What gets you really excited about your work? What projects or clients are really floating your boat right now?
While having a clever elevator pitch is great (as long as it’s clear), the easiest way to answer the question What do you do? is to share something you’re excited about.
This takes little-to-no prep and zero memorization.
Here’s an example:
“What do you do?”
“This morning I got to give a storytelling workshop to a nonprofit focused on education. They’re trying to do better at raising funds and explaining their mission, so today they practiced telling the stories of the great things they do every day.
“I’m always preaching storytelling, so it was really fun to get to do this for a great cause.
“That’s part of my work as a marketing and executive branding consultant….”
That’s fun?
Perhaps you don’t think of work as fun, or you think that what you do wouldn’t sound fun to someone else. But one person’s toil is another person’s playground.
For example, my admin always says,“I love a good spreadsheet project!” And I’m so glad she does, because I don’t.
Your version of fun may be exactly what someone else would gladly pay for, to avoid it themselves. Remember, opposites attract.
How about satisfying?
You may work in an area that really doesn’t lend it self to fun – say, solving a major social issue. Instead of fun, what do you find deeply satisfying?
For example:
“What do you do?”
“I help homeless people get off the streets into permanent housing. At the end of the day, it’s good to know another member of our community is safe and warm…”
The bottom line is this: Nothing sells like passion. People are naturally attracted to passionate people, but it’s something you can’t fake. The good news is, with the easiest elevator pitch ever, you don’t have to.
