Presenting yourself:

Crafting your elevator

pitch
Peggy Vazoura, Careers Consultant MSc ABS
p.vazoura@aston.ac.uk
Upcoming Careers and Placements events

Online – GE Aviation: Application Advice for Placement Students

Monday 11th October | 1.00-2.00pm | Online – Blackboard

Online – Centrica: Placement and Graduate Roles - how to maximise

your chance of success
Wednesday 13th October | 1.00-2.00pm | Online – Blackboard

Online – Navigating the Legal Application Process - How to get it right with
Covington & Burling LLP
Thursday 14th October | 3.00-4.00pm | Online - Blackboard

Head to Aston Futures to find out more and book onto individual events.
Upcoming Careers and Placements events

Online – GRB: How to put 2020 on your CV

Monday 18th October | 1.00-2.00pm | Online – Blackboard

Online – Network Rail: Graduate Schemes, Year in Industry Schemes

and Summer Placements at Network Rail
Tuesday 19th October | 1.00-2.00pm | Online – Blackboard

Online – Careers and Placements: The Big Careers Fair, 60+ employers
Wednesday 20th October | 10.00am-4.00pm | Online – Career Fair Plus

Online – What is the Civil Service Fast Stream?

Thursday 21st October | 3.00-4.00pm | Online - Blackboard

Head to Aston Futures to find out more and book onto individual events.
Think of a time you had to persuade someone…
When was the last time you had to persuade someone?
Job interview / Academic interview?

Go on a date?

Funding application?

Competition?

Debate?

Your website?

Your CV?

A commission?

An extension for your assignment?

Return a product?

A scholarship?

Society / club position? / election?

 Can you think of a great speaker / presenter?
What makes/made them great to listen at?

"The single biggest problem

in communication is the
illusion that it has taken
place."

-George Bernard Shaw

Persuasion in Business

• Entrepreneurs persuade investors to back their start ups

• Job candidates persuade recruiters to hire them

• (Politicians persuade people to vote for them)

• Leaders persuade employees to take specific plans of action
• CEOs persuade analysts to write favourable reports about
their companies

• Salespeople persuade customers to choose their product over

a competitor’s offering
The Art of Rhetoric: It can be learnt! (Aristotle)

• This was “quite threatening” to the political

class in ancient Greece when he made the
tools of rhetoric available to the masses.

• They wanted to keep the formula a closely

held secret.
• Aristotle wanted everyone to have access
to it. He championed the idea that a
person’s ability to speak and write well, and
to use rhetorical devices to change
another’s perspective, could unleash
human potential and maximize happiness.
Q1: Why should they believe you?

Ethos or “Character”:
Ethos is the audience perception of the speaker’s
credibility and authority over the subject they are
speaking.
• When a speaker’s actions don’t back their words,
they lose credibility.

• It can be acquired through their Personality,

Character, Intelligence, Virtue, Good will, Being
Just, Being Sensitive etc.

Note: As humans, we are hardwired to search for

reasons to trust another person, and we do so
quickly - friend or foe.
Q2: Why should your audience care about your idea?

Logos or “Reason”

Logic is derived from the Greek word Logos which means

thoughts supported with reasoning actions.

• One should gather clear, effective and genuine

reasoning of evidence to put forth the logical
arguments. If it will save your audience money, for
example, they’ll want to know how much it will save
them and how the savings will be accomplished.

• Use of data, evidence, and facts to form a rational

argument.
Q3: How do you make your audience feel?

Pathos or “Emotion” - According to Aristotle:

• persuasion cannot occur in the absence of
emotion. People are moved to action by how a
speaker makes them feel

• the best way to transfer emotion from one person

to another is through the rhetorical device of
storytelling.

Note: More than 2,000 years later, neuroscientists

have found his thesis accurate! Studies have found
that narratives trigger a rush of neurochemicals in the
brain, notably oxytocin, the “moral molecule” that
connects people on a deeper, emotional level.
a) Metaphor: ‘verbal beauty’

“To be a master of metaphor is the greatest thing by far”

(Aristotle)
• Comparing a new idea to something that is familiar to
your audience, clarifies your idea by turning the
abstract into something concrete.

One of Martin Luther King's favourite rhetorical devices.

"I Have a Dream…”
b) Brevity – Less is more!

“Aristotle had discovered that there are fairly universal limits to the amount of information which any
human can absorb and retain”
Analysis of 500 of the most popular TED Talks of all time:

• stories made up 65% of

the average speaker’s talk
• 25% went to logos

• 10% went to ethos.

In other words, the winning

formula for a popular TED talk
is to wrap the big idea in a
story!
Your brand / your pitch

• Branding is about
thoughts and
feelings
• Communication
is about
delivering your
values to your
audience
Value proposition

• A value proposition tells prospects why they should do business with you rather than your
competitors, and makes the benefits of your products or services crystal clear from the outset.
Let’s have a go
Q1: Who are you?

Think who is your audience

What is your identity?

• Student?

• Entrepreneur?

• Creative?

• Aspiring academic?
Q2: What do / can you do?

• What experience have you got?

• What services / products can you offer?
• And most recently?

• Who is / was involved?

• Who do you do it for?
Q3: How do you do it?

• What’s unique about your approach?

• How are you different?

• How is your service / product different?

• USP?
Q4: Why do you do it?

• Your purpose?
• Passion?
• What difference do you make?

• Why should we care?

• How are you adding value?
• What’s your mission?
• How do you define success?
Q5: What do you want from your audience?

How do you want us to

• Feel?
• Think?

• Do?
Example

• My name is…..I am a ……...

• I became interested in …. because….. (tell

a little of your story, your why).

• My passion is ……

• I have worked on……..

• I have recently been involved in……..

• If you are also interested in any of these

areas lets have a chat afterwards (call to
action).
Feel free to reverse the order
What is your elevator pitch good for?
What is your elevator pitch good for?
References and resources

• The Art of Persuasion Hasn’t Changed in 2,000 Years by Carmine Gallo (HBR)

• How great leaders inspire action | Simon Sinek