“So Tate, tell me about yourself”
I am constantly asked this
question, and the answer is harder than it seems. When an employer asks me this
question, I have thirty seconds make an impression. The first impression is
extremely important, and it is my job to answer this question with ease and
assertiveness. I want to paint a picture of who I am as a person. My goal of my
thirty second pitch is to engage the person and create a want to ask me more
questions.
In my foundations class, we
practiced this question intensively. While I feel like I have a good answer, I
can always improve it. In my opinion, a first impression is almost as important
as the rest of the interview. If the initial judgment from an employer is
positive, then the tone for the interview has a solid foundation.
Confidence is key.
If I come in with a confidence and
polite tone, I know that I can make a good impression on someone. The idea
behind this question is something to consider. A person who asks this question wants
to hear, in around thirty seconds, who one is as a person. Employers hear
hundreds of answers, and they are looking for an answer that stands out from
the rest of the applicants. The reason an employer asks this, in my opinion, is
that in the business world one has to interact with a customer. A customer will
judge the rest of the conversation based off of the first thirty seconds of the
conversation—just like the interview question! When I first heard this
question, I did not think there was an importance to it. I could not be more
wrong. This question is extremely important, which makes it even more important
to have the best answer.
Finding the best answer includes many steps. One must look at his or her self from a different perspective and find the top three or four qualities to showcase. Choosing one’s top qualities is not easy. The goal is the showcase the main aspects of yourself in a calm and natural manor. If I can do this, then I will make the best first impression possible.
Finding the best answer includes many steps. One must look at his or her self from a different perspective and find the top three or four qualities to showcase. Choosing one’s top qualities is not easy. The goal is the showcase the main aspects of yourself in a calm and natural manor. If I can do this, then I will make the best first impression possible.
While it is important to have the
best answer possible, the most important thing is to be genuine. My goal is to
have an answer that is conversational. I want the listener to feel enticed and
eager to learn more about me because I seem genuine and real.
Practice makes perfect, and it is
true! Every day I make it a goal to practice my elevator pitch. Each time I do
it, I find something to improve and work on to make it better. With enough
practice, I know that I will have an elevator pitch that will not only impress
an employer but also showcase who I am an as individual.
I remember just the other day I was helping Joe Hartshorn practice his elevator pitch. He was trying to win 200 dollars by having the most convincing answer to why they should hire him. He ended up basically reciting a list of things he has done. I thought a better approach might have been to focus on "The Golden Circle": saying why you do things instead of what you do. Just something to think about.
ReplyDeleteI remember just the other day I was helping Joe Hartshorn practice his elevator pitch. He was trying to win 200 dollars by having the most convincing answer to why they should hire him. He ended up basically reciting a list of things he has done. I thought a better approach might have been to focus on "The Golden Circle": saying why you do things instead of what you do. Just something to think about.
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ReplyDeleteThe thought of the elevator pitch scares the heck of me. I don't think I'm well-versed enough to explain to other people what the best qualities about me are. I think this is what I struggled most with during my freshman year interviews! So, thanks for the tips and I actually do want to hear your elevator pitch at some time or another.
ReplyDeleteInteresting and enjoyable post. The first 30 seconds make the sale? for me, the first 3 pages of a book make the sale for me.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree that this is an important skill to have especially as college students who are nearing job or graduate school interviews. Last year as a Harris Fellow, I participated in a branding competition where we each had 5 minutes to present the most important things a stranger should know about us. Since we were all students going into the healthcare field, we were encouraged to find the ways that we are different from each other so that we stand out among our peers. This was way more challenging than it seems like it should be since we all had the same career interests and were all great students. It was an interesting exercise and definitely something that I can use the skills from in the future.
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