How to tell an interviewer about yourself

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"Tell me about yourself?" Does that sound like every interview you've ever had? How did you respond? Did you rehash everything in your resume which has already been read and probably checked out, or did you start out with something like, "Well, where do you want me to start - where I was born?"In either case, you've blown that interview. This question is going to be asked, so get prepared. The interviewer is trying to find out more about you as a person; your personality; your sense of humor; your maturity or emotional ease. "A person who rehashes his or her resume, making it sound as if life begins with one's first job, won't have the qualities I want," says Kerry Sulkowicz, M.D., a psychoanalyst and founder of Boswell Group, a firm that advises CEOs on psychological aspects of business. If an employer is looking for someone who can handle change, newness, or complexity needs to find out if you're comfortable in your own skin. Can you think on your feet? Can you mentally image the steps necessary to complete a project, and can you adjust to changes as you go. Do you have a personality or do you sound like the words on your resume? "Warning signs at an interview", says Dr. Sulkowicz, a Business Week columnist, is "someone who talks in the wooden tongue of business jargon - 'I interfaced with my direct reports at weekly meetings' - rather than speaking in vibrant, descriptive language. And, anyone who can't respond to a request to 'tell us something about yourself.'" So, now, can you tell us a little about yourself? Think about it and rehearse it before your next interview. Make yourself honest, interesting, energetic, and bright. You can throw in outside interests as long as they stimulate physical and mental conditioning, but are not dangerous or questionably appropriate.Your good taste in interview clothing presents a professional first impression. Your resume describes a qualified, experienced potential employee, but tell me about yourself so that I can begin to see if you fit into our culture as a person. Are you going to be able to handle the work load and pressure - and get along with my best employees? Tell me about yourself. Marvin Walberg is a job search coach. Contact him at mwalberg(at)bellsouth.net, marvinwalberg.blogspot.com, or PO Box 43056, Birmingham,. AL 35243.(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, http://www.scrippsnews.com)