On stage, I shook so badly that my right leg fluttered like a hummingbird’s wings. I was stuck. Where? I was stuck in “How am I doing?! How am I doing?!”
When I coach a client to give a great pitch to gain funding, I help the person shift out of such a dis-empowered state. I’ve been a professional speaker over 16 years, and I know what it takes to shift to the power to perform well.
“We’ll have you shift out of ‘how am I doing?’ into ‘how are YOU doing?’” I say to my client.
This means that you prepare so well that you’re connected to the investors.
So, leave self-consciousness behind.
Think of it: What does the investor want? To avoid making a mistake. What’s the big mistake?—picking someone you can’t trust to do what it takes to succeed.
Making a business work requires the flexibility to pivot fast and the power to stay strong and to persist.
Investors test us when we’re giving a pitch before them.
Can you take a tough question and keep your poise?
Have you rehearsed more than just the text?
While I work with a client, I say, “Your mind just went blank! Use a Recovery Method.”
Recently, I saw Auli’i Cravalho perform “How Far I’ll Go” (song from Disney’s MOANA, animated feature film)—during the Oscars. Several performers behind her, swung huge flags. I thought, “Careful, don’t hit—” THUD—one performer hit Auli’i in the head with a flag.
Did Auli’i miss a beat?
No. She kept singing, beautifully. She’s a well-trained, thoroughly prepared professional. What a performer!
That’s what I want for you. Be that exceptional pitch-deliverer. It’s not just practicing the text of your speech. You need to make a real connection.
Auli’i maintained her connection with her audience and with her song.
What does your investor want? Remember, the idea is to connect with “How are YOU doing?”
The investor wants to know:
- It’s safe to trust you.
- You are flexible.
- You care about your product, the people you’ll serve, and the investors who will take the journey with you.
- You are confident in yourself.
My phrase is: “Confidence is Contagious; Compassion Is the Path.”
The idea is that when you shift from the self-consciousness of “How am I doing?” to “How are YOU doing?” — you’re going to a place of compassion. This ties in with my description of the Sequence: “Confidence is contagious. Investors pick it up. You build trust. Trust gets funding.”
Make that connection. Learn how to recover if your mind goes blank. (See this previous blog post for more tips when you CLICK HERE.)
Shift your thinking from “How am I doing?” to “how are YOU doing?”
Have that conversation with your audience of investors.
Look people in the eye.
Remember, it looks a like a group, but you’re really there with the opportunity to connect with individuals.
Someone asks you a tough question, and you’ll reply: “I’m glad you brought that up. Your name is? George? George, it looks like that’s important to you. Related to that, I want to emphasize …”
As you can see, we’re talking about connecting. When you pay attention to individual investors, you shift out of self-consciousness. You create a conversation.
They can feel your trustworthiness.
Often, as I work with clients, I help them express a personal brand of T.H.O.R.: trustworthy, helpful, organized and respectful.
The Powerful Move is to establish yourself as a peer.
Investors do not fund the work of supplicants.
You and your project are “the prize.”
Learn to connect and get your funding.
Warmly,
Tom
Tom Marcoux, CEO, Pitch Coach – Executive Coach – Spoken Word Strategist
P.S. April 20, 2017, I’m presenting the workshop “Pitch with Extreme Confidence: The Pitch Hacking Method” via Stanford Entrepreneurs and Silicon Valley Founders. (early bird discount when you click here: https://www.meetup.com/Igniter/events/237843482/
This material is on my mind because I have now opened a special opportunity. When you CLICK HERE, you can go to my questionnaire-webpage and apply for a free consultation with me (limited number available) titled: “Increase Your Pitch Power for Funding – Strategy Session.”
Here are Your BENEFITS of such a free consultation.
- Gain Clarity and Peace of Mind about Pitching so You Gain the Funding you really want
- Discover the essential building blocks for having the Pitch that FUNDS your business or project
- Determine the #1 thing stopping you from having the Successful PITCH you want
- Identify the most powerful actions that will move you toward giving your Pitch with Total Confidence
- Complete the consultation with the excitement of knowing EXACTLY what to do next to create the Pitch for Funding that Gets You Great Results
I invite you to apply.
Let’s see if we might get the chance to work together … as a free opportunity to you.
Tom Marcoux
Executive Coach * Pitch Coach
Spoken Word Strategist
CEO (leading teams in United Kingdom, India and USA)
Get the Advantages to take your business to a higher level. Learn Leadership Advantages, Pitch Advantages, and Success Advantages. To Soar with Confidence, you learn and use principles for top level communication to board members, team members and the media.
“Marcoux demonstrates how to “Prepare a Compelling Story that Moves Emotions.” He mentions techniques that he teaches clients for developing compelling Ted Talks.” – Dantalion Jones
Learn the vital skills of pitching your ideas and enrolling others into your vision. Get that “Big Yes” to funding your project. “This insightful book shows you how to zing a curveball right past the parts of the Hollywood exec’s brain that want to say no before you even make your pitch. You will learn what works when pitching, and more importantly, why, so you can get to YES much more often. Buy this book now. Consider it Spring Training before the big game.” – Danek Kaus
This invaluable guide, used by people in 15 countries and now in its second edition, will help you become immune to dark persuasion. Learn to use countermeasures to defend yourself against unethical persuasion and seduction tactics. Break any trance in which a salesperson is trying to get you to buy something not to your benefit. “Learn how to defend yourself against manipulation. Best book you’ll ever read to protect yourself, feel strong and move forward in your life. Highly recommended!” – Dr. JoAnn Dahlkoetter
Imagine dining with Walt Disney, Steve Jobs, Oprah Winfrey, Albert Einstein, Martin Luther King, Jr., Helen Keller, and John Lasseter. These seven people share one thing: They’re great communicators. So this book will help you become a great communicator. “Marcoux especially stresses the importance of personal branding, of coming across as trustworthy and dependable.” – Einar Masson
Learn how you can tap into your natural gifts and tendencies to radiate Three Types of Charisma. Discover how to influence people with your words. “Marcoux explodes this myth: Charismatic people always feel comfortable before and during an important event, such as public speaking, networking or some other social event. This book shows how you can feel discomfort but still come across as confident and charismatic.The secrets include ways to radiate all three forms of charisma Marcoux describes as Warm Trust Charisma, Natural Charm Charisma and Magnetic Charisma.” – Danek Kaus
What the Rich Don’t Say about Getting Rich: Work Smarter, Live Better
You want wealth, abundance and enjoyment–yes? Wouldn’t it be great to learn the real strategies that the Rich use to create Sustainable Wealth? This book takes you behind-the-scenes to what really works. You’ll see a lot of myth-busting, and you’ll learn the strategies that get real results. “Tom Marcoux gives you an inside look on the psychology of what it takes to be successfully wealthy in life. It’s more than just taking advantage of opportunity, but also about taking care of yourself. This book discusses a number of strategies that we often overlook when it comes to leading a successful life that leads to wealth generation.” – Barry Adamson II
PitchPowerFest.com 