With many people actively engaged in a full-time job search right now, we are fielding a lot of questions about how to be more effective in that search. One key element is knowing how to talk about yourself, including responding effectively to the dreaded request “Tell me about yourself” in both casual networking and formal interview settings.
This can be tricky to master. You need to find a balance between demonstrating humility and confidently promoting your track record of success. You need to explain exactly how your experience has prepared you to fulfill the needs of the hiring manager. To help develop your “pitch” (also known as your “career narrative,” “positioning statement,” or simply “story”), consider using one of the two following frameworks.
Framework 1: Destination Focused
This approach, explained by communications expert and LinkedIn Learning instructor Jodi Glickman in this video, involves beginning your pitch with the most relevant pieces of information, which captures your listener’s attention quickly. Presenting your target destination (i.e., the job or role you want) first and then delving into your skills and background enables you to curate your experiences in a way that connects them to your target role.
Framework 2: Theme Focused
This approach involves crafting a pitch around the themes that are common across all your professional experiences. These themes could be your strengths (e.g., three or four key skills that are relevant to your target audience), your work experience (e.g., industry expertise or how you can contribute and what types of problems you can solve), or your personality attributes. As you pick the themes to focus on, make sure they correspond with the needs of your target audience. Then, provide evidence of these themes using details about where you have worked and your specific accomplishments.
Other Important Elements
Regardless of the framework you use to build your pitch, you should adapt its content and length with respect to several key factors:
- Audience: How close are you to your target audience? What are their needs? What is culturally appropriate?
- Type of Delivery: Will your pitch be delivered via email, over the phone, or in person?
- Purpose: What is your goal for the interaction? What is most important to your audience? Will this be in a networking/informal setting or a formal interview?
You want to help the other person understand your areas of interest and how you can contribute. If you are too vague, the listener will have a more difficult time helping you with referrals, facilitating new introductions, or advocating for you to the hiring manager.Remember, this is all about relationship building. Be conversational, and seek to create connections.
Have you been admitted to business school? If so, do you want to get a head start on defining your career goals? Do you need help preparing for job interviews or learning how to effectively network with your target employers? Or maybe you want to be a top performer in your current role but are unsure how to maximize your potential. Let an mbaMission Career Coach help via a free 30-minute consultation!
