Most of us dread the standard “ice-breaker” question, Tell me about yourself. As someone who has interviewed applicants for more than 30 years, I have rarely heard this question answered well. More often than not, applicants launch into their biography — starting with where they were born! Trust me, I (and most interviewers) don’t care. In addition, this kind of biographical response can lead you to share information that I would rather not know: how many children you have, that you have a spouse (or don’t), etc. It is illegal for me to take these things into consideration and once you tell me, it’s hard for me to forget them. So please do not share this kind of information.
Instead, I want to know who you are and what you bring to the table, in the context of the job I’m interviewing you for. Look at that last phrase again: in the context of the job I’m interviewing you for.