Conference is all about meeting up with different sisters from around the country, learning new skills and even getting to explore a new city! But it is also about networking! With so many sister representing almost every possible major out there (I don't think we've seen underwater basket weaving yet!) what better way to get your foot in the door, bend someone's ear on an idea you may have or even maybe find out about a job opening than through your very own sisters! The best way to get your name out there is is with two things; a good pitch & a great business card. "The Elevator Pitch" What's the elevator pitch? According to Forbes it is "the 30-second speech that summarizes who you are, what you do and why you’d be a perfect candidate." Woah that's a lot of info to fit into 30 seconds! But here is what you should do to prepare: 1) clarify your job target - what are you looking for? 2) put it on paper - write out what you want to say. 3) format it - now remove unnecessary info. 4) tailor the pitch to them not you - is this for a possible mentor? Possible boss? Those two would require different info 5) eliminate industry jargon - 6) read your pitch out loud - make sure it sounds good! 7) practice, practice, practice! - give your pitch to your mom, your sisters, your mentor, your coworker, the lady in line...you get the point. Like your teachers or coaches always said practice makes perfect 8) prepare a few variations 9) nail it with confidence! - always be confident! Don't feel it yet? Fake it till you make! Check out Forbes for more details on each step So you got the pitch down but what about a lasting impression? This is where an amazing business card comes into play. Business cards are an inexpensive and effective way to provide a potential contact with all your information and to get theirs to do a follow up.  Your business card design depends on your major. Business major? Make sure your card is simple, professional & clean. Majoring in the arts? Use your business card to show off your talent with color & design while still focusing on making the text legible, clean & professional. (See a theme here?) So what should your card include? Name: an obvious one but make sure it stands out from the rest of the info and is in a legible font/color Address: this is important if you are searching locally for a job. If you move often (such as student housing) this can be more general such as a city & state. Degree: share this major accomplishment! Many degrees connect with not so obvious careers. Major: haven't graduated yet? Put this instead with your expected graduation date Graduation date: recent graduates should also place this to show you're ready to move on to the next step. Professional objective: This is where you're business card turns into a mini resume. Short & sweet, take your resumes objective & place it on here to get your goals across to potential connections. So you know what you want to put on it but conference is only two weeks away & you need them! There are many quick & low cost places to order business cards in time for conference. Office supply stores such as Staples, Office Depot, Office Max Online places such as Vista Print, Got Print, UPrinting, etc. All these places offer inexpensive quick options to provide your information in a simple and professional way to push your career forward! |
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