So What Do You Do For Work?

You are at a social event. Perhaps a wedding. You and your wife have been making small talk with the six strangers sitting at your table. After everyone exhausts anecdotes about their children, grandchildren, and local sports teams, the man next to you turns and poses the question, “So what do you do for work?”

How do you respond? Saying one is a financial advisor not only fails to capture the true complexity of all we do to serve our clients, but unfortunately in today’s society, thanks to people like Bernie Madoff, often carries a negative connotation. This is why all financial advisors are encouraged to have a well thought out explanation of what they do. In our coaching programs we often refer to this as a 3-3-3 speech. A 3-second tag line. A 30-second explanation of what you do. And a 3-minute anecdote illustrating an example of how you helped someone.

Others have referred to this process as an elevator pitch or elevator speech. Though the concept makes perfect sense, many financial advisors struggle in crafting their pitch. A great resource to assist you is Harvard Business School’s free Elevator Pitch Builder found at the link below. It breaks down the process into five easy steps, provides sample wording, and even provides an evaluation of your pitch at the end. If this is something you have struggled with I encourage you to visit the Harvard website and craft a great 3-3-3 or elevator speech so you can always answer with confidence when asked, “So what do you do for work?”