Talking about yourself should be easy. But for most of us, it’s pretty tough, especially in an interview. Fortunately, there are a few ways you can psych yourself up for this portion of big day, and nail it, too.
Body Language is Important Whether you realize it or not, it speaks volumes about your personality and state of mind without you saying a word.
So, when you’re asked to talk about yourself, give your body a moment to catch up to your brain before you speak. Take a deep breath, and adjust your posture. Relax your shoulders, un-cross your legs, and do whatever you need to do to “switch” into a more casual posture. Not too casual—you’re still in an interview—just enough to give your interviewer a few body language cues that tell him or her you’re comfortable and excited to talk about yourself.
Keep it Short Although your interviewer did ask you to talk about yourself, he or she probably doesn’t want to spend the entire interview hearing your life’s story. While you want to give a complete answer, linger too long and you’re likely to look unfocused—or worse, lose the interviewer’s interest.
To help keep your response in your interviewer’s attention sweet spot, keep it between one and two minutes. You’ll have to practice this at home a few times to get a sense for what you can fit into that timeframe, but once you do, you’ll be able to pace yourself when it’s time for the interview.
Follow the Formula The trick, of course, is to keep yourself on topic. Think about hitting the following three points.
. To start off, share the easy stuff, like what you’re currently doing, what you studied in college, or what your career path has been focused on. For example, “As you’ve probably seen, I studied business in college, and have been focusing on client relations and business development in the tech world ever since.”
. Next, move on to your professional accomplishments. Pick two or three really unique milestones that relate to the job you’re applying for—for example, maybe you were given the opportunity to work with a high-profile client as a result of your skills as a negotiator. If you can throw in tangible results of your accomplishments as well—like improved client retention or increased sales—all the better!
. Finally, bring it all together by talking about how all your prior experience has positioned you to pursue the challenges and opportunities the company and role you’re interviewing for would offer. Something like, “With my tech background and my track record of solving really tough client issues, I think I’d really succeed in this role.”
Be Yourself When interviewers ask to hear more about you, they usually mean it. The rest of the questions you’ll be asked during your interview will cover your skills and capacity to do the work—but this first question seeks to uncover what you’d really be like to work with every day.
In other words, this is a great opportunity for you to show off your sparkling personality. Don’t be afraid to relax, smile, and throw in stories or anecdotes that show off your passions and interests (think: “The last company I worked for focused on sports teams—which was great, because I’m a basketball fanatic”).
Talking about yourself may never be easy, but using these tips will help make it look easy to your interviewer. While your resume may have an impressive list of accomplishments, nothing on paper could ever bring those talents to life like the person who made them—you!
A final thought — keep it positive, specific and somewhat short; try to make the interview more of a conversation and enjoy! – – Terry
Thank you for this article and tips by Ryan Kahn. Read the full article at the link below.
http://www.thedailymuse.com/job-search/the-question-interviewers-always-ask-and-how-to-answer-it/
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