Body of Work

by Pamela Slim

  In my prior days as a management consultant, I was brought into a project at a large multinational company with short notice and no information. For four hours, I sat in a dark conference room with a bunch of serious-looking executives and listened to an “overview” presentation that was a minimum of three hundred PowerPoint slides, with eye-crossing graphs, charts, and bullets. At the end of the presentation, although I wouldn’t admit it to anyone in public, I still had no idea what the project was about. Seriously. None whatsoever. And I was no green bean; I had participated in large projects in large organizations for many years. Finally, once I was able to corner a smart-looking person, I said, “Can you tell me in ten words or less what this project is about?”

  “Sure,” he said. “It is a reorganization.”

  They could have saved 299 slides and four hours’ worth of my billable time if they had just said those four words.

  There is a conspiracy cooked up by marketing wonks, consultants, and executives to pay for words by the pound, and to question the intelligence of a corporate “professional” who does not create complex and obtuse presentations. They are wrong. Your instinct to keep things clean and simple is right. A few tips:

  Use clear language. As much as you may feel pressure to use the fancy words in your industry, stick with clear, descriptive language. Avoid jargon, clichés, and insider metaphors. If your audience is highly technical, use the terms that they relate to and expect. If it is a mixed crowd, give a variety of clear, topic-appropriate examples, with a few specific technical references that relate to that portion of your audience.

  Focus your topic. Know what your primary message is, and support it with no more than three sub-points. Cramming every feature, benefit, angle, or alternative into a presentation will just overwhelm and confuse your audience. If they want more information, they will ask for it, and then you can get to the real purpose of your presentation, which is dialogue and interaction.

  Take the Presentation Zen approach to mixing words and graphics. Designer and author Garr Reynolds, founder of the Presentation Zen blog and a series of bestselling books of the same name, suggests that you use powerful graphic images to anchor ideas in the minds of your audience. Cut most of the words out of your slides. If you have to say “I know you can’t see the details of this chart, but . . . ,” you shouldn’t include it. Choose your graphics carefully, and make sure they truly help illustrate a point.

  In blogs: Speak your truth

  Blogs are a fantastic vehicle for sharing your story and showcasing your body of work. Blog culture encourages open, personal, and straight communication. But we still fall victim to being either too boring and generic, or too self-indulgent with “Here are twelve more pictures of my cat and kids plus a personal rant” posts. Instead:

  Write for your audience

  Some bloggers write about whatever strikes their fancy, and it suits them well. I tend to stick close to my readers. Questions that guide my content include:

  What problems do they face?

  What really scares them?

  What is not being said on this subject on other news sources or blogs?

  What can I share that will make their life easier?

  How can I make them feel more supported and confident?

  Who can I put them in contact with (via links or references) that will give them good information and advice?

  What will be fun and interesting to write about?

  Use your own voice

  Your head can play tricks on you when choosing topics. Mostly, it will play on your fears and insecurities of needing to appear “smart” or “hip.” Dig deeper and write what you feel is the truth. Your truth will be different than anyone else’s, so many are bound to disagree, but that is part of the fun. If you worry about how smart or important you sound, your writing will come out stilted and insincere. A passage from the delightful book If You Want to Write by Brenda Ueland sums it up nicely:

  [I]nspiration does not come like a bolt, nor is it kinetic, energetic striving, but it comes to us slowly and quietly and all the time, though we must regularly and every day give it a chance to start flowing, and prime it with a little solitude and idleness. I learned that when writing you should feel not like Lord Byron on a mountaintop but like a child stringing beads in kindergarten—happy, absorbed, and quietly putting one bead in front of another.

  Use your superpowers for good

  This is a favorite saying of my friend Marilyn Scott-Waters, a talented illustrator who has given away more than 3 million lovingly illustrated paper toys on her website thetoymaker .com. Snark and gossip are part of our lives and can be entertaining in a superficial kind of way. But if you are going to spend hours and hours researching and writing and opining, why not do it for the purpose of uplifting and enlightening? There are enough forces in the world right now bent on humiliation, death, and destruction. So voice your honest thoughts, just do so without shaming, scaring, or ridiculing the subjects of your opinions.

  In sales copy: Cut the hype

  Most of us have to sell our ideas in writing. If you work for yourself and sell a product or service, you may have to create marketing materials or a sales letter. There are well-documented copywriting recipes that specify what color or font size to make your headlines, which “words that sell” to use at which part of the letter, and how to format and use testimonials from satisfied customers. Study these examples, as you are bound to learn something from them, but don’t become a slave to a formula. In addition:

  Show your personality. Don’t suddenly change your voice just because you are writing a sales letter. Use the style and language that you know makes your audience comfortable. Don’t be afraid to be playful and funny, or serious and straightforward, if it fits within the style and spirit of what you are selling.

