At this point in your Career Jump Start, you should have a good, if not perfect resume. And if you completed the previous resume road map, you have a good idea of what job will make you happy going forward. The next step in Career Jump Start is to prepare a script you can use to quickly introduce yourself, quickly describe your skills, and successes, and ask for a job lead. I like to call this script a Personal Career Introduction, or Career Introduction for short, because it is a type of introduction. But it is a very specialized introduction, because you want to call out your skills, experience, possibly education, and successes in less than a minute. If you have made the decision to seek another position, or just want to test the water, developing, and practicing a Personal Career Introduction should not be overlooked. It is the next step in your Career Jump Start. Once you develop a good career introduction, you will realize the many opportunities you have to employ this powerful career tool.
For background, when we pitch our business, product, or service to others we call this an “elevator script”, or “elevator pitch”. The idea for a Personal Career Introduction is similar. One scenario for using a Career Introduction might be that you are at a conference, or a convention, or any large meeting for that matter, and you take the elevator with others attending, you can express to them in one minute the core of what you do. My Career Introduction for my Career Coaching business goes like this…” So, you know how most people don’t like the work they are doing? (Nodding of heads here.) In fact, according to a recent gallop poll 71% of the employees in north America either hate what they are doing, or feel disconnected from their work. I work with Clients to assess their job satisfaction - then help Clients to create a career vision - then map that vision into a workable plan.” In less than one minute, I connect with the person I am talking with by stating a very real world problem (job dissatisfaction, and lack of job engagement), then I describe my approach and skill (assessment, and planning) and also state at a high level what my service or mission is (working with clients to map their career). A Career Introduction is similar to an elevator pitch for a product, or service, but you are selling your skills, experience, education, successes. The Career Introduction is a means to an end. It is a one minute commercial for you. The goal is to obtain job leads. It can happen without having an up to date resume, but I encourage every professional to keep their resume current. In addition, if you pique interest, it is priceless to have good resume as a follow up. An example of this would be if you are attending a job fair, or another gathering where the main focus is to talk job placement. In this scenario, if your Career Introduction generates interest, you can follow up with “would you like to see my resume?”
PART ONE OF YOUR INTRODUCTION: A Career Introduction is made up of three parts. The first part is important because it is where you pull someone into the discussion. The best way to do this is with a question. And even better if refers to a real-life problem, that others can relate to. For example, if you are good at organizing, and are looking for a position where organizing is a major asset, your question could be…”so you know how most people can’t seem to get organized? Well, I am an ace at organizing, and scheduling.” If you are good at getting systems to talk to each other, your question could be…”so you know how complex it can get at organizations when information is in half a dozen places? I make life easier by building services so the information can be shared across systems more easily.” Spend some time, and think of a good question as a lead in, and make it a problem most everyone can relate to. As a starting point, think of pain points in life, and in business where you can provide help. Pain points that you make better, or remove..
PART TWO OF YOUR INTRODUCTION: The second part of a Career Introduction is to list two to three things that you are good, or (even better) great at. You also want to include saying something about your successes. For example, if you are an experienced project manager and are good at turning troubled projects around, you could say “I have had a track record of success in getting troubled projects moving in the right direction again”. (I actually met someone like this, and the company I was working for at the time hired her based on her success of turning troubled projects upright!) If you are good with numbers, and enjoy doing that work, you can say “I love getting into the numbers and making sense of them so managers don’t have to.” Call out one or two of your skills, but no more than three. You don’t want to overwhelm people. Your goal is to sell your top two to three talents, and back those up by calling out your success. Make powerful, but concise truthful statements about our proven skills. Consider what makes you unique as you build your statements.
PART THREE OF YOUR INTRODUCTION: The third, and last part of your Career Introduction is the close. This is the point where you ask for leads on a new position. If this is a phone call to a friend, family member, or personal contact, the close would sound something like…”do you know of anyone that can use my talent?” In the case of a career fair, the close could be…” can your organization use my skills?” Alternately, it could be…” would you like to see my resume?” In the close you are asking a question. Make sure you wait long enough for the person to think about an answer, and be prepared to listen carefully for their response. If you are doing your close by phone, be prepared to take notes. If the lead requires follow up - some action from the person you are speaking with, try to get a time from so you can do a follow up to chase down any leads you might get. The goal is to find out who else you need to speak with, and when.
