Imagine stepping into a room where fifteen people are waiting to hear you pitch your idea. You’ve done your work, researched your audience, and know your topic inside and out. You have a strong goal for how you would like your audience to respond. So now all you have to do is connect with them.
Let’s leave the room for a second …
What does it feel like to watch someone speak about a topic they are excited about? Their face lights up. They communicate with emotion and confidence. They are engaged and engaging. Their energy is infectious. They are speaking with passion.
Passion is the key. When someone is passionate, we connect with them. Their passion does not have to be loud or over the top; it just has to be engaged, and we are right there with them. We catch the speaker’s enthusiasm. Watching, we find ourselves wanting to know more and leaning toward the speaker, nodding, and smiling.
So, how does this relate to a pitch—an appeal to someone for something that would benefit you both? It could be a pitch for a job, funding, collaboration, or product, but a pitch, a good pitch demands passion. If you have ever sat through a pitch that lacked it, you know exactly what we mean. A pitch without passion lacks the confidence to get your audience to want to be involved.
How do you find that passion? It’s easier than you think. Chances are, if you are working hard on something and want or need to share it with someone else, you have passion for that topic. It drives your work, and you are excited about sharing it. Direct that passion toward your audience by helping them understand why you are passionate about the topic. Why is it interesting? Why should they care about this topic? What’s in it for them? How will this information impact them? This makes your pitch confident, engaging, and exciting because your passion brings the audience to you, and together, you are changed in some way.
Going back into that room…
Speak your passion and find that connection!