how to communicate your value in an interview

Dorothy Mashburn
May 8
3 min read

Woman standing 100 feet tall owning her value — It's going to be one of those days where you own your value!

How to Communicate Your Value in an Interview (Without Second-Guessing Everything You Say)

There’s this internal monologue that keeps holding talented women back.

It sounds like this: “If I just had more confidence, I’d crush that interview.”

Or: “Once I stop feeling like an impostor, I’ll finally speak up.”

But after coaching hundreds of mid-career women, I can tell you with certainty—confidence is not the problem.

The problem is that no one ever taught you how to communicate your value in an interview.

You’ve spent years doing the work. Leading teams. Delivering results. But when you’re asked to talk about what you did and why it mattered, you either freeze or fall into safe, vague answers that don’t reflect what you’re actually capable of.

Why Mid-Career Women Struggle to Communicate Their Value in Interviews

Most of us weren’t raised to own our wins. We were taught to share credit, be humble, and not make things “all about us.” That training worked in school or early in your career—but now it’s holding you back.

Here’s what happens when you carry that into an interview:

You talk about your responsibilities, not your results.
You say “we” when it was really you leading the work.
You use passive or soft language that waters down your impact.

And you walk out of the room feeling like you left half your story untold.

That’s not a confidence gap. That’s a messaging gap.

How to Communicate Your Value in an Interview Without Sounding Like You're Bragging

If you’ve ever struggled to answer “Tell me about yourself” or found yourself rambling through an answer you know should sound stronger, here’s what to focus on:

1. Start with the business outcome.

Hiring managers don’t just want to hear what you did—they want to know what changed because you did it.

Think: Did you grow revenue? Improve retention? Cut costs? Protect the company’s reputation? Lead a new initiative?

Frame your answer with the outcome first: "We increased operational efficiency by 15%—and I’ll walk you through how I led that effort."

2. Use active, direct language.

Say “I led,” “I implemented,” “I created.” That’s not arrogance. That’s clarity. Softening your language doesn’t make you sound collaborative—it makes you sound uncertain.

3. Have 2-3 impact stories ready to go.

Practice short, structured examples using the formula:

Make a claim - how did the business move forward

Provide evidence - what did YOU do to make that happen

Stories stick more than buzzwords. Use the hero's journey as a framework.

And when you say these stories out loud a few times, they come across with more conviction—whether or not you “feel” confident in the moment.

The More Clarity You Have, the More Confident You’ll Feel

Confidence isn’t something you find before the interview. It’s something that grows after you’ve built the skills to clearly explain what you bring to the table.

When you finally learn how to communicate your value in an interview, you stop over-preparing and underperforming. You stop wondering if they saw your potential. You start knowing they heard it.

Join the Workshop:

How to Talk About Your Impact in Job Interviews

This free workshop is designed for women who are ready to stop second-guessing themselves and start owning the full weight of their experience.

You’ve already done the work. Now it’s time to talk about it like it matters—because it does.

Dorothy Mashburn is on a mission to empower women of color (and allies!) to steer their career journey and confidently negotiate their value. She can be reached here.

Get the secrets to commanding top offers with my book, Executive Edge - Finding Golden Nuggets. Discover how to tap into hidden insights, position yourself as the must-have candidate, and secure the offers you deserve. Get your copy now!!!