Tell me about yourself: how to answer in English

“Tell me about yourself” is usually the first question in a job interview, and it sets the tone for everything after it. It sounds easy, so many people don’t prepare for it. Then they either recite their CV from the first job onwards or say two sentences and stop. Doing it in English, while you are also nervous about grammar, makes it harder. Below is a structure that works for almost any role, three full example answers, the phrases to say it naturally, and the mistakes to avoid.

What the interviewer actually wants to hear

They are not asking for your life story. They want to know three things:

Who you are professionally, in one or two sentences
What you have done that is relevant to this job
Why you are sitting in front of them now

They are also listening to how you speak: whether you can organise your thoughts and talk clearly for a minute or two. Aim for 60 to 90 seconds, and keep it under two minutes.

A simple structure: present, past, future

Present: who you are now

Your current role or situation, and what you focus on.

“I’m currently a … at …, where I focus on …”

Past: one or two relevant highlights

Not every job you’ve had. Pick the experience that connects to this role, and include one concrete example or result.

“Before that, I … One thing I’m proud of is …”

Future: why this role

Connect your experience to what they need.

“Now I’m looking for …, which is why this role caught my attention.”

This order works because the present gives the interviewer context straight away, the past gives proof, and the future answers the question they are really asking (“why are you here?”) and hands the conversation back to them.

Three example answers

Example 1: experienced, moving into a new type of role

A customer support team lead applying for a junior product role:

“I’m currently a customer support team lead at a software company, where I manage a small team and handle problems from our biggest clients. Before that, I spent three years as a support agent, so I’ve talked to a lot of users about what frustrates them. One thing I’m proud of is that I spearheaded a feedback process between support and the product team. We started tagging every complaint by feature, and the product team used that to prioritize two major fixes. That project showed me how much I enjoy the product side: understanding a problem and working out what to build. That’s why I’m interested in this associate product manager role. I’d like to bring the customer’s view directly into product decisions.”

Why it works: one clear highlight with a result, and a direct link between the past and the job.

Example 2: recent graduate

A new accounting graduate applying for a junior accountant position:

“I’ve just finished my degree in accounting. In my final year I did a six-month internship at an audit firm, where I helped prepare working papers and reconcile accounts for three clients. What I learned there is that I really like finding the small error that explains a big difference. I was also treasurer of our student association, so I’m used to collaborating with people who aren’t finance experts and explaining numbers simply. Now I’m looking for a junior accountant role where I can keep learning from experienced people, and your graduate programme stood out to me because it rotates you between teams.”

Why it works: an internship and a student role count as experience. The answer shows what the candidate learned, not only what they did.

Example 3: changing careers

A school teacher moving into corporate training:

“I’m a secondary school English teacher, and I’ve been teaching for five years. A big part of my job is designing lessons, giving feedback and helping people who feel stuck to make progress. Last year I started running training sessions for new teachers at my school, and that turned out to be the part of the job I enjoy most. I took a short course in learning and development to build on it. So I’m now moving into corporate training, and this role is a close fit: it’s about onboarding new employees, which is very similar to what I’ve been doing with new teachers.”

Why it works: it doesn’t apologise for the career change. It shows the skills that transfer.

How to adapt your answer to each job

Read the job ad and underline two or three skills. Make sure your “past” part proves at least one of them.
Use their words. If the ad says “stakeholders”, say “stakeholders”, not “people from other teams”.
Cut anything that doesn’t connect. Hobbies, school grades and your home town can wait unless they are relevant.
Keep one detail that makes you memorable. A specific project, a number you are allowed to share, or an unusual path into the field.

Useful phrases

Opening

“I’m currently working as … at …”
“I’m a … with … years of experience in …”
“I’ve just finished my degree in …”

Talking about experience

“Before that, I worked at …, where I …”
“I was responsible for …”
“One thing I’m proud of is …”
“I have a strong track record in …”
“That experience taught me …”

Connecting to the role

“That’s what led me to apply for this role.”
“I’m looking for a role where I can …”
“What attracted me to this position is …”

Finishing

“So that’s a quick overview. I’m happy to go into more detail on any of it.”

Mistakes to avoid

Starting from the beginning. Begin with now, not with your first job or your school.
Going on too long. After about two minutes the interviewer starts to drift. Practise with a timer.
Being too short. “I’m Alex, I’m 26 and I’m an engineer” gives the interviewer nothing to follow up on.
Memorising every word. A memorised answer sounds flat, and if you lose one word you can lose the whole thing. Memorise the three parts and a few key phrases instead.
Sharing personal details that don’t help. Age, marital status and family background are rarely relevant.
Opening with “Um, so, basically…” Have your first sentence ready. A confident first line calms you down for the rest.

What comes after your answer

The interviewer will usually pick something you mentioned and ask about it. That is a good sign: you chose the topic. Expect follow-ups like:

“Can you tell me more about that project?”
“Why are you leaving your current job?”
“What was the hardest part of that?”

For each highlight you mention, prepare a short story: the situation, what you did, and what happened. It is also worth having one thoughtful question ready for the end of the interview, such as “What would success look like in this role after six months?”

How to practise it out loud

Writing the answer is only the first step. The interview is spoken, so the practice has to be spoken too.

Write bullet points for present, past and future. Not full sentences.
Say the answer out loud from the bullets five times, a little differently each time.
Record yourself and check the length and how often you say “um” or “like”.
Practise with someone who will interrupt with follow-up questions, so you get used to being pulled off your plan.

For step 4, Lorivo has a Tell me about yourself role play on a live voice call. Daniel, a hiring manager, interviews you for a product role, and you can interrupt each other as in a real conversation. Words like “track record”, “spearhead” and “collaborate” are target words that tick off when you use them, and afterwards you get feedback on your own sentences, your pace and your filler words.