Introductions to R tricky.
Even knowing how to properly introduce this video
is a challenge.
But by the end of this video, you'll
know how to create a strong first impression,
tell a concise compelling story about who you are, and can
make confidence while doing it.
I'm Jenn, a career coach with over 10 years of experience
in career services.
Let's dive into my top tips and best examples
of how to introduce yourself in an interview.
You make an introduction with more than just your words.
Your words matter, but so do your actions.
Before you even begin speaking, employers
take note of how you show up.
So my first tip for making a strong first impression
is to present yourself professionally.
This means arrive early.
If you're interviewing in person, arrive at the location
at least 15 minutes in advance.
Use the navigation app to ensure that you don't get
lost and don't forget to give yourself a buffer for traffic.
If you're interviewing virtually,
empty sign into the platform at least five minutes early.
You'll likely wait in a virtual lobby, but arriving early
will alleviate some of the stress that
comes along with interviewing.
You'll be able to take some really good deep breaths
and remind yourself that you've got this.
Dress appropriately.
Take some time to review the company website
and get a sense of the workplace and what level of formality
is appropriate.
Look at photos on their social media sites
to get a sense of what the other employees are
wearing at the office.
As a best practice, aim to dress a little bit more formal
than how employees normally dress.
Pay attention to the details, and make sure
that your clothes are wrinkle free.
If you're interviewing on a video call,
make sure that your background is tidy
and that your location is quiet and has
stable Wi-Fi connection.
For more tips on how to nail a virtual interview,
be sure to check out this video right here.
Bring your resume or other relevant application materials
like a portfolio.
Even if you're interviewing virtually,
it's helpful to have these in front of you
for the use of reference.
Be polite and friendly to everyone you encounter.
The interview starts the moment you enter the building or sign
into the virtual platform.
Finally, be prepared.
Before the interview, research the company job description
and even the interviewer.
It's best to spend at least 30 minutes visiting the company's
website to review their about us or products or service
offerings page to learn about what
their mission and values are.
A company's social media channels
are also a great resource.
Now you'll know that you've conducted really great research
when you can successfully speak to how
one of your personal values aligns
the value of the companies.
Or even how your skill set would support
or even better enhance the services that they
offer to their customers.
Sometimes the research that you do
can really help you get the job.
Before I move on, if you find this content helpful,
let us know by giving us the like.
And if you'd like to see more videos like this,
be sure to subscribe to our channel.
OK.
So now that we've covered how your actions can create
a strong first impression, let's discuss
what to say when it's time to introduce yourself.
When introducing yourself, aim to create
a short compelling story.
To keep it concise, I recommend using the present, past,
and future format.
I'm going to explain each component
and then I want to put it together
into a full introduction at the end of the section.
Let's start with the present.
This refers to where you are in your career right now,
or most recently as it relates to the role
that you're interviewing for.
You've likely already shared your name at this point,
so it's not necessary to state your name again
unless you've been asked specifically
about its pronunciation.
Starting your response with my name
is, can sound stiff mechanical, and even
rehearsed, which you want to try to avoid.
So first share we've been doing most recently
but giving a high level view of your role,
including your title responsibilities
and the projects that you've worked on most recently.
Try to show relationship with this work and the role
that you're applying for.
If you're transitioning into a new role or industry,
this is a great time for you to mention
any certifications you've completed,
classes you've taken, or relevant personal projects
you've worked on.
If this is the case, start with your most recent
relevant experience before shifting
to your most recent role.
And be sure to highlight the transferable skills
that you've acquired that apply specifically to this position.
Take the opportunity to highlight a key accomplishment
in the section, and use the preferred experience or skills
highlighted in the job description
to guide what accomplishments you want to talk about.
An example present statement is, I'm currently a social media
manager for a tech startup.
I execute the content strategy for various social media
channels.
Once you've covered where you are now,
start talking about the past.
It can help to mention your motivation
for entering this field.
This is your opportunity to share the most impactful
information about who you are as a professional,
not to just reiterate the information that the recruiter
can easily find on your resume.
So you want to focus on sharing your first professional
ambitions for pursuing this career path Instead
of just providing the timeline for how you got here.
For example, if you're a teacher,
talk about what motivated you to play a large role impacting
student lives.
If you change careers along the way
or if you're trying to change careers now,
then speak to what motivated you to take that shift
and tie a thread to this new career.
If you're a recent graduate, talk
about what class motivated you to explore this industry
in the first place.
Employers like to hear a story of how and why you
got to where you are right now.
Talking about your past can change depending
on how relevant your current role is to the job
that you're interviewing for right now.
If you're changing industries, it's
helpful to highlight the transferable skills that you
bring, especially if your previous role doesn't
seem relevant at first glance.
Here's a quick bonus tip.
If you can show how your experience
in a different industry provides you
with a uniquely valuable perspective for the employer,
that's the best case scenario.
For instance, if you've worked as a server at a restaurant
and you're applying to work for a company that sells technology
to restaurants, you'll bring a personal understanding
of the company's customer base or how this tech solves
an industry specific pin point.
An example past statement is I graduated college
with a communications degree, and I
met the hiring manager for the startup at a career fair.
I was excited by the chance to tackle such a large project
early in my career.
