How to fall in love with your pitch
Forgive me for making some assumptions here. You’re a researcher, deeply focussed on what you need to be doing to prove your thesis and change the world. So thinking about your pitch, let alone falling in love with it, is the last thing on your mind.
Let’s see if we can persuade you that a love affair with your pitch is a serious business. But first, ask yourself if you fit into any of these pitch partnerships.
The Fizzler
You pitch believing your impressive research methodology is all you need to woo a prospective partner. Before you get anywhere near the promise, your intended’s eyes glaze over and they mentally leave the room.
The Commitmentphobe
You know a powerful pitch is attractive and a long term relationship will bring with it great benefits. But preparing and practicing the right pitch seems like such hard work. You leave your potential partner waiting by the phone till the last minute, and then fail to make your intentions clear.
The Adulterer
You pitch, but you’re really on a palm-fringed beach, cocktail in hand, with someone else. It’s an empty promise, even a lie,. when you say, ‘I told you I loved you, didn’t I’?
The Narcissist
In your eyes, your pitch sparkles with genius. But it’s froth, with no substance or purpose. It will only ever be of interest to the person gazing star-struck into the mirror of your own ego.
The Nerd
Diligent, earnest and deadly serious, this pitch is in dire need of a personality transplant. No matter how valuable the content, if it’s just information, it’s a characterless text book, not a riveting story.
Derby and Joan
Comfortable and smug, it does the job. But oh my, it’s boring and few want to spend time in its company.
Ginger and Fred
You’re in a long term, sustainable partnership with your pitch. It brings you purpose, joy, and untold benefits the longer you’re together and working on your relationship.
Five steps to a healthy relationship with your pitch
Get clear on your purpose
Why are you doing what you do, who are you serving, and what difference do you believe in making for humanity? Without a clearly articulated purpose, you won’t attract and retain a relationship with those who might love why you do what you do.
Be curious about your people
Who are the people looking for exactly what you have to offer? What do they want? What keeps them awake at night? What are their issues? How can you help? How will your pitch demonstrate empathy for them?
What’s your intention
A good pitch is flexible and can accommodate different intentions. When you pitch, perhaps you just want an opportunity to follow up the relationship and not an exchange of rings! If you just want permission to meet again, make that clear.
Input your value
Your value is the insight you have into your world far beyond facts and statistics. Share this intelligently with others in your pitch, and you demonstrate how you’ve changed information into knowledge and transformed knowledge into wisdom.
Story
A great pitch contains good stories that fascinate and inform. Science shows us that our brain activity changes when we tell and hear purpose-driven story disposing us to feel empathy and trust and a willingness to co-operate. Isn’t this what we desire in a committed relationship?
When you inject these five steps into your pitch, you can’t but help fall in love with it. It is the sum of all that you are, have experienced, and can share with the world to better humanity.
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