Wishingwell Coaching

The ElevatorPitch
Putting together a great elevator pitch that
feels authentic and helps you stand out.

made with
5 Elements of a Compelling
Elevator Pitch
The 5 elements that make an elevator pitch work for you and the person
you're pitching to.
Understand the 5 steps
▢ The Hook
▢ The Problem
▢ Your Skills
▢ Your Mission
▢ Your Goals

Put Your Elevator Pitch Together

▢ Craft your pitch using your elements

Bonus Step: Design a Compelling Hook

Figure out a hook that is compelling - one that both illustrates your skills and mission, and
also is interesting or funny. Choosing a great story is a good way to start.
An Elevator Pitch Example
That Will Make You Excited
To Give Yours
Jessica Sweet, LICSW, Career Coach, Wishingwell Coaching

Have you been searching for an elevator pitch example, but only come up with dry,
stuffy sounding templates that make you feel like a robot?

I hear you.
It's because what can happen with templates is they end up being like Mad Libs. You
just fill in the blank with whatever words you think of, and what comes out the other
end might end up sounding more like gobbledygook than anything you'd want to say
during a networking conversation to make yourself sound appealing.

It goes something like this:

Hi, I'm Bob and I am a teacher, but I am looking to transition into corporate training. I
have done a lot of teaching at the local community college, and I know I could teach
adults in a corporate setting. Do you know of any companies hiring for that role?

That's not a very compelling elevator pitch example, is it?

Instead, there are several key elements of an elevator pitch that you need to make it
draw people in and do the work you want it to do.

Think about your elevator pitch as the worm on the end of your fishing hook. You need
to get people to bite and grab on to you so that you have them interested in you and
what you have to offer. That's the work your elevator pitch needs to do for you.

If it's a dried up worm, it won't work. If it's a worm that feels so inauthentic you can't
even bear to put it on the hook and say it, it's not going to work for you. To catch the
big fish, it has to be juicy, and you have to feel great about casting your line again and
again.

Elevator Pitch Example: The Key Elements

The Hook:
Admit it: when you first start talking to someone and they start with something that
feels boring, your brain zones out and you look over their shoulder to see who else you
might talk to, right? Everyone has done it.

But you can't afford to have your elevator pitch go that way, so when working on this
elevator pitch example, we have to make sure to start with a hook - a juicy tidbit that
will catch your listener's ear.

You might be able to tell a story in one or two sentences, or give a few facts about
yourself that are relevant. When you've fleshed out more of your elevator pitch

example, you can come back to this element, as it will be clearer what hook will be
relevant.
The Problem:
This next part will take some homework, and it's interconnected with some of the other
elements. The basic question here though is, "What problem are you trying to solve?"

It's a trickier question than it seems though, because you can't just solve any problem.
You'll want to solve a problem that people want and need solved (there's a job/business
market out there for it) and one that you are great at solving.

Skills:
That means you've dug deep into yourself and defined your own skills, including your
transferable skills, and that you've got the confidence to talk about using these skills. It's
also really helpful if you have stories (later on) to use to back up your abilities to use
these skills, but these stories will be more supportive and can wait until after your
elevator pitch. They don't need to be part of the worm - unless one of your stories is
your hook.

Your Mission:
Here's the part that most people miss: your mission. What good is a job, even a great
job, if you don't care about it? So you need to make sure that your mission - what you're
out in the world to do - is embedded right into what you're telling everyone you can do.

It's all about what you like, who you can help, the impact or legacy you want to leave
behind, what value you want to add.

When you can articulate that, you'll be able to create an elevator pitch that sounds like
you, not one that feels so canned you can't even get it out of your mouth.

Your Goal:
What's the purpose of this whole exercise for you? Are you looking for a new role? To
meet people in a new industry? To gain credibility as an industry leader? To make a
connection?

When people understand how they can help you, they are much more likely to do it.

You need to recognize when you are asking people to connect the dots, even if, for you,
the connection seems perfectly obvious. You do need to blatantly ask for something if
you want it. That does not mean you need to be rude. Be polite, but be to the point. No
one has the attention span to spend on other people's problems these days, which
means they can't guess at what you might need. They will be grateful for you being
upfront.

Elevator Pitch Example: Putting It All

Together
So where do you start when looking at these elements?

Start with your mission or skills, depending on your personal preference. Is it more
important to you to utilize the skills you already have or do what's important to you?
Whatever your answer is, that's where you start.

Hammer out your skills and mission, and then see how that applies to a real world
problem.

Then, look at what your goal should be, given where you are with that.

Last, search for a tantalizing hook to draw people in to your story.

Here's an elevator pitch example to guide you:

Let's say that you are Bob, from above. Your mission is to help people be their best at
work. You get really excited about helping people in the workplace and about teaching
adult learners who will be interested in learning.

You also have teaching skills from your 20 years of teaching experience.

The real world problem might be that many corporate trainers don't have a lot of real
world teaching experience, especially training in specific types of teaching and learning
skills. (I have no idea if this is a real problem or not.) You can use this as another skill that
you have and a way that you can solve a specific problem.

Your goal is to make a career change into a different industry and to make connections
with people who can help you make this change.

Your hook might be a funny story about teaching adult learners in a kids classroom
where the chairs were all too small.

Let's try it out!

I'm Bob, and I've been a teacher for over 20 years, but I love teaching adult learners -
though I learned the hard way that teaching them in a kindergarten classroom just
doesn't work. You try fitting guys that are 6'2" into those tiny chairs! Anyway, what I've
learned is that many corporate trainers don't have a lot of the specific teaching and
learning skills that I have as a classroom teacher, and I'd love to bring that to a corporate
setting where I could use it to help employees engage better at work. What I'm looking
for is to meet people who can help me make the connections I need to find the type of
role I'm looking for. Do you know anyone I should talk to about that?

Your Turn To Create An Amazing Elevator

Pitch Example
You can create one, or several, elevator pitch examples based on this model. Just take
the elements and fill in the blanks.

What do you think? Does this make it easier?

 YourNext Step
If you're looking for a new job or career don't
do it without a strategy. To be successful in
landing a great job you love, you'll need to
have more than just luck on your side.

Reach out to see how together, we can create

a winning job search strategy for you!

CALL OR EMAIL WISHINGWELL COACHING!

made with