EXAMPLE: To illustrate a sample of a Career Introduction for a person that is a middle manager, making a call to a personal contact the conversation would sound something like this:
YOU: “Hi Judy, it has been a while, how is it going?”
Other: “Hey John, it sure has been a while. Things are pretty much the same. Going well overall. How are you? What’s up?”
YOU: “So you might have heard there were some lay-offs at ACME Corp. Guess what? I was one of them.”
Other: “Oh no. Sorry to hear this.”
YOU: “You probably know it was a business decision, and I’m looking forward to the next chapter. I think you know that I was a middle tier manager at ACME. So you know how there always seems to be pressure to get software into production faster? Well, over the last couple years, I have excelled at delivering quality software at faster speed to market. Using LEAN methodology, we were delivering software into production every month. We increased speed to market by 50%. Do you know of anyone that can use my talents to develop teams that deliver quality quickly?”
Other: “Hmmm…you know I have to think about this. I belong to a professional organization and I could spend some feelers there. Do you have a resume?”
YOU: “I do. I think I have your email. When does your group meet next?”
Other: “Next week. On Tuesday.”
YOU: “Is it OK if I ping you back say Thursday next week?”
Other: “That would be fine. Got to run. We will talk next week. Take care.”
To recap, below is a check list of the key parts of a Career Introduction:
1) Lead in Question: Ideally this is around a real word problem, or pain point)
2) Mention one, or two skills, and your success: These are things that you are truly good at, and have proven your value - areas where you have had success. Consider things that make you unique when you build your statements. Don’t overwhelm people – one or two skills, or talents are good to state, but no more than three.
3) Close: This is where you ask for leads on a new position. Make sure to give the person enough time to absorb what you have just said, and give them enough time for a thoughtful response. Listen carefully to their response, and consider what follow up is needed on the lead.
The power of a clearly conceived, and well written Career Introduction is that when the opportunity to sell ones-self arises, (and this can often be unpredictable – a party, a phone call from an old friend, etc.) you will not trip over your words in describing your skills and success. The goal is to have a polished presentation. To achieve this, you will need to be concise about summarizing your skills, and experience, and have a solid close in place to ask for level of interest, and any job leads. If you have a well written Career Introduction, and have it down pat, you will get right to the point, appear more confident, and display that you fully understand what you can do well. You are focused when expressing your experience, skills, and success in solving real-world problems. If it is one that is well thought through, and practiced, a Career Introduction is a powerful tool in your career toolbox. One that is indispensable in your Career Jump Start.
Author: Brian Kail, MBA, CPC is a Career, and Business Coach. For more info see AscendProCoach.com
For background, when we pitch our business, product, or service to others we call this an “elevator script”, or “elevator pitch”. The idea for a Personal Career Introduction is similar. One scenario for using a Career Introduction might be that you are at a conference, or a convention, or any large meeting for that matter, and you take the elevator with others attending, you can express to them in one minute the core of what you do. My Career Introduction for my Career Coaching business goes like this…” So, you know how most people don’t like the work they are doing? (Nodding of heads here.) In fact, according to a recent gallop poll 71% of the employees in north America either hate what they are doing, or feel disconnected from their work. I work with Clients to assess their job satisfaction - then help Clients to create a career vision - then map that vision into a workable plan.” In less than one minute, I connect with the person I am talking with by stating a very real world problem (job dissatisfaction, and lack of job engagement), then I describe my approach and skill (assessment, and planning) and also state at a high level what my service or mission is (working with clients to map their career). A Career Introduction is similar to an elevator pitch for a product, or service, but you are selling your skills, experience, education, successes. The Career Introduction is a means to an end. It is a one minute commercial for you. The goal is to obtain job leads. It can happen without having an up to date resume, but I encourage every professional to keep their resume current. In addition, if you pique interest, it is priceless to have good resume as a follow up. An example of this would be if you are attending a job fair, or another gathering where the main focus is to talk job placement. In this scenario, if your Career Introduction generates interest, you can follow up with “would you like to see my resume?”
PART ONE OF YOUR INTRODUCTION: A Career Introduction is made up of three parts. The first part is important because it is where you pull someone into the discussion. The best way to do this is with a question. And even better if refers to a real-life problem, that others can relate to. For example, if you are good at organizing, and are looking for a position where organizing is a major asset, your question could be…”so you know how most people can’t seem to get organized? Well, I am an ace at organizing, and scheduling.” If you are good at getting systems to talk to each other, your question could be…”so you know how complex it can get at organizations when information is in half a dozen places? I make life easier by building services so the information can be shared across systems more easily.” Spend some time, and think of a good question as a lead in, and make it a problem most everyone can relate to. As a starting point, think of pain points in life, and in business where you can provide help. Pain points that you make better, or remove..
