How To Answer "Tell Me About Yourself"

Almost every interview panel has asked this first question “tell me about yourself”. Every interview starts with hi or hello Mr.Xyz, greetings. Have a seat. One or two more sentences (basically about the position or job) and then this question.

Actually, Its an icebreaker between the interviewer and the prospective candidate. The interviewer wants to know about you. What values you are bringing to there company or firm and how are you perfect for this job. He wants to know these things in brief. So here are a few things which you should keep in mind while answering this basic but the most important question as it is said that the first impression is the last impression so make sure you want to make it your best impression.

If You Are Fresher:

• Tell the interviewer about your educational qualifications: If you are a fresher then introduce yourself by saying your name and the qualifications you have ( for this particular job). 

• Mention any projects you have worked on: Many people do internships or summer training in schools and colleges. If you have done them then mention it in your answer what was the project or training about and what was your contribution to it.

• Mention your hobbies: Mentioning your hobbies means you are just trying to connect with the interviewer. Many times hobbies are not written in your resume. So the interviewer may not know about it. But if you mention your hobbies then the interviewer’s hobbies may match and he/she may want to talk to you, more about that topic and may feel more comfortable.

For Example:

I am Xyz, I have completed my bachelors in information technology from —— college, university of ——. I have completed my school education from ——. 

I have done a final year project in which we had to build an online shopping website. (Explain about that project). I designed the website using asp.net, HTML, and SQL. My website had many different pages in which  ——. 

In my leisure time, I love to do coding and solving puzzles.

That’s all for the time being.

For Working Professionals:

• Tell the interviewer about your qualifications, professional background and work experience in a nutshell: Keeping in mind that the interviewer only wants to know why ‘you’ are professionally perfect for this job, start your answer by mentioning your qualifications, your professional background, your work experience in that field.

• Mention your big achievements: Tell the interviewer about any major achievements of yours in the previous jobs like how many projects you handled, how you are a team player, and helping your team in achieving the team goal and how this quality of yours will be beneficial for this company.

• End the answer by mentioning your hobbies: As mentioned earlier in this post, telling your interviewer about your hobbies means you are trying to connect more with your interviewer. They may try talking more about the hobby if they also have the same hobby or interest in a particular thing. It will relax the room’s atmosphere and make them feel that you are not stressed. In fact, you are a friendly person who tries to connect with other people. 

For Example:

I am Xyz, I have 10 years of experience in ——. During this period of time, I worked with several different clients like ——. During this time I have worked in different domains like retail banking and financial services. I have handled different projects like ——. I have experience working in teams of different sizes. I have worked as a team leader and handled different resources. I ah e helped my team in achieving the desired goal by training them in the related project works.

When I am not working, I love to play football and sing karaoke.

That’s all for the time being.

Important Tips (Do’s and Don’ts): 

• Make sure to follow the dress code of the interview. In many places like banks and Multinational companies, it is expected from you to dress formally. So dress accordingly.

• Put your handbag on the side of the chair or on the floor near your chair. Don’t hold or grab your bag too tightly which sitting as it shows how nervous you are.

• Try to sound genuine and natural. Sometimes people mug up or try to memorize their answer so much that they sound artificial. Calm down! it’s nothing wrong in preparing your answer beforehand. If it helps, you can try to practice your answers in front of a mirror, close friends, or a relative. They can advise you how you sound while answering them.

• Don't try to bring your personal relationships in front of the interviewer. If he/she is asking about you that doesn’t mean he wants to know about your family or your personal struggles or your medical issues. He/ she just wants to know you professionally. So talk about how you can be an asset to the company.

• And lastly, don't brag too much about yourself. Some people while trying hard to impress the interviewer, just go on bragging about themselves. It is a strict no-no. It obviously sounds fake and shows that you only care for yourself.

We hope these tips help you in cracking your interview. All the best. 

If you want us to write about any topic then please let us know. If you like this blog then comments in the comment box below.