Few people love developing an "elevator pitch" even though they may recognize their need for one and the importance of having a well-crafted one. I volunteer for a group of job seekers who meet every week, and no one enjoys the process of introducing themselves to a roomful of strangers. In fact, I know that some people try to sneak in after they think the introductions will be over, or they skip the meeting altogether rather than struggle through a 30-second self-introduction to a room full of self-appointed critics.
The urban myth about how the elevator pitch first originated is that in the early studio days, a Hollywood screenwriter would catch an unsuspecting studio executive in the elevator. Trapped, with nowhere else to go, the screenwriter had between 30 to 118 seconds to "pitch" his idea to the studio's top decision-maker.
Today, you aren't pitching an idea for a screenplay. For you, the stakes involve your next great break in your career. If you are on the job market, you need to develop a "pitch-perfect elevator pitch." Your pitch must be compelling to the point of making you seem different from everyone else. Additionally, it must be delivered with earnest sincerity and not sound like it has been rehearsed in front of your mirror a thousand times—even though it may have (and should have) been rehearsed in front of you a thousand times or more.
My elevator pitch has changed and evolved hundreds of times (literally) in the last three years since I began my odyssey as a career transition and job search coach. As a result, I am particularly sensitive to the challenges that new job seekers experience when trying to craft their pitch. Don't beat up on yourself if you find this particular task daunting. Everyone does.
That does not take you off the hook, however. You must come up with a clear, concise, compelling and persuasive elevator pitch or networking introduction if you need to traverse the job search terrain. Here are some suggestions that will help you craft your own unique and compelling pitch.
1. Start with the understanding that you are a multidimensional human being, and it is hard to reduce the essence of who you are professionally to one short paragraph.
Sit down and start the process by writing down everything about yourself in as many words, paragraphs or pages as it takes to describe who you are and what you could bring to the particular job or career that you want. This exercise will (a) get the jumble of ideas out of your head and onto paper and (b) create the rough draft of what will eventually become your finely tuned 30-60 second elevator pitch.
2. Once you have everything on paper, start editing it from the perspective of a potential hiring manager and strike out everything that isn't specific to what you could bring to the position for which you are applying.
Edit, edit and edit some more. Let's face it: most of what you wrote isn't pertinent to the job, so strike it out. Be brutal in assessing what needs to go and what should stay. Stick to the facts and eliminate all "fluff words." Everybody says they are "passionate" about something, so discard that word from your pitch altogether. Avoid any self-promotional adjectives that not only won't attract the attention you want but will repel whoever you might be conversing with.
3. Consider what problem you solve and then offer an example to illustrate it.
In my case, I might say, "I am a Career Transition and Job Search Coach who specializes in helping individuals from various walks of life find a job or career that is personally fulfilling to them and is in alignment with their core values and their mission and purpose on this planet. One of my most recent clients just moved to San Francisco to work for Google. I helped him with his resume and his LinkedIn profile, and over the course of about six months, he moved from being stuck in a job that he didn't enjoy anymore to a job in a great company in a part of the country that he has dreamed of moving to live. He is just one example of people I have helped move from being stuck to getting unstuck and into a job they enjoy and feel good about." This "pitch" takes about 45 seconds to deliver.
4. Practice, practice, practice.
When you have your pitch narrowed down to the point where you describe what you do and how you bring value to a particular situation, practice it until it rolls off of your tongue easily and without strain. Practice it to the point where you feel it and know that it is your truth. Practice it in front of a mirror, with friends, and with anyone else who will listen. Record it so that you can hear it and fine-tune it.
5. Deliver it with a sense of confidence and ease at every networking event, job fair or interview that you attend.
The real trick to a pitch-perfect elevator pitch is that it is compelling and invites curiosity. You want the person with whom you are speaking to be struck by your confident demeanor and the content of your pitch so that they go, "Wow, tell me more!"
An additional tip for you to consider is to be mindful of the expression on the face of the person with who you are speaking. If their eyes begin to glaze over, or they break eye contact and start looking around the room, it means you have lost them, and something is wrong with your pitch. It's boring, or it's being delivered robotically and sounds over-rehearsed. You don't want to lose people while you are making your pitch! You want to intrigue them and pull them into a deeper conversation so that you have time and space to elaborate on other aspects of who you are. Failing to get their attention during that initial pitch, however, means you still have work to do.
Perhaps creating an elevator pitch is painful, but it is a necessary component of every job search, and it is far too important to overlook or gloss over. Do the work, create a compelling pitch and see the results as you get to know people at networking events. You never know when you might be pitching to your future boss! Happy job hunting.
This post was originally published at an earlier date.
Is your job search turning into a grind with no end in sight? It may be time to take a step back and reevaluate your entire approach.
In cold weather climates, the beginning of spring is a time to clean the house and get organized—a practice known as spring cleaning. Through the years, spring cleaning has taken on a larger meaning with people using the time to organize and declutter things in their lives.
