Treat Every Job as the Unique Opportunity That It Is

I always tell members of my career mentoring site to be willing to prepare a unique resume for every job in which they are interested.  This takes a little more work, but can pay big dividends when it comes to landing interviews.  That’s why I liked the advice in this article on how to answer the question, “Tell me about yourself.”

https://www.themuse.com/advice/your-4step-plan-to-answering-tell-me-about-yourself-perfectly?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Your%204-Step%20Plan%20to%20Answering%20%E2%80%9CTell%20Me%20About%20Yourself%E2%80%9D%20Perfectly&utm_term=Daily%20Email%20List

The first piece of advice is really important.  Just as you want to prepare a unique resume for every job in which you are interested, you want to answer the tell me about yourself question in a manner that highlights how your experience and qualifications make you the perfect candidate for the specific job and company where you are interviewing.

The author is right on when she says, “Two main components go into a hiring decision: technical skills (i.e., can you do the job?) and cultural fit (i.e., do your personality and values jive with the company?). Spend some time reviewing the job description and the ‘about us’ section of the company’s website to better understand the right characteristics to demonstrate.”

In other words, you don’t want a stock answer to the tell me about yourself question.  You want an answer that highlights how you have the technical skills necessary to succeed in the job and  why you are a good cultural fit for the company.

The Pareto Principle (the 80 — 20 rule) applies here.  What you say in answer to the tell me about yourself question may be 80% the same in every interview.  But that other 20%, uniquely tailored to the company and position, can make all the difference in whether or not you land the job.

I know this takes extra work — getting a handle on the skills necessary for the position, figuring out the company culture, preparing an answer, and then practicing — but you’ll find that this extra effort will pay off.

Your career mentor,

Bud

PS: I write this blog to help people create the life and career success they want and deserve. Now I’m going one step further. I’ve created a membership site in which I’ve pulled together my best thoughts on success. And, as a reader of this blog, you can become a member for free. Just go to https://budbilanich.com/join to claim your free membership. You’ll be joining a vibrant and growing community of success minded professionals. I hope to see you there.