"I'm not good at selling myself in job interviews" (and why that's not actually the problem)
- Beverley
- 10 hours ago
- 2 min read
One of the most common things people say to me in their first job interview coaching session is:
"I'm just not very good at selling myself"
and what they usually mean is:
I'm not comfortable talking about my experience without downplaying it,
I worry about sounding arrogant,
I don't want to feel like I'm performing,
it feels awkward and doesn't feel like me.
Why a job interview isn't about selling yourself
It's not about exaggerating, bragging, or turning yourself into someone you're not.
In it's purest form, a job interview is about stating facts clearly.
What you've done.
What you're good at.
What decisions you've made.
What impact you've had.
What you care about and why.
The problem is that so many capable people don't struggle because they don't have enough experience or confidence, but because they edit themselves too much.
They soften their language.
They minimise their role.
They describe outcomes without owning them.
They give context, but not conclusions.
They wait for the interviewer to connect the dots instead of helping them do it.
A real example from coaching
I was working with a client recently and we talked through their experience in detail. I asked questions about their role, their impact, and situations they'd handled well. Slowly, achievement by achievement, a really strong picture started to form.
But each time I reflected something back to them, they looked slightly confused. Their response was basically,
"But that's not special. It's just my job. anyone would do that."
And this is where so many capable people get stuck.
The problem with "It's just my job"
From their point of view, they weren't being modest. They were being accurate. This was normal to them, it was familiar and it didn't feel worth mentioning. But remember that interviewers don't know what "normal" looks like in your role.
They don't know:
the decisions you made
the problems you solved
the judgement you used
the responsibility you carried
unless you tell them.
When you leave those details out, you're not being humble. You're asking the interviewer to guess. And they will fill in the gaps with assumptions.
This is where the idea of "selling yourself" gets in the way. People think they need their work to sound impressive, so they either exaggerate or avoid saying it at all. But in reality, what's missing isn't confidence or charisma - it's translation.
What interviewers actually need from you
Your job in an interview isn't to convince someone you're special. It's to explain your work clearly enough so that someone else can understand its value. That means:
owning your role without apologising for it
naming impact instead of hoping it's implied
saying less, but saying the right things
This is exactly where job interview coaching helps. It isn't about teaching people to sell harder, perform better, or become someone else, but by helping them communicate clearly, accurately, and with authority under interview conditions.
Because "I'm not good at selling myself" is almost never the real problem.
If you want support preparing for interviews, get in touch.
Not sure if coaching is right for you?
Start with a one-hour mini coaching session to get clarity, practical guidance, and clear next steps. No pressure, just focused support.
Comments