  Don’t insult your audience with infomercial nonsense like “But wait, there’s more!” We are all tired of reading advertising copy that jumps out and screams at us. And as Seth Godin says, “The most effective technique is making stuff worth talking about in the first place. True viral marketing happens not when the marketer plans for it or targets bloggers or skateboarders or pirates with goatees, but when the item/service/event is worth talking about.”

  Use the “slime gauge.” Put yourself in the place of a potential customer. Read your words and see how you feel. Do you have a vague sense of embarrassment? Do you have a sudden urge to take a shower? Go back and scrub your document of any marketing slime and focus on the real, tangible benefits that make you truly proud of your product or service.

  In messages to potential partners, customers, or mentors: Bring back foreplay

  E-mail is a great way to begin to build a relationship with someone who interests you. But too often, we forget all rules of human interaction and jump right to a jarring, intimate request, such as:

  “I see that your blog reaches a similar target audience as mine. I am sure they would be interested in my product, so could you link to it? I will link to you if you link to me.”

  Such crude, direct language turns me off immediately. Instead:

  Treat online relationships like all relationships. Just as you wouldn’t go up to someone you had never met at a networking event and kiss them on the lips, you shouldn’t demand something the first time you approach someone online. “Link exchange” is a thing of the past. Before someone knows if they want to share you and your ideas with their audience, they want to get to know and trust you. So let that intimacy and trust build naturally, based on mutual interest and exchange of ideas. If a joint venture, book review, link exchange, or product endorsement is meant to happen, it will. And you may just make a real advocate and friend in the process.

  Focus each part of the e-mail conversation in the moment, not on your “closing goal.” In personal and business settings, you can feel when someone is going through the mot
ions to try to “close a deal” with you. The most obvious examples are an overzealous suitor in a bar, or an enthusiastic relative recently introduced to a business scheme who is hot to sell you new skin products. Avoid this uncomfortable dynamic by just enjoying each e-mail interaction as you have it. Look for ways that you can support, inform, and encourage your “object of affection.” If there is not a natural momentum or energy, back off and put your attention elsewhere.

  Be respectful of the other’s time. You may find that you build a natural, friendly connection with someone that you really admire. Or you may develop a truly supportive and friendly mailing list of interested customers. Do not jeopardize this relationship by asking for too much input, or sending too many messages. E-mail clutter is a real problem these days, and if you go overboard, you will soon reinforce a connection between your name and the delete button.

  Common sense is rarely common practice. So if some of this advice gets you ostracized, ridiculed, or even fired, all I can say is “Welcome to the other side.” Your audience will thank you for standing up for truth and clarity.

  Let the wild rumpus start.

  A great story needs great drama

  One time when my dad and Diane visited us in Arizona, we all stayed at Saguaro Lake Ranch, a local bed-and-breakfast in the Tonto National Forest in Mesa. While I was inside the lodge writing, my five-year old daughter Angela Rose lost a tooth.

  She came to find me, and told me the story of how it fell out.

  She then dictated a letter to me for the tooth fairy. Here it is exactly as she told it to me.

  Dear Tooth Fairy:

  I lost a tooth.

  I had bacon.

  I feeled my tooth, it was a little bit loose.

  I went swimming.

  And then I ate a cracker.

  And then I thought there was a nut in it.

  And then I feeled my tooth and it was out.

  And then I went to the hotel.

  And then I knocked on the door four times.

  And then I showed my Mom.

  And then she’s like OH. MY. GOD.

  From,

  Angela

  She retold this story to every person who noticed that her bottom tooth was missing, including my local Starbucks coffee crew, neighbors, her teachers, and the school principal.

  Each time, she would end with the dramatic OH. MY. GOD.

  Did you really need to know about the bacon and swimming, or how she ate a cracker that ended up containing her tooth? Probably not. But it makes the story much more entertaining.

  Another noteworthy story that went viral on the Internet was creative director Ryan Kutscher’s Craigslist ad for his bike, which illustrates how, for Ryan’s ideal customer, colorful language was a key part of adding humor and drama to the story.

  Grab a paper bag, breathe into it, and calm your ass down. You’re hyperventilating because you ain’t never seen a deal like this before. Now collect yourself, then keep reading this incredible description that barely serves to do justice to my 2010 Felt Gridlock [sic] 3-speed fixed-gear bike. Yes, 3-SPEED FIXED-GEAR. Also known as the greatest bike the city has ever had the privilege of existing around.

