2009 Elevator Pitch to Change Your Life

Julie K. Silver — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 16:15:49 +0000

Ask anyone if his or her career has the makings of a compelling book and you'll start hearing some amazing stories. This is true for anyone....consider the plumber who has access to master bathrooms. Think he's just fixing the pipes? I'll bet he's got some great stories to tell. Or, the flight attendant who smiles and says, "What can I get you to drink?" Think she's just interested in serving you your liquid of choice? I doubt it.

I'm a writer and writing instructor. For years I've been teaching doctors, nurses, psychologists and other healthcare professionals how to get their books published, and what I've learned is that everyone has a great book or two in them.
Many folks think that those of us in healthcare are very serious and not terribly creative, but they'd quickly change their minds if they sat in the audience during Shameless Pitches--a 90 second oral summary of a book idea presented to a panel of literary agents and editors at the Harvard CME course that I direct for healthcare professionals called Publishing Books, Memoirs and Other Creative Nonfiction (www.HarvardWriters.com).

Take the case of Jill Grimes, a family physician who is a pleasant woman with an infectious laugh. When the bell rang and the course attendee before her was cut off from finishing his overly long pitch, Jill strode up to the podium and began by introducing herself. She called her book about sexually transmitted diseases "Stirrup Tales" and as you can imagine had everyone laughing and smiling by the time she finished, just as the buzzer sounded.

One editor, impressed with Jill's book idea, immediately offered her a contract. Stirrup Tales is now a new release from Johns Hopkins University Press that is re-titled Seductive Delusions: How Everyday People Catch STDs (check out the very sexy cover on Amazon.com or other online booksellers).

Shameless Pitches is essentially what a lot of editors (and business executives) call an "elevator conversation." Meaning, that you have a short time, perhaps the length of an elevator ride, to convince someone that whatever idea you have is worthwhile. In this fast-paced world, most professionals don't have a lot of time to listen to new ideas. Plus, if they are in a position to publish a book, buy a product, or invest in whatever you have to offer, they likely hear many "pitches" from people. The pitches get old fast, especially since they tend to be long winded and unfocused.

In a Shameless Pitch, course attendees are taught a formulaic way of presenting their book idea, which works for many other important ideas as well. Here's what they learn:

Begin with who you are. This is important, because the listener will pay more attention if he or she understands who you are and how you bring expertise to this idea. For example, when Sarah Allen Benton, a young woman in her early twenties walked up to the microphone, she looked like someone in a twenty-something sitcom. Pretty and polished, she began with this opening line, "Hi, my name is Sarah and I am an alcoholic."

The room immediately silenced, and the audience began to listen intently. They knew that her book idea was going to be about alcoholism, but this wasn't going to be the "ho hum" alcoholism that those of us in healthcare know so much about. Sarah's one line introduction and her obviously tender age, told us that this was going to be a heart rendering story and we waited to hear more:

"The name of my book is Hindsight: The Past and Present Reflections of a High-Functioning Alcoholic"

Ten seconds into the pitch, she had grabbed our attention and told us exactly what she wanted to write about. The second line of her pitch was her thesis, and we all understood it immediately.
Sarah continued, "I am a female high-functioning alcoholic, which is an underrepresented class of alcoholics. We are harder to identify because our external successes mask an underlying demon. I was able to drink alcoholically for 12 year and still managed to graduate with honors from college, get my master's degree and then to excel professionally as a therapist."

Sarah went on for another minute or so and then concluded with, "I am here only because I was spared, and my purpose in writing this book is to spare others from the denial and dangers of alcoholism."

Very few of the brave souls who participate in Shameless Pitches get a standing ovation, but Sarah walked off the podium to thunderous applause as her colleagues stood and saluted.

Today, you can see more about Sarah's publishing journey at her website www.HighFunctioningAlcoholics.com. Her book, re-titled as Understanding the High-Functioning Alcoholic: Professional Views and Personal Insights, was just released.

If you have a book idea, want to start a new company, have something to sell or simply want people to really consider what you have to say, try the "elevator conversation" approach. Begin with something about who you are and why you have expertise about this topic. Next, summarize your main point or thesis. Continue by offering a few details. Aim for a powerful conclusion. And, do all of this in 90 seconds or less.

Then, get ready to write your book or start your business or fulfill whatever dream you have!

Help Getting Through Cancer

Julie K. Silver — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 18:21:10 +0000

Let me begin this new blog for Psychology Today by introducing myself. I'm a Harvard doctor whose work focuses on helping people to recover from injuries and illnesses. I'm a medical doctor (M.D.) and have post-medical school training in a small specialty that many people haven't heard of called Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R). Doctors who specialize in this field of medicine are called physiatrists.

Though I treat people will all kinds of injuries and illnesses (from sprained ankles to strokes), some of my work is focused on helping cancer survivors recover from what are often very toxic treatments. In fact, I am a breast cancer survivor and have written a couple of books specifically for cancer survivors. One is titled After Cancer Treatment: Heal Faster, Better, Stronger and the other book, just released by the American Cancer Society, is called What Helped Get Me Through: Cancer Survivors Share Wisdom and Hope.

Since this is the last day of October (yes, it's Halloween, and I'll be taking my kids trick or treating!) and thus the end of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I'll focus this blog on what the survivors I interviewed for my new book told me really made a difference to them as they went through cancer treatment. If you know someone who is going through cancer treatment and you really want to help him or her, then here are some suggestions:

1. Your support, no matter how you give it, is appreciated. Whether you write cards or offer prayers or give someone a hug or a meal or anything else, the survivors I interviewed said it all helped.

2. The more specific you can be in your offers to help, the better. "Let me know if I can help you" is not nearly as helpful as "I'm raking my leaves this afternoon and will stop by to rake yours, too" or "I'm picking my daughter from soccer practice and can bring your daughter home, too." What people said over and over is that their friends and loved ones were already doing so much, they didn't feel comfortable asking for more. So, if you can offer specific help, the person who's ill won't have to ask.

3. Parents often appreciated help for their children more than they wanted it for themselves. Anything people did to help their children, especially things like a fun play date, was very meaningful.

4. I was interested to hear about new twists on old themes. Of course we all know that meals help a family in distress, but one woman wrote about how her friend put a basket on the porch so that people could drop off meals without interrupting the family's dinner hour. And, then the empty dishes could be placed back in the basket, so the family wouldn't have to worry about returning them.

5. One of my favorite tips comes from a Harvard colleague, Dr. Paula Rauch, who is the co-author of the book Raising an Emotionally Healthy Child When a Parent is Sick. Dr. Rauch, a psychiatrist, tells people to appoint a "Minister of Information" and a "Captain of Kindness." The Minister of Information is someone you trust to give out as much information to the people you want to keep informed. This way, you don't have to keep repeating medical news over and over. The Captain of Kindness organizes the well wishers and is able to ask people who want to help for things like financial assistance for groceries. When someone approaches the person who's ill or a family member asking for information or wanting to know how she can help, then she can be directed to either the Minister or the Captain.

I'll be writing about a lot of different health and healing issues. If you have specific topics or suggestions, let me know!

Health and Healing

2009 Elevator Pitch to Change Your Life

Help Getting Through Cancer