TRAPS: Beware--about 80% of all interviews begin
with this "innocent" question.
Many candidates, unprepared for the question, skewer themselves by
rambling, recapping their life story, delving into ancient work history or
personal matters.
BEST ANSWER: Start with the
present and tell why you are well qualified for the position. Remember that the
key to successful interviewing is to match your qualifications to what the
interviewer is looking for. In other
words, you must sell what the buyer is buying.
This is the single most important strategy in executive job hunting. So,
before you answer this or any question, it's imperative that you try to uncover
your interviewer's greatest need, want, problem or goal. To do so, make sure you take these two steps:
1. Do all the homework you can
before the interview to uncover this person's wants and needs (not the generalized
needs of the industry or company).
2. As early as you can in the
interview, ask for a more complete description of what the position entails. You might say: "I have a number of
accomplishments I'd like to tell you about, but I want to make the best use of our
time together and talk directly to your needs. To help me do that, could you
tell me more about the most important priorities of this position? All I know
is what I (heard from the recruiter ... read in the classified ad, etc.)."
Then, ALWAYS follow-up with a
second and possibly third question, to draw out his needs even more. Surprisingly,
it's usually this second or third question that unearths what the interviewer
is most looking for. You might ask simply, "And in addition to
that..." or, "Is there anything else you see as essential to success in
this position?" This process will
not feel easy or natural at first, because it is easier simply to answer
questions. But only if you uncover the
employer's wants and needs will your answers make the most sense.
If you practice asking these key
questions before giving your answers, the process will feel more natural and
you will be light years ahead of the other job candidates you're competing
with. After uncovering what the employer is looking for, describe why the needs
of this job bear striking parallels to tasks you've succeeded at before. Be sure to illustrate with specific examples
of your responsibilities and especially your achievements, all of which are
geared to present yourself as a perfect match for the needs he has just
described.
