

Tips on responding to "Tell me about yourself":

1. Start by discussing your electric current situation

2. Work astern by hitting key points along your professional journey

3. Connect your background, interests and qualifications back to the job

Planning your answer

Even for common interview questions, information technology can exist hard to get started crafting your response. To go on yous on rail, here are a few questions to ask yourself as you begin ways to reply and structure your answer:

• What qualities make yous a neat fit for this position? Think of what makes you lot stand up out equally a chore applicant for this role. Perhaps information technology's your years of feel or some highly desired specialization, training or technical skills. Review the job description closely and notation ways that yous exceed the requirements.

• Why are you interested in the part? Brainstorm why this position excites you, how it fits into your larger career goals and why y'all feel information technology'southward the best next stride.

• Why are you interested in the visitor or the industry? After yous've spent fourth dimension researching the visitor and the industry, yous should have a better sense of the mission, goals and trends impacting the industry. Do these align with the professional goals you've fix for yourself? What exercise y'all like and respect most the visitor as a whole? What excites you about the time to come of the industry? Every bit you beginning building your resume, tie together similarities amongst your professional goals, the hereafter vision of the company and industry trends you experience are especially important.

• What are the positive traits or characteristics yous possess that will serve yous well in this part? For case, take friends or colleagues described you as especially organized? Curious? Entrepreneurial? Generous? Recall about how you've long thought of yourself or how others have seen you. And then, remember of recent examples from your life when you embodied that characteristic.

• Is there something unique about your background that makes you stand out from other applicants? As we've mentioned, this is one of the about common interview questions. Therefore, interviewers have heard this answered time and time again. Try to think of something that will claw the interviewer. For example, proverb something like, "I've been building computers since I was eight years old," when applying for a developer role is likely to make an interviewer's ears perk up.

Related: Interview Question: "Why Are Yous Interested in This Position?"

How to reply "tell me about yourself"

How you respond to the "tell me most yourself" question can set the tone for the rest of the interview. Overall, when you lot practice your answer, you want to tell a cracking story about yourself that you can share in 2 minutes or less. In your response, practise the following:

1. Mention past experiences and proven successes as they chronicle to the position. Begin by rereading the job description. Take note of the required skills that you have and identify contempo deportment that demonstrate them (review the STAR method to practice telling swell stories in your interviews). Ideally, yous should describe primarily from recent professional person experience; however, volunteer work tin can also support your narrative while demonstrating a commitment to your community.

2. Consider how your electric current job relates to the job you're applying for. Is it a more senior role? If so, explain how you lot are taking on more responsibilities in your current position. If you are making a lateral transition to a function with different skills, describe how your current skills interpret into the new position.

3. Focus on strengths and abilities that you can support with examples. When you first building the script of each example, focus on details and outcomes that you can quantify if possible. For example, stating that yous "improved customer service" is less impactful than "increased customer service response rates each quarter by 10% to 15%." If you don't have the exact data, estimate a realistic value.

four. Highlight your personality to break the ice. Since the "tell me about yourself" interview question is almost getting to know y'all, it'south a skilful thought to share your personality with your interviewer—but non personal details. Yous may want to briefly mention hobbies that demonstrate intellectual development and/or community engagement (e.thou., reading, music, sports league, volunteering) or those that showcase personal discipline and accomplishment (e.g., learning a new skill, training for a one-half marathon). Discussing personal interests is a practiced way to wrap upwardly your response while maintaining a professional tone.

5. Format your response. For your response to be articulate and concise, yous'll want to make sure y'all organize your reply following a format or formula. There are ii common formulas yous may consider:

• Present, By and Hereafter

• Past, Present and Future

Both of these formulas piece of work for your response, but you may cull i over the other based on the roles from your feel that are almost relevant to the position yous're interviewing for. For example, if your most recent role highlights many of the skills and qualifications that are required for the role you lot're interviewing with, you may desire to lead with the present. Notwithstanding, if you're making a career transition and your past feel is more closely related to the part than your electric current position, you may desire to lead with your past.

Related: Interview Question: "What Skills Can You Bring to the Task?"

Related video: How to Answer "Tell Me About Yourself" Interview Question - 5 Key Tips and Example Response
Jen, a certified career coach at Indeed, shares her recommended strategy for approaching this common interview question.

Instance answers to "tell me about yourself"

Sometimes seeing an example tin can exist helpful, though each person's "tell me about yourself" reply volition be different. Beneath are a few brusk scripts showing how this question tin highlight someone's strengths supported by successful results in less than two minutes:

Case one

"I began my career in retail direction, merely a few years ago, I was drawn to the health care infinite. I've always been skilled at bringing people together and working toward common goals. My experience successfully leading teams and managing stores led me to consider administration, and I've been edifice a career every bit a driven health administrator for the final iv years.

