Don’t Blank - Nailing the Obvious
Interviews can be nerve-wracking. We can all get a little nervous and jittery when entering a new and exciting job interview. Thankfully the more we can prepare for the interview, then the less nervous we might feel. It all starts with preparing to address the questions they might ask you. There are thousands of interview questions out there that the hiring manager can ask you and you won’t know the answer to all of them, however, I can guarantee that with 100% certainty that you’ll always get asked this question…
“Tell me a little bit about yourself”.
It’s the most simple question yet the one that can invoke the most anxiety. It’s an open-ended interview question that always starts off the interview. Have you ever been asked by someone to tell them more about yourself and your mind goes completely blank or you don’t know how to start off the answer? Well, let’s talk about how you can tackle this question to provide the most confident answer to your interviewer.
First, let’s discuss why interviewers even ask you this question in the first place. It’s an easy introductory question to start off the interview and what is the interview actually about? It’s about them getting to know you! Remember that you are also getting to know them and the company as well. An interview is a two-way street (discussion). Your answer to this question can really set the tone for the rest of the interview and it’s essentially your summary or elevator pitch about yourself.
You want to think about how you’re going to structure your answer. Lily Zhang, Manager of Graduate Student Professional Development at the MIT Media Lab and a writer for The Muse, recommends the following structure:
Present, Past, Future
First, give a brief overview of your current role or experience. Don't go on too long here since you'll cover more specifics later on in the interview.
Next, give a quick rundown of the trajectory that led you to where you are today. This can be as simple as explaining how you found yourself working in this industry or what inspired you to apply for this position.
Finally, transition into what’s next by explaining where you want to pivot and why the role is so attractive to you.
Here’s an example of an answer to “Tell Me About Yourself”:
“I'm a [role title] at [company name]. I work with the marketing team to manage our social media accounts, including Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. We're currently working on an integrated digital marketing campaign to help improve our brand image through an explosive online presence, and I'm extremely proud of the results we've driven so far with our efforts—we’ve increased our followers by 30%, which is huge milestone for us.
I graduated from [university] in 2017 with a degree in marketing, and started out in a small agency here in town, completing paid search optimization projects for various clients. When I was looking for new opportunities last year, this one stood out because of the company culture—everyone seems extremely collaborative, encouraging and open to new ideas.
I'm really excited about the growth potential that comes along with this role. I'd love to continue working on brand image and reputation management as part of the marketing team—long term, I'd love to transition into leading strategic projects as you mentioned earlier.”
Here are some more tips to form the best answer!
Remember that this answer is something that you have time to perfect for every single interview you’ll have for the rest of your life. I know. Dramatic, but it’s true! You can change or re-write it as many times as you want and practice in front of your mirror as many times as you want. Try to keep your answer to 2 minutes or less The more you practice, the more you’ll be able to answer this question naturally.
Tailor your answer to the role and company. The interviewing or hiring manager wants to know that you did research on the role and company and that you are passionate about it.
Keep it professional. Don’t deep dive into too personal stories or details. You don’t and should not mention personal information related to your marital status, children, political or religious views.
Things you can mention in your answer are professional background, details, and outcomes you can quantify. They want to see how your past experiences and proven successes that can align with the role you are interviewing for.
Highlight your personality, strengths, work ethic, values, and what sets you apart from other candidates.
Avoid rushing into deeper conversations about the role and company. The entire interview does not need to be in the first two minutes of your answer. You will have time and opportunity to dive deeper into the role and company later on through the interview and hopefully future interviews!
The hiring manager already has your resume, so you don’t need to summarize your resume word for word. Instead, discuss key points that are relevant to the position and keep it high level.
If all of that sounds like too much to fit into one answer, don't worry! The most important thing is to be genuine and enthusiastic about your career journey and where you hope it’ll take you in the future. Think about how to answer this interview question the next time you prepare for a job interview. Although there’s no one right answer, simply being prepared will give you the confidence to deliver a solid response and leave your interviewer wanting more.
