Do you know a career is made up of seconds? Yes, seconds, maybe minutes if you are lucky.
Think about the last time you had the opportunity to speak with a senior leader. Who was the most senior leader you have spoken too? What was your conversation about? As you are remembering this, remember what you said? How many words was it? I am willing to bet you can count the amount of words on your fingers.
I had an issue. I talked to my mentor about it.
Me: I attend networking sessions and have the opportunity to meet senior executives, but I never sound… corporate. In fact, I didn’t even sound intelligent.
My mentor: Buzz words. You need buzz phrases already prepared.
Me: What do you mean?
My mentor: Know and rehearse your message before you go. The higher up the executive is, the more in demand their time is. Which means you only have a few seconds to deliver your message.
Me: How do I know what my message is before I meet them?
Her: Do your homework. Who is going to be at this networking session? And what would make you “sound” corporate or intelligent?
I gave this considerable thought. It had to be a sentence that reflected my brand, made me sound like I wanted to sound – smart.
I needed to use a big word and my tone of voice needed passion.
In the end, I choose the word – acuity. Ok, so it is a short word, but does make one sound smart. I worked on my phase over and over again.
Then…
I was at a local conference and I saw a Vice President of an oil company mixing his coffee. This was the opportunity!
I went over and got a cup of coffee and briefly spoke to him. I asked how he was, and he asked how I was. I didn’t say fine, I delivered the one sentence I had prepared about the acuity of the project I was working on. Then we were interrupted by someone and we parted ways.
But something was different after that day – I asked him to have coffee and he accepted. And the coffee’s turned into lunches, and then once trust was built he became a mentor in 150 Years Mentorship Program.
He when on to give incredible advice to one of our members as a mentor. Check out who the he is here and watch an interview of a successful professional who graduated 150 Years Mentorship program who received his advice.
I am grateful for that tip from my mentor.
This is not a new concept, but it is one that nobody wants you to know. Executives use this all the time to get their message across. They know chance encounters are only seconds in length and they make it into an opportunity. They must have their message crafted, memorized, and practiced. These are the actions of high performers.
If you need help in crafting your buzz phase, email me at carol@150yearsmentorship.com. Or tell me your story – how have buzz phrases worked for you.
Carol