For professionals on the job hunt, a little spring cleaning (metaphorically speaking) could be a great way to reinvigorate your job search. Here are a few strategies your job search spring cleaning should include.
Reevaluate Your Job Search Approach
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Make a list of the last handful of jobs you applied for and see if you can identify any positive or negative trends. Consider things like:
How did I learn about this job?
How did I apply for the job?
Did I earn an interview?
What was the ultimate result?
A lot can be learned about your job search approach just by answering these questions and identifying patterns. For example:
Negative Trends
You discovered five jobs through job boards, applied to all of them via the job boards, and never heard back from any of them.
The common pattern here is applying through job boards. This isn't to say that job boards don't serve a purpose in the job search process, but they have their limitations, and you can't run your job search entirely off of them. When you apply through a job board, there's a good chance that your materials will never get past the applicant tracking system (ATS) and never be seen by an actual person.
One simple fix is to research who the hiring manager or recruiter is that posted the position and email your materials to them directly.
The more efficient fix would be to take a proactive approach by putting together a bucket list of companies that you want to work for and start making connections on LinkedIn with people who work at those companies. You may already know some people who work there or have connections that can refer you to some individuals.
This is a great way to network your way onto a company's radar.
Positive Trends
You applied to three jobs via referral, were invited to two job interviews, and made it through multiple rounds of interviews for one of the jobs before being passed over for someone with a little more experience.
The pattern here is that getting referred to a job by a professional acquaintance is a great way to land a job interview. This indicates that you're leveraging your network well and you should continue to focus on your networking efforts.
The next step is to review the interview process and determine what went well and what needs to be improved. Sometimes the interviewer will provide feedback, and that feedback can be valuable. However, not everyone is comfortable with giving feedback.
Chances are you probably have a good idea about areas of improvement and the skills you need to gain. Put together a plan for addressing those shortfalls.
The good news in making it deep into any interview process is that it indicates that the company likes you as a potential employee (even if the timing just wasn't right) and the experience could be a roadmap to a job with that company at a later date, or another similar opportunity elsewhere.
Give Your Resume & Cover Letter Some Much-Needed Attention
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Are you continuously sending similar resumes and cover letters to each job opening with only minor adjustments? If so, your strategy needs some serious spring cleaning.
The reason why it's so important to tailor your resume is that throughout your career, you acquire numerous skills, but the job you're applying for may only be focusing on 6-8 of those skills. In that case, those skills must rise to the top of the resume with quantifiable examples of how you successfully used those skills at previous jobs.
Remember, recruiters go through hundreds of resumes. They need to be able to tell from a quick glance whether or not you're a potential candidate for the position.
While updating your resume, you could also spruce up your LinkedIn profile by highlighting the skill sets that you want to be noticed for by recruiters.
As for writing a good cover letter, the key to success is writing a disruptive cover letter. When you write a disruptive cover letter, you're basically telling a story. The story should focus on how you connect with the particular company and job position. The story could also focus on your personal journey, and how you got to where you currently are in your career.
If your resumes and cover letters aren't unique, now is the time to clean things up and get on track.
Build Your Personal Brand
Just because you're looking for work doesn't mean that you don't have anything to offer. Use previous career experiences and passions to build your personal brand.
Ask yourself, "How do I want other professionals to view me?"
Pick an area of expertise and start sharing your knowledge and experience with your professional network by pushing out content on your LinkedIn and social media accounts. Good content can include blogs, social media posts, and videos.
By sharing content about your experiences and passions, you slowly build your personal brand, and others will start to notice. The content could lead to good discussions with others in your network. It could also lead to reconnecting with connections that you haven't spoken to in years, or making new connections.
You never know when one of these connections could turn into a job lead or referral. The trick is to get on people's radars. So, when you're cleaning up your job search, be sure to build a plan for personal branding.
Maintain Healthy Habits During Your Job Search
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Your job search is important, but it's even more important to know when to pull back and focus on personal health and spending time with family and friends.
There are actually things that you can do for your own enjoyment that could help your job search in the long run, such as:
Grab coffee with a friend - It's good to engage in light conversation with friends during challenging times. And if your job search does come up, remember that most people have been through it themselves and you never know when a friend may provide you with a good idea or lead on a job.
Volunteer - Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the community and help others. In addition, if you develop a little bit of a career gap while looking for a job, you can always talk about how you filled that time volunteering, if you're asked about it during a job interview.
Continue to focus on other passions - Are you a fitness nut? Blogger? Crafter? Continue to do the things that bring you happiness. And if you're in a position to profit from your passion through a freelance job or side hustle, even better!
Spring is the perfect time to clean up and improve your job search so you can land the job you want. If you're struggling to find a job, follow the tips above to reinvigorate your job search—and watch your career blossom!
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This article was originally published at an earlier date.