This must be the week for kindred spirits in the realm of using storytelling in the job search. Rob Sullivan, a pioneer on this topic, has been my Q&A subject this week. A more recent discovery was Judy Rosemarin (pictured at right) , whom I came across while researching the executive-interviewing book I’m now working on. She has made some wonderful contributions to the book.
In a blog entry in yesterday’s Newsday.com Judy calls elevator pitches “stale and rote. They make claims but show nothing.”
Instead, she recommends telling a story when encountering new contacts. Here’s her example that clearly would make a wonderful emotional connection with others:
When I was a young boy growing up in Chicago, I bought myself a paper route at age 12. All excited, I took my bag of papers and threw the first on a customer’s front porch. Out of the front door he came. “Who are you?” he asked. “I am your paper boy, ” I told him with some pride. “Well, I want my papers delivered later in the day as I work late and do not want to be awakened. I also want it covered so it doesn’t get wet. And, anyway, what is going to make you different from all the other paper boys I have had?” “I said, “Well sir, I plan to give you the best customer service,” and I have been doing that for over 25 years in corporate America.
Nice. I talk about elevator stories, a similar concept in my book, Tell Me About Yourself.
Judy has also done a terrific podcast, “The Magic of Storytelling for Job Search,” the transcript of which you can read here.
Added May 31: In the Comments section, Sean Buvala points out that “many of us who have story as our core work, for years, have said the elevator speech is dead.”
He offers a link for his podcast on the subject.










Many of us who have story as our core work, for years, have said the elevator speech is dead. Here's the link page for my podcast on this very same subject:
http://seantells.net/2009/05/01/new-storytelling-in-business-podcast-the-elevator-speech-is-dead/
Thanks Sean. I added the link to the main entry.
I agree. A story is less likely to come across as a cynical sales pitch. The elevator pitch oozes "this is a pitch" and I think is far to likely to promote a negative response. Stories are more subtle: they build connections and points of dialogue. They can entertain and amuse. Ultimately, they can get your audience on your side whereas with a pitch it is much harder to achieve this.
So, yes, I agree. Go with the story.