Throughout life people are often encouraged to be humble and modest. Generally speaking, those attributes are well liked. Those that are qualified do not want to flaunt their abilities because it might upset others. Unfortunately when you want any position you will have to do some flaunting.

Every step up to receiving the offer is selling. You need to sell yourself. Most companies, maybe even the one your applying for, claim to solve the problem you have and offer a better solution than the competition. You have to do the same, in a polite and agreeable manor. Although the article emphasizes arrogance, really you want to let the companies know the things you are capable of doing. Don’t confuse this with trying to offer the company everything they want.

You don’t know everything, so don’t try to sound like you do. But when they ask you a question, if you have had prior experience in that area, or even something related to it, let them know immediately. One example is my response to the often asked question: “When have you been a leader?” While I had no formal experience in the past, during a summer school program I was involved with, I was the group leader for our project.

This doesn’t sound amazing, but I’m still not afraid to tell the interviewer about it. I don’t try to take all of the credit, but I do let them know that I had to contribute a lot to the group. I want to let them know the truth, the intimate details about my past so that they can judge fully whether or not I’m a good fit. I don’t leave out things because they might sound stupid or I don’t want the interview to think that I’m overzealous and conceited.

Another example is I was asked: “Was there ever a time that I kept going with something when everyone else gave up on the project or task at hand”. I had nothing directly related, but I did offer up the fact that I try to participate in petitions for privacy and rights online. I told the interviewer that it wasn’t directly applicable, but they happy regardless to hear more input from me.

Companies simply ask many questions to get a good basis of who you are, so offer up whatever you can that will give them a truthful perspective of yourself. Rarely is a candidate truly perfect for a position in every way. Interviewers accept this truth, so don’t worry if you cannot answer every single question, this will ensure that you still will have a chance to grow in the company.

The idea behind resumes and interviews is that they are allowing you the time to give a sales pitch. The interviewer realizes that this is why he’s there, so why hold back? You want your presentation on yourself to detail why you solve the problem that they have: finding a candidate that will fill the required position and help grow the company. You have to think of it in terms of what you can do for the company and what they are looking for. Make sure that you explain everything they need to know and not expect them to know it by looking at your resume. After all arrogance can be a virtue when you have to sell yourself.

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