Archive for November, 2011

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November 30, 2011

Investing In You

In a recent article on CBS Moneywatch by blogger Penelope Trunk, she discusses her secrets of financial success. Her #4 secret: invest in yourself. Trunk writes that she once paid her remaining cash to hire a career coach, when she most needed it. That coach helped her solve major issues that she was grappling with at the time, and allowed her to change things that led to breakthroughs in her career.

And so you, too, should consider well-placed investments in yourself. You don’t necessarily have to hire me as your coach (though if you’re wondering, you can hear more about how I can help you here). Hire somebody — just please don’t ask your mom, dad, neighbor, aunt, uncle, former co-worker, spouse, boyfriend or girlfriend. That is, unless they have the right type of experience to help you with your challenges.

You need someone who can get you to see from different perspectives, so you can see your way to the possible solutions to your problems, and doors to opportunities.

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November 16, 2011

The Pitch – Whose Is It?

Like it or not, we all pitch. I don’t mean a baseball, I mean pitching to convince someone of your particular point of view. Whether it’s pitching them to accept your suggestion, buy your product, bring you in for an interview, or extend an offer of a job, at some point you pitch. But whose pitch is it? Yours?

Nope. It’s theirs. The pitch has to make sense to them. It has to make them realize that it’s about them — what they can gain from what you’re pitching. If you want them to offer you a job, they need to know how they benefit from you taking that job. Or, if you want them to buy your product, they need to visualize how your product makes their life easier/better/cheaper/whatever.

They’re thinking in terms of the famous FM radio station that too many people forget: WIIFM, or what’s in it for me. When you think of what’s in it for them, you stand a greater chance of them coming to the conclusion that whatever you’re pitching is right for them.

Even though you’re giving the pitch, it’s all about them. Remember that.

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November 9, 2011

Say What You Mean, Mean What You Say

It’s getting to be more and more common, especially with all the “networking” events that go on … people saying things like “Let’s get together sometime”, or “Call me, let’s get together”, or “I’ll call you next week to set a time”, or “Shoot me an email, and we’ll have a cup of coffee”. Then what happens? Nothing. No call, no reply to your voicemail, no response to your email.

So why do these folks say things like that? I think in today’s culture, people subconsciously think those phrases I just mentioned above are another way of saying “Nice meeting you.” Well, if they meant “nice meeting you”, they should say “nice meeting you.”

Don’t fall into this trap. If you meet someone new, and realize that you have no interest in ever seeing this person again, don’t say “Let’s get together sometime.” It doesn’t mean you have to say, “Have a nice life”, either. Just be honest. Something like “Nice talking with you — good luck!” will work just fine.

Say what you mean. And mean what you say.

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