When you are in a job interview, there is a good chance that you will be asked what your biggest accomplishments are. This is the opportunity to talk about what kind of benefits you can bring to a company. You want to show the best that you have to offer while citing specific accomplishments that give them tangible information into your professional life. Before you go in for an interview, here is some advice on how to answer what your biggest accomplishments are.
Stick To Relevant Accomplishments
When you are looking to list your accomplishments, it is best to stick to those that are relevant to the type of professional they are looking for. If, for example, you know through research that the company is looking for a self-starter, talk about the initiative you took to bring in a new vendor that saved $15,000 instead of the time you were on a team that generated an extra $20,000 in sales. Both are impressive and could be used very effectively in an interview. However, since you know this employer is looking for self-starters, the chance to highlight being successfully proactive will help you impress this employer more. With a different employer that wants to ensure harmonious teams, the other accomplishment would be better to feature.
Make Accomplishments More Tangible By Having Actual Facts and Figures
Did you save your last company a lot of money by finding a clerical error? That’s a good fact to bring up in your accomplishments. It will sound even better if you have an exact number. If you saved the company $63,000, give your hiring manager that exact number. It will make it a more tangible accomplishment in their eyes when you can put a number to it. With this in mind, it is a great idea to practice and research your answer.
Put Praise In The Mouth Of Supervisors
You may feel a bit awkward bragging about yourself during an interview. With that said, if you can put your accomplishments into the mouth of a former supervisor it may feel more natural and it has the benefit of making it more believable. For instance, instead of talking about how you have a great attention to detail you can state:
“Well, my supervisor Jenny, the Director of Finance at Widgets International always said I had better attention to detail than anybody she’s ever worked with. For instance, I spotted a transposed number that ended up saving the company $27,093 in potential tax liability.”
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