Plan Your Response To Popular Question

“Tell me about yourself.”

There’s a pleasant little ice-breaker way to start a job interview, isn’t it?

Not on your life.

“Tell me about yourself” may be the most-asked question by job interviewers everywhere. It’s also probably the most dangerous - for you - and the most helpful to them.

It’s a foray that could cause you to ramble interminably about your childhood pet (totally irrelevant) or come up with a 30-second mumble (makes you look stupid).

Your answer also could reveal all kinds of information the interviewer has no legal right to obtain.

For the record, laws prohibit employers from basing hiring decisions on issues of gender, race, color, national origin, religion, age, disabilities or nonfelony arrests. Interviewers could ask you flat-out, “How old are you?” and the like, but most will not. They know the difficulty of fighting discrimination lawsuits if they have a record of asking those questions.

Most skilled interviewers know there are potential lawsuit problems if they ask whether you have children or intend to have them. If wise, they know, too, to avoid direct inquiries about your spouse, your church, your mental health, your financial situation, your club or organization memberships.

So they tiptoe through the legal minefield and let you plow ahead in response to one broad-brush, yet artful, gambit: “Tell me about yourself.”

You can answer that question - and answer it well - with good preparation. Your advance work might include reading one or more of the many how-to-interview books.

Five of the more recently published books I’ve looked at: “Get Hired!” by Paul C. Green; “The Perfect Interview” by John D. Drake; “The Quick Interview & Salary Negotiation Book” by J. Michael Farr; “Last Minute Interview Tips” by Brandon Toropov; and “Killer Interviews” by Frederick W. Ball and Barbara B. Ball.

A quick summary to give you an answer to the “Tell me about yourself” request:

“My family always put a high value on education and a strong work ethic. I did well in school and by my sophomore year I knew I had both the interest in and the skill to pursue a career in engineering. I earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in civil engineering in five years and was fortunate to have had summer internships at a small civil engineering firm.

“I’ve had two excellent jobs in the field - one with government and one in private industry. In both positions I earned promotions within a few months of employment and enjoyed the variety and increased responsibility. My experience in management led me to enroll in an executive-level MBA program, which I am completing this year.

“I think my broad engineering and academic experiences, plus my eagerness to accept new management challenges, have naturally led me here today.”

You’ll note there’s not a clue given about any of the “illegal” subjects, yet there’s enough succinct job-relevant information for the interviewer to take a measure of the applicant.

But don’t count on your ability to spew something like that off the cuff in a stress-filled interview. Compose your response and practice it ahead of time. You won’t waste your time.

Other Business Concerns

Help wanted: Mamas, do let your babies grow up to be mechanics. In part because of the old “grease monkey” image and the fact so many parents want their children to have more glamorous careers, there’s a shortage of automobile mechanics. This despite the fact those skilled in computer diagnostics can earn up to $75,000 a year and, with cars becoming increasingly more technological, top flight “auto technicians” pull down six figures, according to the Department of Labor.

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