10 answers to the tell me about yourself question

10 answers to the tell me about yourself question10 answers to the tell me about yourself questionYou know its coming.Its the most feared question during any job interview Do you think I would look good in a cowboy hat?Just kidding. The real question is Can you tell me about yourself?Blecch. What a boring, vague, open-ended question. Who likes answering that?I know. Im with you. But unfortunately, hiring managers and recruiters ask the question. Even if youre not interviewing and youre out networking in the community - you need to be ready to hear it and answer it. At all times.Follow Ladders on FlipboardFollow Ladders magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and moraNow, before I share a list of 10 memorable answers, consider the two essential elements behind the answersThe medium is the message. The interviewer cares less about your answer to this question and more about the confidence, enthusiasm and passion with which you answer it .The speed of the response is the response. The biggest mistake you could make is pausing, stalling or fumbling at the onset of your answer, thus demonstrating a lack of self-awareness and self-esteem.Best sample answers to the most common job interview questionNext time youre faced with the dreaded, Tell me about yourself question, try theseI can summarize who I am in three words. Grabs their attention immediately. Demonstrates your ability to be concise, creative and compelling.The quotation I live my life by is Proves that personal development is an essential part of your growth plan. Also shows your ability to motivate yourself.My personal philosophy is Companies hire athletes not shortstops. This line indicates your position as a thinker, not just an employee.People who know me best say that Im This response offers insight into your own level of self-awareness.Well, I googled myself this morning, and heres what I found Tech-savvy, fun, cool people would say this. Unexpected an d memorable.My passion is People dont care what you do people care who you are. And what youre passionate about is who you are. Plus, passion unearths enthusiasm.When I welches seven years old, I always wanted to be An answer like this shows that youve been preparing for this job your whole life, not just the night before.If Hollywood made a movie about my life, it would be called Engaging, interesting and entertaining.Can I show you, instead of tell you? Then, pull something out of your pocket that represents who you are. Who could resist this answer? Who could forget this answer?The compliment people give me most frequently is Almost like a testimonial, this response also indicates self-awareness and openness to feedback.Keep in mind that these examples are just the opener. The secret is thinking how you will follow up each answer with relevant, interesting and concise explanations that make the already bored interviewer look up from his stale coffee and think, Wow Thats the best answer Ive heard all dayUltimately its about answering quickly, its about speaking creatively and its about breaking peoples patterns.I understand your fear with such answers. Responses like these are risky, unexpected and unorthodox. And thats exactly why they work.Otherwise, you become (yet another) non-entity in the gray mass of blah, blah, blah.Youre hireable because of your answers. When people ask you to tell them about yourself, make them glad they asked.Let me ask you this How much time did you dedicate this week to becoming more interesting? Let me suggest this For the list called, 61 Stupid Things to Stop Doing Before Its Too Late, send an e-mail to me, and you win it for freeThis article was first published on July 22, 2014.