How to Sell Yourself in a Job Interview

 How to Sell Yourself in a Job Interview (without sounding like you're bragging). RealTalk on the blog with Romy, Your NextSteps Career Coach gives the top 4 tips on how to nail the job interview and how to answer the 3 most common interview questions.

How to Sell Yourself in a Job Interview (without sounding like you're bragging)

This just might be the $1,000,000 question right?! The truth is when you know how to sell yourself without bragging, you can nail the job interview, share your genius in any situation confidently and comfortably and know what to include on your About Me page and LinkedIn Summary.

As a career transitions coach, I find that clients are most anxious for the job interview. At first, they worry if they will be invited for an interview and then they worry about actually going in and being able to ace the interview they have landed.

Suddenly, they want to remain calm, collected and as if they would make a great member of the “team,” while still showcasing their expertise and hireable skills. With all that floating around no wonder we go into interviews an absolute nervous wreck.

I know it’s hard to predict what you will be asked and I so wish I had a crystal ball to share those insider questions with you, but I don’t.

What I do know to be true, that works for my clients EVERY TIME, when you can confidently and effectively communicate your professional story-- your value, your why...YOU can answer any question they ask and nail the interview.

There is a real art to selling yourself, without sounding like you’re bragging, but the good news is it can absolutely be done and I’ve got 5 tips for you today and 4 of the most common questions you can start preparing for, especially in now that we need to take into account working remotely and a worldwide panedemic.

Click here to download my free guide to writing a riveting cover letter!

5 Tips to Better Prepare for a Job Interview

1. Remember you are wearing your professional hat and in the professional lane. Everything you are talking about should be in relation to your professional life, experience and skill set.
2. While it might seem like the interviewer is interested in you, REALLY she is interested in how you BENEFIT the organization; so make sure you show how your value will benefit that organization in every answer.
3. Do your homework on the organization but don’t over-prepare. It’s important to know the values and mission of the organization while still being authentic. Make sure you are answering the question asked, not the question you want to answer.
4. In order to sell yourself, and not sound like you’re bragging, you need to know what you want and what your clear path and pitch is. (ie: your why - your elevator speech) - Make sure you speak with gratitude and show your efforts and give concrete examples that demonstrate your accomplishments. One of the single best ways you can prepare for an interview is to identify why you are the ideal one to fill this gap in their organization.
5. Due to the COVID-19, many professionals are now working remotely. Therefore, most job interviews are conducted in a virtual meeting room. The best guidance I can provide is the following, don't let this bring your professionalism down, you are still interviewing so dress professionally (at least from the waist up), make sure you background is neutral, you have headset on and that you make sure during the interview span of time you not disrupted.

4 Most Common Questions in a Job Interview and How to Prepare

1. Question: “Tell me about yourself…”

Although it might feel like this question is asking you about your personal life or personal story, it’s really your golden opportunity to share your professional story - USE IT! This is where you share your elevator pitch, tell your why. Not a story about your children, your engagement or your dying grandmother. It should include, answering the questions: 

What makes you unique? What makes you an asset? Why should they hire you over the other candidates? And an example or two of your top strengths with a story showing how you used them and it benefited your organization

For example, you might say, I am a well-rounded professional who helps you grow your company through relationship building, new market channels and strategic partners. I am tireless, loyal and think outside the box. I am a team player yet always go for the win with the client with full integrity. For the past 10 years, I have grown my division into the most profitable one of the company. I have been successful by utilizing all my strengths and skills as well as by paying attention to the long and short sales cycle and fostering the total customer life cycle. I am excited for the opportunity to bring this to your organization.

2. Question: “Why are you interested in this job?”

This is your moment to show why you were excited about this posting and how your mission and skill set aligns with the company’s. Remember before when I told you to identify how you fill the gap? This is where you share this. Take the time to think about how your unique way can move the company’s needle forward.

3. Question: “Why are you leaving your current job?”

Don’t fall into this pitfall, because the truth is they aren’t really looking at WHY, as much as they are looking to see the kind of employee you are. They just want to see if you are going to bad mouth your current employer. HINT: DO NOT! If you are in a situation where you are not leaving on good terms an alternative answer could be, “I am looking for new challenges, I am ready for a change. I am looking for career advancement.”

Remember it’s important to ALWAYS show your value with examples from your portfolio of work experience. This is where you go from bragging to selling yourself! Use these in your answers as often as you can.

4. Now that we have move into era of pandemic, I would anticipate that some of your interview questions will revolve around how you handled the transition to working remotely with your family being at home as well. What your productivity levels were like and how you coped with all that was going on. Topics might range describing your work-from-home approach to how you stayed motivated to how you used your technical skills to acclimate to the new situation.

Looking for a job? Be sure to download my free Cover Letter Guide here

Romy Weiss, CPCC, MBA

Your NextSteps Career Coach | Career Transitions & Professional/Life Coach, NextSteps Coaching & Consulting LLC

P.S. Looking for support as you make a career transition? I work with my clients in a variety of ways from landing their NEW dream job, making a career switch to climbing up the corporate ladder. Discover if Career Coaching is for you by booking a free Strategy Call here: http://bit.ly/callRomy