{"id":4382,"date":"2021-11-22T10:18:11","date_gmt":"2021-11-21T23:18:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/insyncnetworkgroup.com\/how-an-8-word-elevator-pitch-can-be-more-powerful-than-your-cv\/"},"modified":"2023-07-03T01:59:15","modified_gmt":"2023-07-02T15:59:15","slug":"how-an-8-word-elevator-pitch-can-be-more-powerful-than-your-cv","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/insyncnetworkgroup.com\/how-an-8-word-elevator-pitch-can-be-more-powerful-than-your-cv\/","title":{"rendered":"How an 8-word elevator pitch can be more powerful than your CV"},"content":{"rendered":"
Despite the appearance of \u2018fate\u2019, tales of people turning chance meetings with strangers into career opportunities is rarely an accident. Sydney business founder, Trena Blair is a case in point. Seven years ago, she set her career off on a new trajectory after answering one question from a stranger sitting beside her at a graduation ceremony at the Australian Institute of Company Directors.<\/p>\n
She answered the stranger\u2019s question in eight words and in less than 30 seconds. These eight words turned the stranger into her first client.\u00a0 But they were no part of an off-the-cuff response. They were words carefully chosen and curated after months of thinking and defining for herself what her \u2018pitch\u2019 was.<\/p>\n
As someone who has been advising expats on re-entering the Australian job market for the last 10 years, a clear position or pitch is an expat\u2019s most valuable tool. But it is a tool that doesn\u2019t come easy. Finding the right handful of words to sum up what could be a 10, 20 or 30 year career abroad is often the most challenging part of the entire job search process. Expats are often coming home from larger markets and have the added challenge of having to translate a career or expertise which may not exist or be valued in the same way back at home. Pitches or descriptions that assume prior knowledge overseas, may not work in Australia.<\/p>\n
As a result, I often find expat jobseekers avoiding the positioning challenge all together and instead they distract themselves by focusing all their energy on the 1000+ word CV.<\/p>\n
However, the risk with this is that avoiding the work on your verbal positioning ultimately undermines the quality of your CV. A CV without an underlying position is the equivalent of your career being a bowl of spaghetti being thrown at a wall to see what sticks. You are asking the job market to tell you what your next job and career role will be – rather than the other way around.<\/p>\n
What makes a good positioning statement<\/strong><\/p>\n You can\u2019t google an off the shelf positioning \u2013 every person\u2019s positioning statement will and should be different.\u00a0 I recommend that a good positioning statement should be a mix of capability, curiosity and connection.<\/p>\n For capability, this is where you articulate your skill, passion and relevance.\u00a0 For example: \u201c20-year marketing specialist in FMCG.<\/em><\/p>\n Your positioning should also build curiosity and interest. \u201c20-year marketing specialist in FMCG with a focus on developing insight led strategy and customer focused innovation.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n It should end with a call to action around connection and opportunities. \u201c20-year marketing specialist in FMCG with a focus on developing insight led strategy and customer focused innovation.\u201d I am always keen to connect with Australian organisations and specialists who are commercialising new products and services or expanding into new regions. \u201c <\/em><\/p>\n Once you have your positioning nailed, here is where it can comes in handy: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n