"In my current office at XYZ Medical Center, the efficiency of the role has been a personal focus, especially as information technology relates to patient outcomes. I gear up and oversee goals related to department budget and patient volume. Terminal twelvemonth, I worked with our It department to implement a communication arrangement for scheduling procedures and protocols to ensure that all departments were adequately staffed at all times. With our new online scheduling portal, we increased communication efficiency by 20%.

"To stay informed nearly their ongoing concerns, I hold regular meetings with physicians, nurses and other health care staff. In my role, I as well manage marketing and advertising efforts on behalf of the center. I've been really enjoying that role of my work and I'm particularly interested in bringing the experience I've gained as well every bit my delivery to efficiency to the team at ABC Health.

"Outside of the office, I'm an avid reader and I love to hike. On weekends, you lot might observe me at the local bookstore or exploring hiking trails in the area."

Case 2

"I've been passionate almost design since I was a child. My parents remodeled their house when I was in high school and allowed me to play an active part in the interior design plans. I knew and so that I wanted to pursue interior design equally my career. I studied interior blueprint at Savannah College of Fine art and Pattern and graduated iv years ago.

"Since college, I've been working at an interior pattern firm in Savannah, Georgia. During my time there, I've been able to build my portfolio by designing both residential and commercial spaces. My experience at the firm has built upward my proficiencies in billing and cutting-edge technologies and allowed me to build stiff relationships with local suppliers. The almost rewarding function of my job has been working in Savannah'due south historic buildings. This experience has familiarized me with all-time-in-class building preservation.

"Moving forward, I would love to work at a blueprint house such as yours that specializes in the design and preservation of historical buildings. I believe my experience and passion for preservation will allow me to be a nifty nugget to your design team."

Example 3

"Currently, I work at XYZ Restaurant equally a hostess. I've been there for just over two years. My responsibilities include greeting and seating customers, assessing look times, fulfilling to-get orders and answering the phones. I beloved the lively and busy environs of XYZ Eating place—nosotros often have Friday and Saturday await times of i hour or more.

"Before working at XYZ Restaurant, I worked in retail as a flooring acquaintance for a yr. This role really developed my customer service skills every bit I was consistently assisting customers in the store. It also equipped me with the ability to work in a team environment.

"I am looking to farther develop my customer service and problem-solving skills equally a hostess in a eating place environment. I am interested in your restaurant specifically equally it has a great reputation for delivering first-in-form customer service to your patrons while being in a lively and dynamic environment."

Fundamentally, "tell me near yourself" really boils down to "what do you want the interviewer to remember nigh you?" Answering this opening question finer gives you the power to make a good starting time impression and construction the rest of the interview to your benefit.

Related: List of Character Traits to Apply While Interviewing

Dos and don'ts for answering "tell me nigh yourself" in an interview

To recap, here is a listing of ways to reply this common interview question besides every bit items to consider avoiding.

Practise

• Connect personal strengths to supporting examples.

• Keep your response to two minutes or less.

• Focus on details and outcomes you can quantify.

• Speak to what sets y'all apart from other candidates.

• Mention by experiences and proven successes.

• Align your current chore responsibilities to the part.

• Avert mentioning personal data related to your marital status, children, political or religious views.

• Highlight your personality.

• Avoid rushing into deeper conversations about the role and company.

• Connect your skills to the task description.

• Briefly mention hobbies, intellectual development and community involvement.

• Write down an example answer and practice.

Don't

• Mention highly personal information such every bit marital status, children, political or religious affiliations, etc. These can exist sensitive topics that might work confronting y'all equally a candidate, not to mention such details should not exist factors for the employer in determining your ability to perform the chore.

• List multiple, vague strengths without supporting examples. Instead, y'all may want to choose two or iii qualities about yourself. Support each with brusque, polished stories that can be supported by your work experience.

• Memorize your response. While it's expert to practice and memorize your key points, yous don't want to memorize your answer discussion for word equally it has the potential to come up across as robotic and unnatural.

• Summarize your resume give-and-take for word. Instead, discuss high points that are relevant to the position.

• Rush into conversations regarding what yous're looking for in the role or how the company can benefit yous—save such topics for the final stages of the interview process when they are sold on you every bit a candidate and you accept more than leverage.

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Source: https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/interviewing/interview-question-tell-me-about-yourself

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