What seems like such a simple question can really make you sweat, especially in an interview. What, exactly, should you share—not just to build rapport, but toshow that you’re the perfect fit for the job?

Fear not, job seekers: There’s a super-simple formula that will help you answer this question with ease. Watch this quick video as our CEO Kathryn Minshew gives a simple tip from our career expert Lily Zhang, then try it out for yourself!

How to Answer “Tell Me About Yourself”

So, the first question you’re probably going to get in an interview is, “Tell me about yourself.” Now, this is not an invitation to recite your entire life story or even to go bullet by bullet through your resume. Instead, it’s probably your first and best chance to pitch the hiring manager on why you’re the right one for the job.

A formula I really like to use is called the Present-Past-Future formula. So, first you start with the present—where you are right now. Then, segue into the past—a little bit about the experiences you’ve had and the skills you gained at the previous position. Finally, finish with the future—why you are really excited for this particular opportunity.

Let me give you an example:

If someone asked, “tell me about yourself,” you could say:

“Well, I’m currently an account executive at Smith, where I handle our top performing client. Before that, I worked at an agency where I was on three different major national healthcare brands. And while I really enjoyed the work that I did, I’d love the chance to dig in much deeper with one specific healthcare company, which is why I’m so excited about this opportunity with Metro Health Center.”



Remember throughout your answer to focus on the experiences and skills that are going to be most relevant for the hiring manager when they’re thinking about this particular position and this company. And ultimately, don’t be afraid to relax a little bit, tell stories and anecdotes—the hiring manager already has your resume, so they also want to know a little more about you.

Culled from Times Magazine

someone should pls notify me if this gets to FP. tnks.

Don't worry, I will....

me too...

Cool stuff

What about those that have no experience? Tell me how one would go about that,please!

nice one

Accomplishment Recall Questions ( if you can give answers to the below questions you will pass any job interview)
Struggling to put accomplishments down on paper? It can be a daunting task. It can be made harder by the fact that you don’t have an Accomplishment Diary or that you’ve never thought to structure them to show you’re results driven.
Here are some questions that you can ask yourself in order to list all your Accomplishments:
1. How did you surpass your manager’s expectations? How did your performance exceed what was expected of you?
2. Did you have any initiatives that set you apart? How did you do your job better than everybody else or better than what was expected initially?
3. How did you tailor your work in order to make your role represent you – i.e. make your job your own.
4. What extremely positive feedback did you receive in your (bi-)annual review? Did your manager point out anything specific?
5. Did you win any awards internally (University, Corporate) or externally (competitions, business games)?
6. Do you have any proof for these accomplishments? It can be anything: Emails, Publications, Websites, YouTube Channels etc
7. Do you have any customer testimonials? This can be huge. Again: emails, letters, LinkedIn Recommendations.
8. What’s your proudest achievement in every job/project you had?
9. Did you get promoted once/several times in a very short timespan? Or faster than it is currently expected in your company?
10. How did you contribute to the organisation’s profitability, ROI etc? Did you have a tangible impact?
11. How did you improve the profitability, productivity or efficiency of the company/ your team / your division etc?
12. How did you build relationships with people in your company, clients, industry thought-leaders etc?
13. How did you pursue to enact your company’s mission statement? How about reinforcing their core values?
The key to all these questions is not to overblow your accomplishments in every particular role you had, but to make them as quantifiable and results-driven as possible so as to reflect the value you can bring to any situation. Good luck, uzohcoachingdotcom

Most Nigerian HR persons studied non pure science related courses. They are mostly made up of people who back in high school couldn't make it to the sciences so they had to settle for Commercial/art or Humanities...my point? Most HR persons are dull and have low IQ, so when you say something smart, you sound really stupid to them.

At interviews here in Nigeria, know what the mumu HR wants to hear and tell the 1diot so he gives you the job. If you try to be very smart, the HR person will get lost as his/her IQ cannot take the fire you are emitting.

My advice, see interviews as a discussion and not an exam and you will ace most interviews.

People are always stressing over an interview as if its the most important aspect of the hiring process. Prepare yourself by knowing what the company does and basic information about them so you don't look like you didn't do your homework. Everything else should fall in place. Be confident, maintain eye contact, maintain good posture and give straight forward answers. If you are stumped by a question, politely ask the interviewer to give you time for a response, think before you talk but don't over think it.
When they say "Tell me about yourself" just keep it professional, nobody cares to know you are the choir master of your church or your favorite show is Tom & Jerry.

Ok

No wahala

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So can use this also if i need a job as a house boy?

Great stuff

This is what I always tell ppl but they don't listen.. Focus on stuff you can prove will contribute to your effectiveness in the position you are looking for.. Talk about experiences.. Always customize your approach for each job interview and you'll at least be considered..

NOT EVERYTHING THAT IS IMPORTANT TO YOU IS IMPORTANT TO YOUR POTENTIAL EMPLOYER

Nice post.

Will dis give u d desired job without God's mercy. Anyway, it's nice.

Alot of people actually miss this.

You get the job and your salary becomes 20-50k... Be innovative, entreprneur

U mean?

yeah I know I'm going to the top
May God bless all today's interviewer and interviewees o
Don't worry this job is yours
Salary 500k per month
This I pray this I want ;Dyeah I know I'm going to the top
May God bless all today's interviewer and interviewees o
Don't worry this job is yours
Salary 500k per month
This I pray this I want

How many times are we going to see this same topic..

Gab

Lovely one. I think you nailed it. This should be of help to job seekers.

Interesting

Any employer that employs or ignores a person based on questions like this is foolish.. like seriously, don't they know people just cram "how to answer this interview question or that".. its best to let the interviewee know what you are expecting from the question you asked him rather than trying to play smart with tricky questions thereby losing someone really meant for the job and getting someone who simply practiced all the "how to answer this and that in an Interview"..

Test your interviewee's IQ in respect of the job offer and you will get what you need, don't chase him away with stupid questions.

I like the present-past-future approach..

I will just reply with " K"