Are you meeting the most important person in your career? Are you tongue tied and not sure what to do about it? With advance planning and creative thinking you can be confident you will know how to handle this situation when the opportunity presents itself.

We've all had the experience of running into someone we've really wanted to meet. Those who are prepared for the occasion will find themselves a step ahead on the career ladder or at the front of the line for business opportunities. Consider this, all of us are bombarded with information—we're always meeting new people. Ask yourself who do you remember and why?

Even in 30 seconds you can make an impression.
The key is to make that impression a lasting one or one that will trigger instant recognition. How do you do that? Practice, practice, practice.

The most important step is having a pitch and then practicing it over, and over, and over. You need to be comfortable with your words. You are conveying a powerful message and you need to sound sincere and convincing. Above all, you need to look the part. If you find that you smirk at your own words then others will too. If this is the case, no one is going to be sold on why they should remember you.

Start by boiling down your core message.
Who are you? What do you do? Why do I need to know you? What will make me remember you? Now that you have answered these questions read the results back to yourself. Is your message compelling, memorable, or is it just plain uninteresting and dull?

It’s easy to change your message so don’t panic. What is it you do best? What’s your strength in your position? Do you make money for people? Do you keep your company's X out of the fire? Has one of your suggestions been implemented? Have you developed a new product? The list goes on and on. Use words that make people want to ask you a question or compels them to ask for your business card.

Now let’s prepare to tell someone what you do best.
Here are a few examples:
My name is X. I'm a top-notch accountant. I save my client companies X dollars every year. When I meet your team, I can improve your bottom line. Let me share some examples of my work. When can we meet?

My name is X. My new product catapulted my company to #1 in the category. I'm so creative that I can come up with a new invention/product in record time. I would be happy to share some of my secrets with your team. When can we meet?

My name is X. My marketing skills are superlative. My nickname is the marketing maven. I can brainstorm with your team with examples on how we can transform your marketing efforts. Who should I speak with?

Notice the action verbs improve, catapulted, brainstorm, and transform. These are words that create an image and leave a lasting impression. Think about words that express a call to action. Words that leave the person you are meeting knowing they want to follow up.

Keep working at your message, distilling it down into the core elements. The simpler your message, the better it will be received.

Make it a point to ask for a meeting or the name of the appropriate contact. Make an effort to get a commitment for follow-up. Do not merely hand them your business card and smile. Use these tips to solidify your first impression in the first 30 seconds of meeting someone. Your career might depend on it!

JoAnn Hines is the Chief People Packager of
Women in Packaging, Inc.
We Package the People, not the Products
For more information, visit us at: www.packagingcoach.com.