Tell us about yourself. How to do it during an interview

Hello!
Continuing the articles about finding a job in the US ( “HR will call, or How to write an American resume , ” “Cheat sheet for completing a LinkedIn profile” , “A covering letter. What should I write?” ) recruiters and HR managers. Although, perhaps, this question is popular with specialists in employment, regardless of the country and nationality. When writing this material, I was guided by the advice of the American career expert Alison Doyle ( "How to Answer Tell Me About Yourself at an Interview" ).

Sometimes interviewers start a conversation with open questions, and one of the most popular is “Tell me about yourself.” Such a question is intended to start a conversation, break the ice and set the tone for the whole interview. In addition, in this way a specialist in employment will be able to get an idea of ​​your personality and understand whether you are good for this or that job.

Know the measure

A story about yourself in one simple sentence will leave more questions to the hiring specialist than it will answer. As a rule, the task of recruiters and Eychars is to check your adequacy as a person and understand how culturally you can fit into this or that team. Remember that only an open person will be able to fit into any team, and a mean story will most likely indicate the opposite. However, too long answer to anything. The interviewer does not want to know everything about you.
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Below are tips on how to answer this question and, just as importantly, what is absolutely not worth mentioning.

Where to begin?

It is clear that you need to speak within the framework of your professionalism. Although the temptation to list your brightest professional skills is too great, it is better not to do that. A more discreet, gentle approach will help you make personal contact with the interviewer.

Try for a start to talk about personal interests that are not directly related to your career, but complement the professional image well. For example, a hobby like chess will show your interest in logical tasks. And if you play football on Sundays, then you are a team player. Agree: this is what is needed for the programmer.
Classes related to interaction with others, such as volunteering, conducting museum tours, raising funds for charity or community clubs will show that you are comfortable when communicating with others.

Remember that, as in the case of “tell something about yourself that is not indicated in your resume”, one of the goals of this question is to seek to know something about you that is not related to your career, experience and attitude work.

From personal to professional

By sharing a couple of interesting personal facts, you can mention some key professional skills that will enhance your value as a specialist.
Try to use phrases like “Besides all these interests and hobbies, my professional life is a huge part of who I am, so I would like to tell you a little about the benefits I can bring to this work.”

Share your expertise

Be prepared to mention three or four personal qualities, skills, or areas of competence that will allow you to succeed in the job for which you are passing this interview. Ultimately, you will definitely want to share some more of your benefits before the interview ends.

Make a list of your strengths before you go for an interview, to know in advance what to share. Take a look at the job description and relate it to your skills.

Then tell us about some of the most important skills that make you an ideal candidate for this position.

However, be careful not to overload the interviewer with information. Having told about three or four advantages, it is worth mentioning that you have other qualities that you would like to discuss.

At first, it is enough to just briefly mention these qualities and briefly refer to situations that prove that you were able to apply them with benefit. For example, you said that you like to give presentations and during lunches with potential clients this allowed you to attract many buyers.

Later in the interview you will want to discuss in more detail the situations, difficulties and results that are the result of your strengths.

Avoid politics and disputes

As a rule, you should avoid topics like politics or religion.

It is important not to mention topics that may cause concern about your moral principles, character, performance, or attitude to work. Also, do not need to disclose personal information about your family.

Good luck in your job search!