While a savvy job hunter is going to anticipate and practice responses to quite a few interview questions, there’s a single question that often gets overlooked and that tends to impact an individual’s chances more than anything else.

It’s the very first question most candidates get asked:

“Can you tell me a little about yourself?”

Why is this innocuous-sounding question such a make-or-break element in landing a job offer? It’s because human beings instinctively put an inordinate amount of weight on first impressions.

Numerous studies have shown that an interviewer’s perceptions about an applicant in the initial minutes of an interview correlate extremely strongly with whom they eventually decide to hire. In fact, one commonly cited statistic (which rings true from my own experience) indicates that roughly 33% of employers report knowing within 90 seconds whether they will hire a candidate.

Regardless, the takeaway for any serious job hunter is clear. You need to come out of the gate swinging in the average interview, ready to share a “tell me about yourself” answer that impresses the interviewer, captures their interest, and sets the stage for the discussion to follow.

Alas, most people don’t quite measure up to this bar, and in the majority of mock interviews I conduct, I witness people either simply being unprepared for the question—rambling for 3 to 5 minutes or more without any structure—or making the other common mistake: reading their whole resume back to the person across the desk. Again, the studies above would suggest either of these approaches can do significant damage to a person’s chances of success.

So while it’s far from the only approach one could use in these situations, I typically advise clients to build a 2- to 3-minute response to this question around a past/present/future framework:

  • The Past (60–90 Seconds): Walk the interviewer quickly through your resume, simply mentioning the highlights, growth milestones, and things you enjoyed about each role—since those components “breathe life” into your backstory and typically aren’t captured on the page.

  • The Present (30–60 Seconds): Once you’ve quickly touched on your work background, look the interviewer in the eye and tie it all together. Tell them the three things about yourself as a professional that you pride yourself on most, that have enabled your success, or that others have commented on as factors that set you apart from the crowd. Show some confidence right out of the gate and let them know your superpowers.

  • The Future (10–20 Seconds): This one’s simple, as it mainly just consists of a 1- to 2-sentence ending point that signals you’re wrapping up and lets the hiring manager know you’re finished. All you need to say is something like: “So that’s my background in a nutshell, and when I saw your posting for [XYZ position], it looked like a great match with my goals. I’m looking forward to learning more about the role and the challenges you’re needing someone to solve for your organization…”

Again, first impressions are as critical to interviewing as they are to other social experiences in life like dating, networking, and making friends. The first few minutes of any hiring conversation are prime time. Don’t wing it!