Here’s a thought exercise that every job seeker should engage in on a regular basis throughout the search process: If you found yourself riding the elevator (or sharing a cab or subway ride) with a crucial networking contact or potential employer, would you know how to make use of that precious time? If you only had about 30 seconds to spend with someone in a position to move your career forward, would you know exactly what to say?

Those in the career management world refer to this 30-second burst of prepared words as an “elevator pitch”, and if your elevator pitch isn’t polished to perfection and ready at a moment’s notice, you may be missing out on opportunities to get ahead. Here are a few common pitch problems that might be affecting your chances.

Your pitch doesn’t exist.

If you can’t yet sum up your candidacy and your qualifications in less than a minute, start drafting your pitch today. Practice delivering it aloud at a speech pace that’s normal and comfortable for you. You’ll be glad you did. Even if you never find yourself riding a literal elevator, you can use your pitch to keep your interview conversations focused and on-message.

Your pitch is boring.

Keep your message exciting and relatable, and start by giving it a purpose and meaning that extend beyond your own career and your own hopes for yourself. Demonstrate how your credentials and your professional goals will benefit others outside of yourself, specifically the person you may be speaking to. Most listeners are more interested in themselves and their own company prospects than you and your personal past.

Tell a story.

Instead of structuring your pitch around a laundry list of reasons why your listener should hire you, shape your speech into a narrative. Give it a beginning, a middle and an end, and find a way to turn your listener (or their company) into the protagonist. If you’re the protagonist, make sure you come off as someone worth rooting for.

Use numbers.

Quantify your claims, accomplishments, and goals as well as you can. Adding numbers to the details of your story will make your pitch easier to put into perspective and easier to remember later on.

Leave room to land your plane.

Your pitch should not build and build and then abruptly cut off when the elevator doors open. Keep an eye on the time available and begin the process of wrapping up several seconds before the metaphorical buzzer.

For more on how to create a winning pitch that can win over a valuable contact in 60 seconds or less, turn to the New Haven County job search experts at Merritt.

If you’re like most job seekers, you prepare well in advance for your face-to-face interviews, dressing to impress, researching the company, and taking extra precautions to put your best foot forward. But you probably don’t take the same approach or invest the same time and thought in a simple phone screening. But you probably should. Give yourself an advantage during the search and take a few extra steps that your competitors are likely to ignore. Here’s how.

Be yourself…but be your BEST self.

Affecting a fake persona during an interview isn’t a good idea, and over the phone this plan is even more likely to backfire. So don’t try to be someone you aren’t. But do bring your friendliest, most engaged, and most organized and purposeful side to the call. Sit up straight, or stand. Speak a bit more slowly and clearly than you’re used to. Smile as you speak— your listener can hear your smile.

Prepare beforehand.

Make sure you’re ready to take the call in a quiet place with no distractions or unpredictable noises in the background. And of course, don’t create these noises yourself. If you think your listener can’t hear you flushing a toilet or eating a snack, think again. The room around you presents a soundscape that your listeners can easily interpret, so don’t reveal what’s around you. If you regularly fix all the issues by contacting the plumber randwick then no kind of fuss will be created while you are working on something important. When you take the call, do it far away from coffee shops, bathrooms (get the best services as Sarkinen Plumbing notes that they can provide the best services), and dog kennels.

Do some research.

A phone screening doesn’t require the same depth of research that might help during a face-to-face meeting, but do some research all the same. Impress your employers by showing that you’re invested in the job and you’re interested in moving the process forward. A few minutes spent reviewing the company’s website should suffice; don’t miss this easy opportunity to shine.

Ask questions now.

During your initial phone call, you’ll have a chance to ask questions that may feel awkward later in the hiring process. For example, if you suspect that this job will pay far less than you can accept, get this cleared up now. Don’t waste the employer’s time and your own by moving forward toward an offer that you’ll inevitably reject. The same applies to other clear dealbreakers, like a geographic location far outside of your search range.

Prepare your tools.

Check to make sure your phone connection is clear and you have access to whatever conference platforms your employer plans to use during the call. If you plan to take notes, make sure you have your note-taking program or pad and pen handy. While you’re at it, prepare a list of questions you’d like to ask and key points you’d like to make about your background and credentials. Be ready to share these details without being directly asked. If you wait for the perfect prompt, you may miss your moment.

For more on how to make the most of your phone interview and move forward to the offer you’re looking for, turn to the Fairfeld County job search experts at Merritt.