Refine Your Elevator Pitch and Land that Job!

Abstract: Build your success by applying effective communication strategies to networking and interviewing situations. Knowing how to effectively communicate your strengths, research, background and other assets is critical in contexts such as conferences, networking events, and job interviews. In addition to planned presentations, unexpected situations sometimes arise, making it essential to be prepared to talk about yourself in the moment. This workshop will identify the value of strategic communications and how theater-based approaches can help develop narrative skills. Participants will review the Olsen ‘And, But Therefore’ framework and apply it to their own research and non-research elevator pitches. Finally, participants will learn how to develop, critique and improve their narratives and elevator pitches. Strategic communications is especially important as postdocs make transitions in their career pathway. The content of this workshop is drawn from the Postdoc Academy: Building Skills for a Successful Career course, which will be offered on edX in July 2022.