Selling Yourself:How to stand out from the crowd

NIHR Trainee Conference

Isabelle Read20th September 2011

This session

Will be participative and productive You will have started to think about your own personal

proposition You will have created and tested your “elevator” speech You will have started to think about your network

Your academic qualifications, research and what you have published are a given…. You will not get funding just on your thinking…

Research is competitive:

What will give you the edge? What will make you someone they want to work with?

What are the facts?

People buy PeopleFirst Impressions CountRelationships are important

First impressions

People make very quick impressions, assumptions and decisions

People take in data from different sources• The words we use 8%• The tone of our voice (the music) 37%• Body language (the dance) 55%

Research by Albert Mehrabian

They also notice if these 3 elements are congruent or not

What else do people notice about us?

Things people notice…

Your physical appearance Your energy levels and your

enthusiasm Your accent & voice Your handshake and eye contact Your level of confidence How you interact with them (and

others)– as an equal?– do you remember their name?– are you friendly?– are you competitive?– are you interested in them?– do you listen well?– do you concentrate or peer over their

shoulder?!– your understanding of their

position/point of view– do you encourage others?

Whether or not they like you Your assertiveness Your clarity Your drive & initiative Your tenacity Your values Your humour The things you don’t say The connections you make The people you are connected to Your preparation, your attention to

detail, your follow up And, and…

Exercise: First Impressions, increasing our self-awareness

You are invited to talk to one other person preferably that you don’t know

Feedback is a gift: be as honest as you can about what you have noticed about the other person and the impression you are forming of them

This is how it works:– Find out about the other person for 1 minute. Who are you?

Tell me about yourself…– Swap round, now find out about your partner for 1 minute– Spend 1 minute each in turn giving your partner feedback on

your impression of them

What is your proposition, your “edge”?

Know what you are selling “Why should anyone fund you?”– What kind of person are you?– What do you stand for?– What is important to you?– What is your uniqueness? – What footprint do you want to leave behind?– Standing here in 5,10,15 years time what do you want to have

achieved?

Your ‘elevator speech’– “buy this product (me), and you will get this specific benefit”

Elevator Speech

What should it contain:-

– A hookA statement or question that piques their interest to want to hear more.

– Passion People are drawn to others with energy and enthusiasm

– Concise informationShort punchy statements about you

- RequestIt can also contain a request – for a meeting, another contact, for information etc.

Exercise: My proposition

In three’s help each other to think/talk through some questions (“Why should anyone fund you?” questions)

Create your elevator speech In groups of three:

– One person gives a 1 minute elevator speech (someone else keeps time and stops them). “My name is X and I …”

– Other two/three people give feedback and challenge about the content and how they are coming across as a person. Don’t be too polite, say if it doesn’t work for you, you don’t understand it, or if it doesn’t sound authentic. Offer suggestions for improvement.

– Repeat with next person

“Hitch your wagon to a star”Ralph Waldo Emerson

12

Only a Small Number of Potential Drivers Are Effective

Corporate Leadership Council 2006

Mapping my network

You need to be proactive, only you can make it happen:

Begin to list your network – think broadly about those who could help/support you to get on and reach your goal/s

What level are they? Who else might they know? What can you do for them? (important to create mutual benefit)

What type of questions will you ask them?– Note down the questions– How are you going to contact them?– What is the best medium to use – email, seminar, face-to-face

meeting, third party introduction?

Some tips for networking…

Keep your relationships alive…don’t just call people up when you want something. People also have short memories

Doing less, but well, can be more… Personalise each contact – blanket mailings are a turn-off Treat people as human beings not job titles/roles Where possible make connections through mutual

acquaintances….cold calling is tougher People who have recently found jobs or been promoted

are often great sources of information and referral Be clear about what help you want from somebody – and

ask for it!

It’s not what you know…

I want to be a

Professor of x in 10

years time

What is my goal?

name

name

name

name

namename

namename

name

nameWho would it be

good to connect to and why?