Presenting yourself is a skill worth mastering. According to statistics, a successful networker or business person in New York meets 3 new people every day. That’s about 90 opportunities to introduce yourself and make a good first impression per month!
I attended a personal branding conference in Las Vegas and wanted to share with you the most impactful exercise they had us do. They were teaching us to present ourselves more clearly and confidently using just 6 keywords. The exercise was called the 6-word introduction. The way they did it was also great. We were asked to introduce ourselves to the camera before and after the exercise. Reminds me of the before and after photo from The Big Loser.
The framework is very simple:
The first word is me or we if you represent a company.
The second word is HELP or some version of help.
The third part is WHOM You Help, also known as Customer.
The next part is ACHIEVE. That will be the same for everyone.
And the last part is RESULT, ultimately what you help them achieve.
I + HELP + (insert word for Client) + ACHIEVE + (insert word for Result)
The reason this formula is so powerful is because it allows you to turn the tables on the asker much faster than you normally would. It makes them intrigued and interested.
When I say, “I help adults and teens achieve academic greatness,” the other person gets to choose which part of my introduction to focus on. They are also surprised by how concise I was and it opens up a dialogue.
“Wow! How do you do that?”
“Are you a tutor of some kind?”
“What kind of greatness are you talking about?”
And most importantly, you are letting the other person lead the conversation. For example: “I help amazing business professionals connect and grow their business.”
“Wow! What kind of professionals?”
“How exactly do you do that?”
The asker is fully engaged, which increases the likelihood of making a real connection.
Feel free to modify the formula to suit your needs. I always change the client based on which room I’m in, whether I’m talking to the Dumbo creatives, the PWC executive, or the parents at a PTA meeting.
Give it a try and practice saying in front of the mirror. Most communication is non-verbal and a lot of it is in how you say it, not what you say.