"Tell me about yourself."
“谈谈你自己吧。”
This seems like such an innocuous question, but many novice job candidates have a hard time giving an answer. Even experienced interviewees can sound like canned ads for the jobs they are interviewing for. Employers ask such open-ended questions so they can see how candidates will present their skills, abilities, and ambitions.
这看起来是最无害的一个问题，却让很多初入职场的人煞费苦心寻找答案。即使是经验丰富的求职者的答案也可能听起来像一个应征工作的沉闷广告。雇主们问出这样开放式的问题就是想看看求职者如何展现他们的技术、能力和野心。
Four Common Errors
四个常见的错误
First, here are common pitfalls to avoid:
首先，这里有一些常见的陷阱要避免：
1. "True Confessions": Focus on positives. For example, if you're going to talk about why you are interested in this position, convey your enthusiasm for the new opportunities -- not that you are looking to get away from your current boss. Keep your interviewer's view of you in a positive light.
1.“完全坦白”：你应该集中在积极的方面。比如，如果你要谈到为什么你对这个职位感兴趣，传达出你对新机遇的激情——而不是你要从现在的老板身边逃开。让面试官对你有一个积极的印象。
2. "Home and Personal Life": You are here to convey your skills as an employee. Disclosing personal information, such as how many children you have, won't get the right message across.
2.“家庭和私人生活”：你在这里是要做为员工来展示你的技术的。透露你的私人信息，比如你有几个孩子之类的不能传达出正确的信息。
3. "The Commercial": Some people have read interviewing books or been trained by career counselors. They may give a 30-second commercial which shows their skills being tailored to the job needs. These often sound too canned and may be too limiting in showing the candidate's abilities.
3.“太广告”：一些人读过面试方面的书或者接受过职业顾问的训练。他们可能会给出一个30秒的广告来显示他们所具备的技术简直是为这份工作度身定做的。这些通常听起来都太沉闷刻板了，在展示求职者的能力方面又太有限。
4. "I'll Tell You Exactly What You Want to Hear": Remember that the interview process is one of finding a mutual fit. You'll avoid later problems by selling your true strengths and traits, not those you think the interviewer is looking for.
4.“你想听什么我就说什么”：记住面试是一个期望实现双赢的程序。你要通过出售你真实的能力和品质来避免以后的问题，而不是你认为面试官想要得到什么你就说什么。
