Impress the best in under ten minutes

This posting highlights an interview with Bill Kling, founder and president emeritus of the AmericanPublic Media Group conducted by Adam Bryant. The interview appeared in January 16, 2012New York Times.


You don't get much time to make a first impression according to Bill Kling.  When asked how quickly do you get that sense that somebody is good and right fit for the company, Kling says, "Sometimes within two minutes. Sometimes within 10. But it doesn't take much longer than that."

Wow! That doesn't give a candidate a lot of time to impress. What's the best way for you to use those precious two to ten minutes? By perfecting your personal brand statement, your response to the tell me about yourself question or if you prefer your elevator pitch.

Your personal brand statement has 8 components.

• Brief introduction
• Personal strengths
• Link your strengths with their needs
• Specific example of an accomplishment
• Tell a story to reinforce your role in achieving the accomplishment
• Provide measurable evidence of success
• Summarize your key strengths
• Show interest in something that relates to their business

What if you were asked  what idea is driving you right now or what’s on your mind about any aspect of life that you’re really excited about instead. How would you answer those questions?  Exactly the same way.  When you know your personal brand statement it's easy to adapt to any variation of the tell me about yourself question.

By knowing your strengths and how these relate to the employer you will be able to impress the best in under ten minutes.