The One Minute You

If someone came to you and said "tell me about yourself in a minute or less," what things would you relate or highlight about yourself? Having this in mind is a good technique for when you enter into an interview situation. One of the most common interview questions you will be asked is "tell me about yourself." Avoid rambling or running down too many unrelated paths, and stick to the topic of the job desired. use your resume as the outline, and fill in some gaps in a concise manner, and in a minute or less, give an interesting preview of your life.

Write it down and practice it; become familiar with it so that when you say it, it displays you are comfortable with yourself. Sit up and tell the story of yourself with confidence, but do not let it be a bragging session. Here is an example of a concise one-minute you:

I grew up in Newport News, Virginia where I was active in sports and JROTC in high school. I have always had an interest in traveling and so I sought a job that allowed that as well as offered a large amount of responsibility at a young age. So after graduation I joined the Air Force where I was in charge of supervising a team of 6 technicians, and responsible for $2.5 million dollars of equipment. I had the opportunity to live in Florida, England, and Germany. Because of my training and success in the Air Force, I feel better prepared to succeed in the civilian world, which is why I am here today.

Basically include the highlights of parts of your resume, while highlighting traits that make you a better candidate for the position you are seeking. Your resume should already be focused on many of these job related aspects, so just take those cold, hard facts and bring them to life with a one-minute narrated story about you. And one of the most important aspects to keep in mind - keep a positive attitude. You know more about yourself than the interviewer does, and the interview time is all about you. Keep positive, be confident, and do not let delays or difficult questions throw you off or upset you if you fumble some. Keep it lively, keep it positive, and sell yourself as the ideal candidate for the position.

Jeff McCormack resides in Virginia Beach, VA. where he works as a web designer by day. In his off time he is a husband, father, mail order book store manager, and an avid musician, currently active in two local bands. He is also a lover of books, having a large personal library and squeezes in as much reading as often as he can. Aside from being a freelance writer for this Armed Services Jobs blog, he also seeks to assist in career choices and information by contributing to other Nexxt blog site.