by Anthony Stough
You’ve successfully translated your military experience, networked with every person that you can, and it finally paid off! You landed the interview with the company of your dreams and now it’s time to tell your story. Piece of cake, right? This seemingly harmless interview question packs a punch and will knock down any unsuspecting person. The worst part of it all? It’s a go-to question and generally starts off every interview: Can you tell me a little about yourself?
Know Your Enemy…well sort of:
Such a simple question tends to catch many unsuspecting interviewers off-guard. But trust me, recruiters and hiring managers aren’t asking it to trip you up. They literally just want to know who you are as a professional. Keep the “professional” in mind for later. Personally when I hire, I use the question to set the tone for the interview. I see the question as a soft ball and I’m letting you take the first swing. What you decide to do with it? Well, that’s completely up to you. To be fair, it is a lot of pressure to set the tone of your own interview, but with a well-prepared and rehearsed answer you’ll be fine!
the 6 step process
So…tell me about yourself? Here’s what they don’t want to know about you: your age, where you’re from, where you were born, what your favorite hobby is, etc. Remember, you get to set the tone of your interview and you want to keep it professional. What they do want to know about you is whether you are a good fit for the company, so keep this in mind when you’re building out your answer:
What’s your name? (If they don’t already know it.)
What type of professional are you?
How many years of experience do you have?
What industries have you worked in?
What’s your specialization?
What are you seeking?
Let’s practice:
Let’s say you are a Army Sergeant (E-5) with over 5 years of experience, and you’re interviewing for a operations team lead with an organization.
“My name is Joe Smith. I’m an operations leader with over 5 years of experience in the military with a specialization in logistics, project management, and team management. I’m currently seeking an opportunity to expand my career and I’m interested in learning how my background can positively impact your team and organization.”
What impact does your answer have?
Looking at the example above, we responded to all 6 of those questions with a simple answer. When you create your own answer, it’s important to practice it until you can easily recite it. This is a snapshot of your experience, so don’t overload your answer with everything that you have done. There’s still the rest of the interview! This is your opportunity to set the tone of the interview and show the interviewer why you are the best person for the job.
To learn more about preparing for the interview, check out our article “Playing the Transition Game”.