An Elevator Speech Can Help You Land The Job

O ut of work? Want to                                                 advance up the career           • Take time to be with yourself    ladder? Starting your own       and jot down thoughts and feeling  business? Hmm…time to create or       about what you know about          fine tune your 30 second elevator     yourself in the workplace.         speech.” An important element in      Contemplate your skills,           a job search that is often            strengths, expertise, and who you  overlooked or underrated is the       are…what would you bring to an     ability to articulate who you are     employer?                          and what you offer a prospective                                         employer.                             • Write the words down using                                             active and enrolling language      Think about the networking you        while staying in the present       do. So many opportunities can         tense. This is all about you       occur and you could extend your       finding work today, not            job search by striking up a           yesterday.                         conversation while waiting in                                            line at the grocery store, riding     • Practice “the talk” in front of  the bus, watching your son’s          the mirror and then to your        soccer game, or waiting at the        spouse or a friend, even your dog  doctor’s office. And, don’t           can be your audience.              forget about the opportunity to                                          talk to someone at the human          The Delivery                       resources office or a job fair.                                          What are the words you would use?     • Say it five times. Know the      Can you say it so it sounds           main points, but not to sound      genuine and concise? Here are a       robotic. Be flexible with your     few pointers to get started:          wording.                                                                                                    The Development Phase                 • Use eye contact when delivering  your message. (Note the               workplace is paramount. The        receiver’s reaction.)                 elevator to finding the right                                            position can have its ups and      • Smile, look alive and               downs. Having a prepared 30        confident. Be enrolling. Believe      Second Elevator Talk can help you  in who you are and what you can       remain more confident in your job  offer.                                search. Ready? Going up!                                                                                    • Keep honing your 30 Second          Barbara Wulf MS, GCDF, CPCC        Elevator Talk…this is a “work in                                         progress” as the workplace is                                            dynamic and different work             an employee or potential employee     align="center">                along with what you bring to the       About the Author: Barbara Wulf is a certified career/life coach and speaker who helps individuals redesign their career paths by supporting and inspiring them to stretch, seek, and achieve life/work success. Barbara holds a master's degree in counseling, is a global career development facilitator, is certified by The Coaches Training Institute and is an adjunct faculty member at Concordia University, St. Paul, MN. Barbara offers career assessments along with resume/cover letter writing and interviewing strategies for impact. Sign up for her monthly e-zine, OWN IT, WORK IT, LIVE IT at http://www.beckoncall-coach.com. Published At: www.Isnare.com