The Guaranteed Interview Question "Tell Me About Yourself" and How to Answer It...

“Tell me about yourself…”

In every interview, you can always assume the dreaded question, “So, tell me about yourself,” will inevitably be asked.
Let’s admit it, we all hate this question. But, why? Probably because we never know how to answer it correctly! Do we give a brief summary of our past job experience, do we list our positive character traits that would make us successful for this job, or do we take 10 minutes and give the interviewer every detail of our lives starting at birth?

Our team at Forward Science knows just how tricky this question is to answer, so we created a list of 5 tips to help you ace this question and impress your interviewer (which we hope is us one day):

Don’t respond with a question...

• First things first, do not mirror the interviewer. Don’t respond with “where should I start?” They are interviewing you and they want to see how you are going to answer this question without their guidance.

Match your response to the position...

• Your answer should align with the type of job that you are interviewing for: if you are interviewing for a sales position, reply with an entertaining story and captivate the interviewer’s attention. Engage them and show off your interpersonal skills.
• But, if you are interviewing for an engineering job, your answer should be methodical and precise. The interviewer wants to see that you are efficient and able to solve a problem quickly.

Stray from the resume...

• While it is important to reference your background and experience, share more about yourself than what is on paper! Share about experiences that make you the person you are and the best candidate for the role-- those are the types of responses that get remembered.

Keep it relevant…

• When answering this question, explain the relevant anecdotes that relate back to the position. Refer to the high points on your resume, skills and interest that directly apply to qualities the ideal candidate would possess. Share about your past experiences beyond your resume, but don’t go down a rabbit hole of personal details!

Be genuine...

• Keep in mind that an interviewer wants a genuine response to this question. Your responses should actually reflect you, your experience and your personality. It doesn't have to be so calculated!