How to Make a Good Introduction at SteemFest.. or anywhere, for tha...

So I'm getting in gear for SteemFest2!!! Part of that means, I need to brush up on my in person communication skills. (gasp!)

When we meet new people, it can be difficult to navigate those first few moments to make the best connection possible. If you have discomfort with introducing yourself, this post might help you gain an extra bit of confidence. I know that I'm going to need every little edge I can get, so I don't faint around so many inspiring people.

Often the first question we are asked when meeting new people is:

What do you do?

[for non-native english speakers this means "what is your job?" or something close to that]

Of course, most people hate this question, and when faced with it there can be a lot of hemming and hawing. Who has a simple answer to that question in today's world? Most of us wear many hats throughout the day, and the week. Too often our answers are too long, timid, or uninteresting. Actually, It can be a good question to avoid asking when you are meeting new people at social events. At a conference it seems unavoidable, and we are likely to encounter it for the rest of our lives. Let's work on a plan for how to answer.

Luckily, a few months ago, I came across a handy guide on how to make a good introduction, and maximize our social potential.

The Perfect Intro - Superhero Brain 2016 from Clay Hebert on Vimeo.

Clay Hebert is a crowdfunding expert, and "has been featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Forbes, Lifehacker, Entrepreneur, Fast Company, Inc. Magazine and The Next Web."¹ He speaks at conferences around the globe, and has quite the impressive resume.

In the video above he describes what happened to him once at an event where he gave a horrible long winded response to "What do you do?" Afterwards, he found out that it was one of his tech heros! The result of this, was that he came up with a formula for a perfect introduction, which he has been asked to present at many conferences since then, and to elaborate in interviews.

Feel free to watch the video linked above, but for easy reference, I will go over his formula here. There is also a pdf of this on howtointro.com but you need to sign up for the mailing list, and I am not sure if that page is still working. So feel free to contact me if that site does not work, and you want a copy.

How to Introduce yourself in 6 words or less.

The key words here are Succinct, Interesting, and Confident.

The idea is to leave your answer open and general, that way the follow-up question will be related to the interests of the person asking. Instead of saying something definite, you can say a few words that leave them curious. It's easier for you if you let that person direct the flow of conversation, since you never know what opportunities are available for us all to help each other.

The Base Formula

The Base Formula of the six-word intro is has four parts:

[I] (you’re the one introducing yourself)

[help] (or some form of the word help)

[your clients or customers] (or whoever it is you help)

[achieve some result] (what you help them do or achieve)

"I connect people with the information that they need."

I leave this example, because this is a lot about what I do, and it allows the person to consider "hmm, maybe he has resources I can use," which going to leave them wondering who you work with, and inspire further dialouge. If they ask what you do, they are likely wondering if you might be able to help them some how. It's best to stay intriguing, and let the follow up questions direct you to more specific answers.

I'm not sold on that response, but it's way better than my life story, or "weeelllll.........."

No Buzzwords

You’ll be tempted to use trendy buzzwords or industry terms.

Don’t.

Don’t use words like, “implement”, “methodology”, “best-practices”, “integration”.

Speak like a human.

Don’t use any words that you wouldn’t say in a normal conversation with a friend over a cup of coffee or glass of wine.

Don’t use any words you wouldn’t say to a 10-year old.

In these introductory words, we are not trying explain everything that we do. Instead of giving the information you think they want, you are allowing them to ask more questions in the direction which they are actually interested.

There is a lot more great information in the video. I hope this helps you, because it makes me feel better :)

Thanks for stopping by! I'll have a few more posts of this nature in the coming weeks to help myself and others get ready for the event.

How to Make a Good Introduction at SteemFest.. or anywhere, for that matter.

What do you do?

How to Introduce yourself in 6 words or less.

The Base Formula

"I connect people with the information that they need."

No Buzzwords

References