Interview coach Tessa Davis says to start "Tell me about yourself" with what you love about your specialty, not hobbies or personal details. Leading with this passion statement helps you relax and smile, creating instant connection with the panel and stronger rapport from the first words.
personal at the beginning is because when you talk about whatever it is that you love— I don't mean hobbies, I mean why you're passionate about your specialty, why you're passionate about this job, or what it is you love most about the area, or whatever it is— that when you talk about that connected personal thing, you're going to relax, you're going to smile, and you're going to connect with the panel. And as that's likely to be the very first thing that you say, it really gives an opportunity for you to take a breath and for the panel to see a bit of the real you. I'm not saying share something private, definitely not something intimate or, you know, a secret. You're wanting to share something personal that can be just to show a bit of your personality, to give yourself a bit to the panel. And so instead of leaving personal to the end, with my framework, we put personal at the beginning and it makes a massive difference to you. It makes a massive difference to the panel and a massive difference to the connection that you build with the panel right from the off.
