Has anyone ever successfully used an elevator pitch?
I don’t know if I believe preparing a 15-second statement about myself in preparation for when a professional idol, mentor or potential employer-of-my-dream-job asks for it, perhaps in an elevator, is really anything more than HR lingo.
But I took three minutes to make one anyway. Why don’t you?
It’s like a mental resume or even business cards, I suppose. You have one because it really doesn’t hurt and it really might help.
There’s no shortage of people with advice on the elevator pitch. I never much thought journalists needed one, but I recently read a top-notch review post on what journalists need if they’re even passively looking for that job they want.
So, not wanting to spend too much time on it, I used an automatically generating pitch Web site and created this:
My name is Christopher Wink and I am a freelance journalist and blogger from Philadelphia specializing in multimedia. I want to tell stories on every platform available. If there is a new medium or style or story, I’ll try it and want to master it. I love the history and tradition of journalism, particularly newspapers, and want to merge that with the future of multimedia. Help me do that.
I think the fear in these ditties are either seeming too boring or too arrogant. Mine is most certainly teetering on the former, with perhaps a hint of the latter. What is yours? Is this another waste of our time?
Photo from Netzkobold.
I actually like that pitch. And thanks for the shoutout! You used a formula but made it sound un-formulaic. (If that’s not a word, it is now.) The last bit is excellent, too. “Help me do that.” You’re not pushing your greatness onto them, but engaging them to be the innovative employer you need.
I may steal that last line, or at least that sentiment. See, I still have yet to solidify mine, actually, beyond the first two lines or so… maybe I should right now!
Let’s see:
“My name is Suzanne Yada, I’m a former copy editor-turned-journalism student at San Jose State University, and I want to help you save journalism.”
[if I have time to pause, they will naturally ask something regarding how.]
“Innovation. It’s as simple and complex as that.
[If I don’t have time to pause, I’m moving on to this bit:]
“I studied business and entrepreneurship as my minor in the startup capital of the world, and I also got knees-deep into social media like Twitter. That, plus my experience in copy editing and news design, means I’m someone who not only can package and edit content but can reach forward to the 21st century, both in the media and behind the scenes of the industry.”
Too long…?
Probably.
Crap.
HA, but I suspect your heart will shine through.The elevator pitch, I think,is mostly an opportunity for someone to quickly see if you really want it. If you don’t want it Suzanna, then you’ve fooled me.