8 Example Answers to the ‘Tell Me About Yourself’ Job Interview Question

‘Tell me about yourself’ is one of the most common job interview questions. It’s also one of the trickiest interview questions for many candidates. What is the interviewer really trying to find out?

The truth is the question isn’t that complicated. But it is one of the most important job interview questions as your answer can establish the tone for the rest of the interview.

The best way of answering this question is to use your answer to show interviewers why you’re the perfect candidate for the job. You can do this by framing your answer in a way that highlights your experiences, achievements and key skills.

Interviewers ask this question to break the ice and get the interview rolling. They also want to learn a bit about your background.

When asking this question, interviewers are looking for some insight into your professional life, not your personal life. So focus your answer on your career and use your answer to demonstrate your value as a professional.

The key to answering ‘tell me about yourself’ is to prepare your answer in a way that indicates you’re a perfect candidate for the job.

But how do you do this?

One of the best ways to do this is to tell a short, concise story of your career that focuses on your career’s highlights. Then link this into how you’re an ideal candidate for the job.

However, the key to acing this question is to highlight your unique selling point. Your unique selling point is what separates you from other candidates.

If you can frame your answer in a way that highlights your key career story and successes while showing what makes you unique, you’ll make a positive impression on interviewers.

When answering ‘tell me about yourself’, make sure your answer is tailored to the company you’re interviewing with. Show how you are aligned with the company’s values and culture. Show what skills you possess that make you an ideal candidate for the job.

You may want to think of part of this question as ‘tell me why we should employ you’ as opposed to ‘tell me about yourself’.

Take a look at the example answers in this guide and note how they are tailored to the company the candidates are interviewing with.

When talking about the story of your career, keep it short and concise. Try to give a brief overview, rather than an in-depth account of every position you’ve ever held.

If you can use your answer to ‘tell me about yourself’ to convey your value, you’ll make a positive impression on interviewers. Do this by showing how you have achieved success in the past.

‘I have been employed in customer service for over 11 years. Having started my career as a customer service advisor in 2010, I have since progressed to customer service manager positions.

Currently employed as customer service manager at Example Company, I am responsible for the delivery of high-quality customer service. I provide leadership to a team of eight customer service agents and ensure teams have the capabilities to exceed daily and monthly targets. During my time in this role, I have increased customer satisfaction rates by 43% and increased response times to customer queries by 61%.

Having studied the job description for this role, I believe my ability to improve levels of customer service makes me an ideal candidate.’

Note how the example answer above focuses on the candidate’s unique selling point, which is her ability to improve customer service.

‘I’m a sales manager with over 12 years’ experience in the SaaS sphere. During my time in SaaS sales, I have used a consultative sales strategy, driving sales of software products by solving problems for customers and implementing the beneficial solutions.

In my current role, I have exceeded annual sales targets by more than 43% on three occasions and monthly sales targets by 88% on seven occasions. I have built profitable, genuine relationships with clients, and I generate high levels of repeat business.

In the future, I intend to continue exceeding expectations when it comes to SaaS sales. I believe I possess the skills and capabilities to do exactly that in this job.’

‘I am a software developer, with over nine years’ experience. My career has seen me spearhead multiple complex software development initiatives that have added genuine value to companies.

Most recently, I developed a booking system for a major holiday company. This solution enabled the efficient management of customer’s holiday bookings. It saved thousands of people hours and over four-hundred thousand dollars per year in wages.

Since I was a teenager, I have been passionate about developing software. Back then, I used to develop my own video games for my friends. Some of these games were even sold in major video game stores across the United States. After leaving school, I obtained a bachelor’s degree in software engineering, and I haven’t looked back since.’

‘I’ve been a teacher for over eight years. I’m passionate improving students’ learning experience and helping them achieve their education objectives.

In my last role as a teacher at Example High School, I taught mathematics to GCSE students. Over 74% of my students achieved grades of C or above.

Going forward, I intend to continue to help students improve and exceed their predicted grades. I believe that, considering my track record of improving student performance, I am the ideal candidate to excel in this job.’

‘I am an executive assistant, with over 16 years’ experience providing admin support to business executives, politicians and large companies.

Currently, I am responsible for providing admin support to the CEO of Example Company. This involves answering phones, responding to all forms of correspondence and managing the CEO's diary. While employed in this role, I rewrote office policies and restructured processes. This generated annual cost-savings of over sixty-thousand dollars and saved thirty people hours per week.

In the future, I intend to continue to enable executives to make more effective use of their time. As the job advert states that you’re looking for an efficient executive assistant with a track record of high performance, I feel that I am the ideal candidate for this job.’

‘I have been employed as a plumber for over 12 years. Having started my career as an apprentice plumber in 2009, I have since gone on to work on major projects. These include projects to implement plumbing services in rail stations across London.

Currently, I am employed as a plumber for Example Company. In this role, I respond to emergency call-outs in residential properties. As I have been employed in this role for over five years, I am now seeking a new challenge and I am excited about the prospect of working on larger projects.’

‘I am a project manager, with over nine years of experience and a Six Sigma Black Belt qualification. During my career, I have managed multiple projects valued at more than ten-million dollars in countries across Asia, America and Europe.

In my last job as project manager at Example Company, I orchestrated a project to automate manufacturing processes. This involved replacing outdated equipment with robotic machinery. As a result of this project, the company generated annual cost savings of over two-million dollars.

With a track record of delivering multi-million-dollar projects within timescales and quality standards, I believe my skills and experiences match the ones you are seeking in candidates for this job.’

'I am a HR director. My career in human resources began in 2007, when I landed my first job as a HR advisor. I soon gained promotion and eventually progressed to the role of HR director. I have been employed in this role for the last five years.

In my current role, I establish new HR policies, develop employee relations programmes and manage talent pipelines. A key aspect of my job as HR director is diversity & inclusion. I develop robust diversity & inclusion programmes and to ensure workforces are inclusive.

As your job advert mentions that you want to recruit a HR director with experience leading diversity & inclusion initiatives, I feel I am the perfect candidate for this job.'