Tell me About Yourself
This interview question can be a bit tricky to answer. It is one that most people will ask and it is important to be honest because, like with all questions, you want to make sure that you will fit in with the team you will be working with. It is important to give a positive impression though and this is really your chance to describe your personality. It can be worth trying to fit in some traits that you have that might be suitable for the job, but generally anything that will show your positive qualities.
You could make it more about you or about how you are in a work environment. It could be good to change it depending on what else you have said in the interview so far. If you have discussed a lot of things about your approach to work, then something more personal could be better. If you have not had a chance to talk about everything you wanted with regards to your working style, then you could include.
If you are asked the question at the beginning of the interview, then you will need to approach it differently to if you asked at the end. At the beginning you will need to focus on the skills you have that fit in with the job. Never ask back ‘what do you want to know’ as it makes you look unprepared.
You need to highlight important achievements that are relevant to the job and keep it short. It is not an excuse to give your whole life story.
An example could be : I have a PhD in psychology which gave me the skills that I needed to do the research role at the University of Wolverhampton that I have just completed. I was able to build on my theoretical studies and now feel I have the necessary practical skills to take on many more research projects such as this one. The fact that this job is working in a similar field of child behaviour means that I already have many of skills as well as background knowledge necessary for the role.
Another example : My previous work in retail has given me the skills needed to know what it is to be in this environment. My management qualification has given me theoretical understanding of leading a retail team. I feel that this job as a retail manager will combine both my experience and qualifications to give me the perfect opportunity to show what I have learned.
So tell us about yourself!
I always start by focussing on my work experience because my qualifications are not relevant to the field that I work in. I also try to include some of my skills and some examples of how those have helped me in previous jobs. I work hard on smiling through the question too as it is often the first one asked and I want to look friendly!
Depending on where it is asked in the interview will depend on the answer, however always try and focus on the skills you can bring to the role, even if that means something like "I volunteer at a charity shop, and therefore I am customer facing as I serve the people that come into the shop and handle the monies" could be one answer
Be honest. The question speaks for itself. However they do not want to hear everything so focus on it as you would with someone you do not know very well.
How have you got to be sitting there at that interview? Tell them about your history, what you have been doing (say from school/Uni) depending on how far back, making sure that you show that what you are telling them relates to what they would like you to be doing in the role they are interviewing for.
In your mind you need to focus on your own CV which has got you the interview for the job and go into more detail, explaining as you go along what you did in those roles, how you did it, what you achieved for yourself and the company but always keep in the back of your mind that it needs to somehow relate to the role they are currently interviewing you for.
Don’t just solely focus on your work history, employers want to know what kind of person they are potentially going to employ, they want to know if they will be able to work with you, if you will fit into the team etc so make sure you tell them what your hobbies are, what your interests are, what you like to do outside of work.
Keep it simple.