• No doubt about it, “Tell me about
yourself” is one of the difficult and
easiest questions to answer.
• One of the reasons this query is so
difficult to answer is that it’s
confusing. What exactly does it
mean and why are they asking it?

Tell Me About Yourself

Tell me who you are professionally.
Your qualities aligns with the job.
Where do you excel?
What do you uniquely offer that’s evident
to your colleagues and customers?
Why should the employer consider you
over competing leaders with similar
skills?

Form

A short narrative.
Incorporates your main personal brand
themes.
Close with a message of interest.

Make a List of Your Competitive
Strengths & Differentiators.

Your list might include topics such
as:
Degree from a prestigious university.
Long-held passion for your career field.
Unusually broad skills that distinguish you
from other candidates.
Personal philosophy or work ethic that has
driven your success.
Accolades from others about your work and
effectiveness.

Two Rule’s

1. Don’t Tell Your Life Story
2. Do Tell Pertinent Info

Response

Broke your response into five
categories
1. Recent professional achievements.
2. Educational achievements.
3. Applicable skills.
4. Professional goals.
5. Reason for interest in the company.

Do’s & Don’t

Recent Professional Achievements
Do’s Don’t
 Plan out 2-3 professional
achievements before the
interview.
 Mention achievements
that relate to the position
you are applying for.
 Practice, Practice,
Practice.
 Recite your resume.
 Waffle around your
experience.
 Mention achievements
that are unrelated to the
position.

Educational Achievements
Do’s Don’t
 Explain how the abilities
and knowledge you
gained can be leveraged
to successfully satisfy the
position’s requirements.
 Refer to extracurricular
activities in which you
gained leadership skills.
 Expand on major projects
that you worked on.
 Go too in-depth if you are
already a seasoned
professional.
 Ramble on about your
thesis papers.
 Recite your course list.

Applicable Skills
Do’s Don’t
 Prepare 2-3 relevant
skills.
 Discuss skills that fit
the job duties.
 Explain how you
gained these skills.
 Simply list any skills that
you may possess.
 Talk about skills that are
unrelated to the position.
 Lie about your skills.

Career Goals
Do’s Don’t
 Mention goals that the
company can help you
achieve.
 Talk about goals that
show you are forward
thinker.
 Demonstrate that you
want to build a stable
career.
 Discuss your life goals (i.e.
owning a house etc.)
 Give off the impression
that you lack career goals.
 Mention goals that you
won’t be able to achieve
with the company.

Your interest in the company
Do’s Don’t
 Explain how the company
can help you achieve your
goals.
 Compliment the
company’s healthy work
environment.
 Indicate that you could
see yourself with the
company long term.
 Talk about the pay.
 Just say you want a job.
 Mention you want to work
for the company because
of the great commute.