Top Tips for Selling Your Value Proposition in an Interview

All too often, the tell me about yourself,” or questions of the sort, are expected at the beginning of interviews as they remove the tension between you and the interviewer.

It gives the interviewer a chance to hear a brief, summed-up version of your background and capabilities; it also gives them insight into what experience and qualifications you think are most relevant to the position you’re interviewing for.

Job interviews are primarily full of uncertainty, sometimes frustrating questions. For example, the most dreaded question is always “Tell me something about yourself.”

It is unclear enough to get you lost in thought, but the way you answer can prove your competence.

Below are tips on responding “to tell me about yourself.”

1. Saying the Appropriate Thing

Always take your time to prepare your answer beforehand. You’ll know what to say and be on your way to standing out during your interview!

Don’t Shy off from asking for clarification. If you are unsure where you are heading with your answer, ask the interviewer to clarify what they want.

You might find that most probably they specifically want to hear about your personality, or they may want to know about your last job.

Remember to be careful when asking for clarification. Maintain professionalism. Please don’t say the question didn’t make sense or that it’s too ambiguous. Just mention specific attributes that may guide you towards the correct answer. For example, you can rephrase the question: “I will be more than glad to do that.” “Did you want to know more about my professional experience or my interests?”

TIP-Focus on your value proposition

2. Mention Volunteer Work to Your Advantage.

Talk about specific tasks you have engaged in as a volunteer and mention your best accomplishments. It is a plus if you don’t have a lot of work experience.

Volunteer experience can help you emphasize qualities you want prospective employers to know. Whether you worked as a chef or organized an entire fundraising event in a church doesn’t matter where you have worked. Most volunteer experiences can be an excellent opportunity to outline your strengths.

3.Start with Your Interests Outside of Work.

This response gives a more casual start to your answer. It also makes you seem like a more diverse candidate. Try and talk about hobbies and interests that you can link to the job opening.

But always be honest. Please don’t pretend to be interested in what you dislike because the interviewer has something similar on their desk. For example, if the interviewer has a small league trophy on their desk. Don’t pretend you like the game. If you’re applying for a job in the finance sector, it’s a good idea to talk about your investments. And try to prove your achievement in that field.

Conclusion

Finally, respond quickly and confidently to the questions. Prepare your answers to avoid hesitation when the question comes. You want to prove your confidence, efficiency, and self-awareness enough to answer their question quickly. You will gain confidence in job interviews with time.

Until then,

“fake it till you make it.” Think of yourself as a confident person, and you will become confident.

Keep your answers short and precise to 60 seconds. Or else you risk rambling and ending up unclear.

Need a pre-interview session ahead of your looming interview? Contact us at [email protected].