Ugh!! I Botched the "Tell Me About Yourself" Question

I really hate it when I catch myself not following the advice I give to others—especially clients. It’s an unsavory feeling.


Recently, I was in a meeting with a client of my firm’s who wanted to meet me--put a name to a face type of thing. Not exactly an interview but still important to make a positive impression.

I had prepared for what I thought would be the content she’d be most interested in and was determined to get it across. And then, there it was---“tell me about yourself”. A question I’ve prepped clients for a thousand times over.

And what did I do?? I proceeded to break every rule I give them. Ok, so I really don’t set rules—they’re more like guidelines. And I didn’t break every one of them but sadly, more than I’d like to admit. Although I am going to admit it here so I don’t fall prey again.

Here’s what I did wrong:

- I launched right into a chronological story. In 1994, I did this. Then a few years later I did that. I spent some further time doing this. And then I did that. Oh and I forgot something so let me go back. And finally I ended up right here where I am.

- I put in a lot of unnecessary and probably confusing details. I took her to one place and then I switched directions and took her somewhere else.

- I talked too long for any human being to possibly retain all of the information.

- I showed no signs that I was able to parse out for her what the most important and relevant information was.

- I forgot that if she was really interested in the specific details, she could also ask questions.

Ugh! B-O-R-I-N-G!!! Bless her heart for even listening to me that long. I finally caught on when she asked me a question and said something like “I’d love to hear you ramble on about that.” Now, that might have been a total Freudian slip on her part --but it certainly got my attention.

And like the sea parting I saw exactly what my mistake had been. I wasn’t listening to her. I was trying to pack in all the information that I had prepped and I totally botched what she really wanted to know—not my resume but who I was as a person.

Here’s what I should have done:

- Define: “Here's what I do/who I am.” (in one sentence or less)

- Energize: “Here’s why I love what I do.”

- Show: “Here’s the level and scope of responsibility I have.”

- Highlight: “Some (but not all) of my credentials include….”

- Focus: “Here's the exposure I've had with the main skills someone with my background needs” or “My main areas of expertise where I like to focus are…”

- Brag (Humbly): “My proudest accomplishment is…”

Thankfully, I was able to regroup, start listening, shorten my answers and ask her some questions that got her talking about herself and her firm. This shift made a huge difference—at least I hope it did.

We ended on a positive note and not surprisingly, talking about personal things like my daughter and motherhood—something we had in common. If I had just listened in the first place, I would have saved both of us a lot of time and I would have made a better impression much sooner on in the conversation.