How to Respond to Interview Questions About Yourself (Sample Answers)

These are the questions that reveal who you are as an individual. The interviewer wants to put you at ease and learn more about you, so be candid and open with your responses.

Ensure that all of your answers are relevant to the position for which you are interviewing.

The most common “about you” interview questions include the following:

1. Please Tell Me About Yourself

This is a common method to begin an interview, so be prepared with a brief, intelligent response. Keep your response to a maximum of one minute and avoid giving the interviewer a life history.

If you’re proud of certain achievements, now’s the moment to share them. Your schooling should come first, followed by your most relevant professional accomplishments.

Explain how your present and past experience will help the company, and do so with eagerness and clearly.

While you should stay focused on the job, your personal interests might help your answer stand out and make you a more memorable candidate.

They can help you connect with the interviewer on a more intimate level.

ALSO READ: Top 10 Skills Every Employer Looks For In Job Candidates

2. What Are Your Greatest Strengths?

This seemingly deceptive question is actually a helpful gift. Give an open and honest response, highlighting why you are the best applicant for the job.

For a strong response, list three of your strengths and back them with awards, accolades, or unique anecdotes.

Choose strengths that are directly related to the position and demonstrate your ability to adapt to the role quickly and outperform others.

Don’t give the interviewer the same tired answers they’ve heard a thousand times. Think instead of times when you were able to make a difference because to your special set of skills.

3. What Are Your Weaknesses?

This question, the opposite of “strengths,” is popular with interviewers and feared by candidates. Again, avoid cliches and provide proof.

Overwork and perfectionism aren’t weaknesses. The interviewer knows you’re human and wants a sincere depiction.

This is an interview, not a therapy session, so choose weaknesses that aren’t crucial to the job. You shouldn’t say you’re bad with numbers while interviewing for an accounting job.

Be honest about your weaknesses and how you’re overcoming them. Employers are looking for signs that you are working to better yourself.

Strengths and weaknesses improve with practice! Think carefully about your strengths and limitations, and be ready to back up your responses with clear, concrete examples.

4. How Would Your Boss, Friends And Colleagues Describe You?

If you haven’t thought about it, this is a tough question. Evaluate recent good and negative reactions. To show that you’re self-aware, give two positive traits and one that “needs improvement.”

Never make a claim without backing it up with evidence. You can also use this question as a platform to reveal more about yourself:

Do others laugh at your jokes? Do they look to you as a leader? Do you like to mingle or do you like to sit back and take it all in?

Since your boss/friends/coworkers won’t be there, you have some freedom, but be cautious. Your prospective employer will want to see that you have a sense of humor before they hire you.

5. What Are Your Interests?

Do not overthink the answer to this question. It’s not a trick question, and hiring managers won’t ask it. They want to know all about you to see if your character will fit well with the culture of their company.

Once again, honesty is the best policy. If the recruiting manager happens to be a black belt with an interest in your dojo, you probably don’t want to lie and say that karate is one of your interests.

Just by mentioning some of your interests outside of work, you can show that you are dedicated and well-rounded. Keep politics and religion out of interviews and avoid sensitive topics.

6. Where Do You See Yourself Five Years From Now?

Here is where you should say that the position you’re interviewing for is a good fit with your long-term goals.

Your interviewer is likely looking for a candidate with long-term career possibilities since over 59% of firms hire interns full-time.

Give specific reasons why you’ve settled on this profession. You don’t have to have a job title in mind, but you should aim for a career path that takes you from your current position to higher ones in the same field.

Your reaction needs to find middle ground between practicality and hope. But if your goal is to become president of the world before you turn 30, you might want to keep it to yourself.