Were you invited for an interview? Perfectly! Want to be “on top”? Then take the time to prepare. Even if this is not the first meeting with your employer in your life, anxiety is still unavoidable, but it can be minimized.

Remember how you took the exam at school: you studied the material – you think about the level of assessment, you didn’t study – you just dream of “surviving” the exam. The same projection is the result of the interview. Do you want a higher salary, position, better conditions? Prepare for the meeting with the employer properly. Improvisation in this case plays against the applicant.

You may not know the full list of questions that the interviewer has prepared for you, but you can prepare a mini-presentation – the answer to the question: “What can you tell us about yourself?” As practice shows, this question sounds more often than others. There are several reasons for this.

The ability to present oneself is an integral part of many modern professions. One of the most successful forms of manifestation of this skill at the interview is high-quality self-presentation. The whole further course of the conversation will depend on how and what the applicant says. Many are afraid of this question and in vain. In this case, you have the opportunity to build a conversation based on your script.

A summary is a dry statement of facts. The transfer allows you to give some of them an emotional color, to emphasize information that distinguishes you from the total number of candidates. Moreover, you have the opportunity to prepare the ground for the “right” questions.

So, what should be the story about yourself? What to focus on – family, experience, education, hobbies, abilities? It is important to remember that you have been invited as a candidate for a vacant position, and therefore your mini-work should contain information about professional experience in the first place. Ideally, the story should be a short but capacious excerpt of your resume. Optimal speaking time – no more than 4 minutes.

Content Structure

General information: age, marital status, place of residence, presence of children. It would seem that it could be easier? But even here it is worth thinking about which point in your biography you should pay attention to and what is better not to cover.

It all depends on the position, the type of activity, and the company you intend to get. For example, for a young man with minimal work experience in a security structure, having a family and children will be an added advantage. Such a candidate is potentially reliable for the employer both in matters of decency and in matters of long-term relationships. Conversely, those whose responsibilities involve numerous business trips, the need to work night shifts, and a floating schedule should not focus on the same information.

Education

Only education relevant to the activity should be required, even if it is only courses. Agree that it is unlikely that an economist’s degree will be a trump card for a person applying for the position of the designer. The best option would be to mark the courses, workshops, and competitions in which the applicant participated.

Work experience

You should only describe the experience that is relevant to the search. It is not necessary to list in detail all the time limits within which it was received. Note the total length of service.

Do not quote a resume or use: “From July 2013 to May 2015 ” Your task is to summarize all available experience and identify from it the main responsibilities that will characterize you as an expert in this area. Leave room for the interviewer’s clarifying questions, and for yourself, by answering them, the opportunity to appear in a favorable light. Otherwise, you risk being interrupted half-heartedly or you will push the HR-manager to ask you much more tricky questions.

For some professionals, information that reflects the quantitative indicators of experience, which increases their level of qualification, will be relevant. For example, an accountant and HR manager need to note the size of the company’s staff where they previously worked; the project manager should indicate the total number of implemented projects, etc.

In the absence of experience, indicate the professional knowledge, skills, and abilities acquired in the course of study. Information that you are a regular member of the pro community or attending seminars and training will also not be superfluous.

No academic achievement or membership in professional clubs? No problem. Tell us what you can do better than others. What do you do much faster? That mastered independently. What are your abilities in the first place to help solve life and work situations?

Your strengths. Achievement. Passion for the profession

An important part of the CV – the achievement of the applicant in a particular position. The employer needs to understand how you can be useful to him as a future employee, what results he can expect from you, and, finally, why it is profitable to hire you.

Remember that they are hiring not the sales manager who called customers, sent out business offers, and so on, but the one who sold, and even more than the established plan. Achievements are often backed up by concrete quantitative indicators.

The phrase “I was the best employee of the customer service department” will be incomplete. Correct: “My personal rate of processed applications often exceeded the established norms by 10-15%, for which I was repeatedly awarded.”

In situations where previous experience did not involve direct participation in increasing the company’s profits, you can still note the professional contribution to the development of the organization. For example, a safety and fire engineer may emphasize his ability to perform his duties efficiently and on time: “During my time at the company, there were no significant comments from the supervisory and inspection bodies, which could lead to large fines…”

Issues of personal achievement can and should be considered from different sides of personal contribution to the overall process. Any head of the organization understands that some employees increase income, others help not to lose it. Don’t be upset right away if you haven’t developed or implemented new projects in the previous place. This may not have been an end in itself, given your responsibilities.

It is not necessary to dryly list strengths: responsible, attentive, etc. It is better to give them a detailed explanation or express through individual facts. For example, the statement “I am a certified psychologist, which was my dream since 9th grade” best reflects the ability to set goals and achieve them.

Example

Security Driver/Personal Assistant

Yaroslav Sukhov, 28, married

Total driving experience – more than 9 years. The last five of them work as personal drivers in premium and VIP cars. He also served as a security guard. Worked with top executives, company owners and their families. Carried out safe, comfortable and fast movement of the head of the company in the city and Ukraine. Accompanied during business meetings. Ensured timely delivery of documents to the bank. Fulfilled assignments for the economic needs of the house and cottage. Controlled the efficiency of the car. These were my main tasks, but I also had to do a number of other tasks from time to time.

Is a certified personal safety specialist with the right to bear arms. He also completed extreme driving courses.

Trained to act to prevent and prevent an attack on a client. I can take into account the traffic situation when choosing routes. Able to make minor repairs to the car on the road. I speak spoken English. I can speak on the main basic topics.

I consider myself a responsible and punctual person. During the whole period of work there were never any delays for a business meeting due to a late submitted car or incorrectly chosen route. I know the city very well and I am well-versed in unfamiliar terrain. I can comply with the conditions of confidentiality and trade secrets of the enterprise. Attentive driver – there were no accidents.

I am fond of sports: hand-to-hand combat, football, and also cars. I like to travel.

Apparently that’s all. Maybe you want to clarify something – ready to answer.

Agree that without preparation, in the course of giving a structural, capacious, and at the same time the concise answer will be difficult even in the presence of eloquence. No wonder there is an opinion that the best impromptu is a prepared impromptu.

Good luck with the interview!