The self-presentation is part of every job interview and is usually given at the beginning of the interview, shortly after the small talk. The time frame is usually three to five minutes, more is usually not expected by the recruiters, after all, it is about giving a first impression and not a lecture.
Despite its brevity, the self-presentation has a high value for most personnel managers. On the one hand, it allows them to identify any contradictions. On the other hand, it gives them an insight into the candidate's life as well as his or her rhetorical skills. Most candidates are aware of the high importance of self-presentation, which sometimes makes one or the other a little worried. With our blog post, we want to help you prepare for your upcoming job interview. Read below our tips around the topic of self-presentation in the job interview:
- Three-step formula for outlining:
To make your self-presentation as effective as possible, we recommend that you follow the three-step formula. In concrete terms, this means I am, I can and I will.
I am: Introduce yourself with your name and give a brief insight into your current professional situation.
I can: This point takes up the most time. Here, you list the most important stages of your career, name your competencies, point out your greatest successes, and provide an insight into relevant projects. It is important that you refer to the open position.
I want: Here you state your reasons for motivation. Talk about your goals and explain to the recruiter why you applied for this position.
- Do not reproduce your resume 1:1:
HR professionals also prepare for the interview and study your CV extensively in advance. For this reason, it is not necessary that you reproduce your CV chronologically and without gaps. On the contrary, this would even be boring for your counterpart. Therefore, refer only to the most important points. These are the ones where there are parallels between your current experience and the requirements for the job. If the recruiter wants to go into a topic in more depth, he or she will ask you about it in more detail.
- The red thread:
Show the recruiter how you have shaped your professional career and how the individual stations fit together. Ask yourself: What is the connecting element between two positions? Was it a step forward in the same environment, a step sideways into a new industry or the deepening of expertise in one area. There is also room for a perceived wrong decision if you have learned the lessons from it and returned to your core area. The important thing here is that you describe who you are, what you can do and what you want in a structured and clear manner (see point 1).
- Go for active, positive statements:
This tip may sound logical, but is often unconsciously suppressed. After all, we humans often tend to use negative language.
Passive, negative: "My supervisor didn't promote me, so I quit."
Active, positive: "I wanted to take the next step in my career, that's why I moved to XYZ Company, where I was able to take on the role of project manager."
- No false modesty:
Stand by your knowledge, skills and successes. False modesty is usually not well received. Be self-confident and authentic in your self-presentation.
- Address your counterpart by name:
An important point that should not be underestimated is addressing people by name. This has a positive psychological effect and has a sympathetic effect. So make sure you remember the name of the person you are talking to and incorporate it into the conversation at certain points.
- Brevity is the spice of life:
Don't beat around the bush in your self-presentation. Keep it short and get to the point. Otherwise, there is a chance that your counterpart will digress in his or her mind.
- Practice, practice, practice:
Our last tip is practice, practice, practice. Be sure to prepare well for your self-presentation. It's best to make notes on the most important points in advance and practice your self-presentation in front of the mirror or with a close person. Recording with your smartphone or a camera can also help you to look at yourself from the outside for once and improve your self-presentation.
We wish you success for your next job interview! Did these tips help you? Then we would love to hear from you and your experiences in the comments of our social media channels.
