How to Answer the Age-Old Question: "Tell Me About Yourself"

The number one question you should expect in an interview is "Tell me about yourself."  When answering this question, keep these four points in mind:

1. This question is a test to see how well you answer open-ended questions.  
2. Do not answer this question with, "Well, what do you want to know?"  This is an employer's least favorite response. 
3. Employers are looking for your professional history, skills, experience related to the job.  This is not where you talk about your hobbies or where you grew up.  
4. This is your elevator speech.  An elevator speech is a brief, persuasive speech about yourself to spark your interviewer's interest; the response should last no longer than a short elevator ride (20-30 seconds). 

You should also have the answers to these questions at your finger tips:

• Tell me about yourself.
• What do you know about this company?
• why are you applying for this job?
• How would you describe yourself?
• What are your major strengths?
• What are your greatest weaknesses?
• What type of work do you like to do best?
• What are your interests outside of work?
• What accomplishment gave you the greatest satisfaction?
• Why did you leave your last job?
• Why were you fired (if you were)?
• Where do you see yourself five years from now?
• What are your goals in life?
• How much did you make at your last job?

These are the five basic questions you need to pay attention to.  These questions make take various forms, but these are the five roots for the majority of the questions you may be asked in an interview.  If you aren't asked these directly, make sure to stress your answers to these questions, because this is the information the interviewer needs.   

"Why are you here?"

"What can you do for us?

"What kind of person are you?"

"What exactly distinguishes you from nineteen or nine hundred other people who are applying for this job?"

"Can I afford you?"

You should also have questions for the organization you're interviewing for!  They are similar to those you will be asked.

"What does this job involve?"

"What are the skills a top employee in this job would have to have?"

"Are these the kinds of people I would like to work with, or not?"

"If we like each other, and we both want to work together, can I persuade them there is something unique about me, that makes me different from nineteen or nine hundred other people who are applying for this job?"

"Can I persuade them to hire me at a salary I need or want?"