Pitch Like A Girl

I recently attended this conference by one of the Bar Associations which was free. It was for attorneys "in transition." The guest speaker was a woman who charges $300.00 per hour to help you get the career that you want - whether you want to get out of the legal field or transition into a different legal environment, etc. I heard about her on a job search board and spoke to her last year then nixed the idea because I decided not to spend money I didn't have.

A year later, I'm at the same job.

So I jumped on this opportunity to hear her speak. She's super charismatic and gave some interesting advice, essentially telling me to do the opposite of what I'm doing: no internet job boards, no head hunters, just network, request informational interviews and be armed with your pitch.

While I was there working in a group setting on my pitch, I met some people there that had really interesting careers that they hated. Needless to say, it's not the ideal networking environment, since everyone wants to get out of where they are, and no one wants to reveal where they work so as to avoid losing their jobs before they're ready. It was very Spy vs. Spy.


Anyway, the guest speaker put us into groups and made us work on our transitional pitch. This is what I came up with:

"I'm an attorney with experience in litigation and intellectual property.
I have been employed in the fields of marketing and teaching.
I am looking for an In House position that will allow me to utilize
my transactional skills, such as writing, analysis and negotiation.
I hope to work with a company that fosters professional growth
and a healthy work/life balance in the fields of Music, Film, Literature, or the Media."

I don't know if this is something I'm supposed to put up on my wall and stare at every day or if I'm actually supposed to say this to people. Needless to say, I left that event with a lot more questions than answers, but fueled with a lot of hope.

I've requested informational interviews to no avail. My networking sucks and all I've got is this damn pitch. And a sprinkle of hope. Let's see how far it takes me.

[Insert scene from the film, "Bubble Boy," where he hands the teller a bag of coins to get on the bus and asks how far it will take him. The teller looks at the coins and says sternly into the microphone: "Take a step back... that far."]