PART TWO OF YOUR INTRODUCTION: The second part of a Career Introduction is to list two to three things that you are good, or (even better) great at. You also want to include saying something about your successes. For example, if you are an experienced project manager and are good at turning troubled projects around, you could say “I have had a track record of success in getting troubled projects moving in the right direction again”. (I actually met someone like this, and the company I was working for at the time hired her based on her success of turning troubled projects upright!) If you are good with numbers, and enjoy doing that work, you can say “I love getting into the numbers and making sense of them so managers don’t have to.” Call out one or two of your skills, but no more than three. You don’t want to overwhelm people. Your goal is to sell your top two to three talents, and back those up by calling out your success. Make powerful, but concise truthful statements about our proven skills. Consider what makes you unique as you build your statements.
PART THREE OF YOUR INTRODUCTION: The third, and last part of your Career Introduction is the close. This is the point where you ask for leads on a new position. If this is a phone call to a friend, family member, or personal contact, the close would sound something like…”do you know of anyone that can use my talent?” In the case of a career fair, the close could be…” can your organization use my skills?” Alternately, it could be…” would you like to see my resume?” In the close you are asking a question. Make sure you wait long enough for the person to think about an answer, and be prepared to listen carefully for their response. If you are doing your close by phone, be prepared to take notes. If the lead requires follow up - some action from the person you are speaking with, try to get a time from so you can do a follow up to chase down any leads you might get. The goal is to find out who else you need to speak with, and when.
EXAMPLE: To illustrate a sample of a Career Introduction for a person that is a middle manager, making a call to a personal contact the conversation would sound something like this:
YOU: “Hi Judy, it has been a while, how is it going?”
Other: “Hey John, it sure has been a while. Things are pretty much the same. Going well overall. How are you? What’s up?”
YOU: “So you might have heard there were some lay-offs at ACME Corp. Guess what? I was one of them.”
Other: “Oh no. Sorry to hear this.”
YOU: “You probably know it was a business decision, and I’m looking forward to the next chapter. I think you know that I was a middle tier manager at ACME. So you know how there always seems to be pressure to get software into production faster? Well, over the last couple years, I have excelled at delivering quality software at faster speed to market. Using LEAN methodology, we were delivering software into production every month. We increased speed to market by 50%. Do you know of anyone that can use my talents to develop teams that deliver quality quickly?”
Other: “Hmmm…you know I have to think about this. I belong to a professional organization and I could spend some feelers there. Do you have a resume?”
YOU: “I do. I think I have your email. When does your group meet next?”
Other: “Next week. On Tuesday.”
YOU: “Is it OK if I ping you back say Thursday next week?”
Other: “That would be fine. Got to run. We will talk next week. Take care.”
To recap, below is a check list of the key parts of a Career Introduction:
1) Lead in Question: Ideally this is around a real word problem, or pain point)
2) Mention one, or two skills, and your success: These are things that you are truly good at, and have proven your value - areas where you have had success. Consider things that make you unique when you build your statements. Don’t overwhelm people – one or two skills, or talents are good to state, but no more than three.
3) Close: This is where you ask for leads on a new position. Make sure to give the person enough time to absorb what you have just said, and give them enough time for a thoughtful response. Listen carefully to their response, and consider what follow up is needed on the lead.
The power of a clearly conceived, and well written Career Introduction is that when the opportunity to sell ones-self arises, (and this can often be unpredictable – a party, a phone call from an old friend, etc.) you will not trip over your words in describing your skills and success. The goal is to have a polished presentation. To achieve this, you will need to be concise about summarizing your skills, and experience, and have a solid close in place to ask for level of interest, and any job leads. If you have a well written Career Introduction, and have it down pat, you will get right to the point, appear more confident, and display that you fully understand what you can do well. You are focused when expressing your experience, skills, and success in solving real-world problems. If it is one that is well thought through, and practiced, a Career Introduction is a powerful tool in your career toolbox. One that is indispensable in your Career Jump Start.
Author: Brian Kail, MBA, CPC is a Career, and Business Coach. For more info see AscendProCoach.com
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