I held previous marketing internships,
and I look forward to putting my skills and experience
to the test in a way that I knew would
shape the future of a business.
Now let's focus on the future.
This part of your response is a great opportunity
to get strategic with your answer
and align your personal goals with the goals of the company.
Aim to show that you've researched the company and that
what their values are, and that you're specifically
well-positioned to fill this role.
By addressing how you support an employer's goals
and how their values align with yours,
you're showing them that you're a good match
and you're invested in them because you took the time
to do the research.
The future statement is all about the why.
Why do you want this role?
Why are you passionate about this opportunity?
Speaking about what excites you about the roll or industry
could even remind your interviewer
why they got into the business, which can make you
a much more relatable candidate and build a human connection.
If it sparks a response of a similar passion
from your interviewer, be sure to mention it
in the thank you note that you sent after the interview.
Wrapping up by focusing on the future
provide the natural close to your answer.
It signals to the interviewer that you're talking about
a future within this company, and it gives them
the opportunity to segue way to their next question. ,
An example of future statement is after working with
the company for the last three years,
I'm proud of how we've helped the company grow.
Now I'm looking for an opportunity
to work more collaboratively with
cross-functional stakeholders.
I'd love to learn more about other aspects of marketing.
I was delighted to see that this role would allow
me to do that while still using social media
content as a way to share stories
that elevate your brand.
All right.
So now that we've reviewed each piece of the formula,
let's see it all come together.
Here's how I would introduce myself.
Present, I currently work at Indeed as a career coach
and a job search expert where I aim
to provide accessible guidance to job seekers
through a variety of mediums.
Past.
For the past 10 years, I've worked
in several career services roles including
talent acquisition, recruiting coordination, career coaching,
and.
Team leadership.
Most recently I led a team of 16 career coaches
that provided direct and virtual career development services
for job seekers in tech.
Through my experience working with job seekers,
I've learned that the job search can feel isolating.
No one should ever feel like they're in it alone.
Future.
I'm interested in opportunities to create career development
resources and provide guidance to people who need them.
After reading the job description
for your director of career development,
I see an opportunity to use my experience
to scale the exceptional services you currently
offer to a larger audience.
All right.
Here's another tip here.
I often hear people in interviews
end the response by saying, yep, that's me.
Let's try this conclusion statement instead.
And that's what brings me here today
for this exciting opportunity.
This is a much better way to signal to the interviewer
that you're done talking.
And remember the key is to be concise.
You want to verbally introduce yourself
in between one to two minutes.
For information on how to provide a more
expanded introduction when asked questions like, tell me
about yourself, click on this video.
Now that you know what to say, let's
talk about how to say it in a way that projects confidence.
Nonverbal communication plays a big role
in how you project preparedness.
As you're being greeted and introducing yourself,
make sure to make eye contact with all the people
that you meet.
Take notice of your posture also.
Sit up straight with your shoulders back.
I actually always like to imagine
that there's this imaginary string at the top of my head
that I can pull to correct my posture even further.
Now, body language is doubly important
if you're in a virtual setting because your face is often
all an employer can see.
So try to remember to look directly into the camera.
This communicates that you're engaged,
and that you care about what the interviewer has to say.
So now for a bonus tip on nailing your introduction,
make the most of your prep time by filming yourself.
Now the phone on your camera works perfectly
for this exercise.
Imagine that a camera lens is the interviewer.
Speak directly to the light or to the lens
to mimic eye contact as I mentioned before.
When you're done, you want to review
the footage for body language.
Notice if you're smiling.
Try to project your voice while speaking clearly and slowly.
See if you're sitting up straight
without fidgeting or using any distracting hand gestures.
Length of your answer.
Check how long it took you to respond.
You want to aim between one to two minutes.
If you're taking less time than that,
you might need to highlight an additional qualification
or even an achievement, or maybe you just need
to speak a little bit slower.
Technical issues.
If your interview is virtual, this exercise
allows you to check your text, including your camera, mic,
and internet connection and also try
to have your resume on hand so you can refer to it if needed.
If you don't have access to a camera on your phone
or computer, don't worry about it, just practice
with a friend.
Find someone you feel comfortable with
and someone who's going to be able to give you
honest feedback.
For more advice on how to prepare for an interview,
be sure to check out our video on the topic
that you can find right here.
So to quickly recap, my top tips for introducing yourself
in an interview are one, present yourself
as professional with your behavior and your appearance.
Remember to show up early, dress appropriately, bring
relevant materials, and be friendly to everyone,
and always be prepared.
Two, when verbally introducing yourself
stick to the format, present, past, future.
Explain what you do, your background,
and why you're here today.
Three, tell your story, don't you summarize your resume.
Four, project confidence with your body language.
Try to stay open and friendly.
Five, take a close look at how you're introducing yourself
by filming yourself or practicing with a friend.
If you found this helpful, please hit the like button down
below.
Subscribe to our channel right here,
or for more tips on interviewing I
recommend checking out this playlist
or watching our video on how to answer tell me about yourself.
So there you have it.
Thank you so much for watching.
I hope that you found this information helpful,
and that you're able to apply these tips
to your next interview prep.
If you're able to connect your skills, experience,
and qualifications to the roles confidently,
you're going to be just fine.
See you next time.