Tell me about a time you felt really proud of yourself.

A natural way to answer

I felt really proud when I gave my first presentation at work. I'd been dreading it for weeks, but I prepared well and it went smoothly. Afterwards my manager congratulated me, and I felt like all my effort had paid off.

Key phrases to use

• faced my fear — to confront something you're scared of instead of avoiding it“I finally faced my fear of heights.”
• prove myself wrong — to show that your own doubts about yourself were not true“I thought I'd fail, but I proved myself wrong.”
• paid off — if effort pays off, it produces a good result in the end“All those late nights finally paid off.”
• given it my all — to put in your maximum effort, holding nothing back“Win or lose, I gave it my all.”
• take on the world — to feel confident and ready to face any challenge“After that win I felt I could take on the world.”