How can I create an outstanding “Elevator Speech”?

Here is a sample “Elevator Speech” to help you write your own:

Introduction: The first sentence is an umbrella statement. "I have over ____years of experience in ____."

Three skills: Keep it simple and conversational. "What I particularly enjoy doing is____."

Two results: "As a result, I have been able to____." Listeners remember results and can resell you to their colleagues.

Question: "Are you aware of any____?" This is an important conversational tactic to lob the ball back into the listener's court for some useful information. Note that you don't ask for job openings. Instead you have defined the type of construction employer that might have an interest in your background, then asked a question that the listener is likely to have an opinion about.

Try your elevator story out on a friend or at a social gathering. The more you become comfortable with it, the less you have to think about what you're saying, and the more you can concentrate on your audience.