  What makes this bike so much better than every other bike that has ever been pedaled? Glad you asked. It starts with the paint scheme. It looks like Iron Man if Iron Man were a bike. That’s bold, son. Curb appeal. It’s probably also why some piece of trash stole the front tire that originally came with this beauty. Why didn’t he steal the whole bike? Because he knew he wasn’t man enough. That’s OK, I replaced it with something that looks even more boss. The next thing is the genuine leather seat. My taint has had a love/hate relationship with this particular bit of the machine. But it’s got those swanky brass rivets, so I can’t stay mad that it smashed my prostate and has likely rendered fatherhood impossible. But let’s face it, I’d rather have had a bike than a kid.

  Details, humor, and context can bring your stories to life and connect with the emotions of your audience.

  How to establish credibility with your story

  We have all squirmed through this scenario:

  You sign up for a conference and get really excited about learning critical things to grow your career or business. You invest time, money, and energy to clear your agenda so you can be there.

  The lights dim and the first speaker is introduced. They look friendly and pleasant, and start the talk off on a good foot. They mention that they grew up in Omaha, Nebraska, and got an academic scholarship to Yale. Then they were president of their fraternity and maintained a 4.0 grade point average while starting a highly successful business in their dorm room.

  Five minutes in, you are starting to want to stab yourself in the eye with a pencil if it would mean helping them get to the point of the presentation.

  Ten minutes in, they are still sharing the fine points of their illustrious career, awards they have won, and famous people who beg and plead for their advice. “And then the pope said to me, ‘Jim, I am really in a quandary here. . . .’”

  Fifteen minutes in, you are wanting to poke their eye out with a pencil, even if it means serving a short jail sentence. Anything to stop their incessant bragging.

  “If I were them,” you scream to yourself, “I would stop blowing smoke and get to the point of the presentation, which is about me and my needs.”

  Right?

  Well, almost right.

  There is a fine line between establishing necessary credibility with a new audience and being a complete egomaniac.

  What your audience needs to know in order to trust what you say

  Never assume that people in a new audience know anything about you. I spoke at a wonderful local event in my hometown of Mesa, Arizona, and besides my friend Clate Mask, CEO of Infusionsoft, and my former client and ace photographer Ivan Martinez, no one knew who I was. I got to know my bright and talented fellow presenter in the session itself, so we didn’t have any context or background about each other to plan the session. So when I did my introduction, even though I was speaking to my own community, I had to establish my background so that they knew enough about me to trust my advice.

  A new audience needs to know:

  Your formal education or training that prepares you to do your work

  If you have a degree from Harvard, or a PhD in engineering from MIT, tell them. Rather than bragging, this puts their mind at ease. If you are talking to a group that values community education, tell them. When Clate did the keynote at Mesa Community College about how he grew his company from a ramen-noodle-eating group of three broke guys with big dreams into a $30 million company with two hundred employees (now approaching seven hundred), what did he mention about his education? That he started it at Mesa Community College. This was extremely meaningful to newer entrepreneurs and students in the audience.

  Key parts of your own life story to prove you did what you teach

  Are you teaching lawyers how to set up a virtual law practice like my client Rachel Rodgers did? Tell them how you did it yourself and what you learned from the experience. Are you proud of the fact that you grew a great company while raising your kids as a single parent? If that would establish credibility with your audience, tell that part of the story.

  Specific examples of how you have helped other people just like them get great results

  Numbers of clients (“I have worked with over 350 small- and medium-size businesses.” “Every one of the 250 high school seniors we had in our program went on to a college or university.”). Concrete numbers mean something.

  Business results of the clients you worked with, even if you haven’t worked with many (“Three of my clients went from zero to $30,000 in revenue in their side hustle in the year after working with me.”). I like to tell my friend Ramit Sethi that he is a possessed madman when it comes to tracking concrete
results from his clients, but that is only to keep his ego in check. He is masterful at it and constantly reminds us of the concrete results readers of his blog and participants in his programs have gotten from following his advice.

  Street credibility

  As much as social media pundits like to exclaim “old media is dead,” there is still huge street credibility in mainstream press mentions. Mention:

  Mainstream press (“Featured in the New York Times.” “Named one of the Top 25 Entrepreneurs to Follow by the Wall Street Journal.”)

  Awards and honors (“Best Business Book of 2011.” “Top 100 Women on Twitter.” “Voted Most Likely to Succeed in high school.”)

  Influential people’s view of you (Called “one of the best presentation designers I have ever seen” by Nancy Duarte.)

  Do you need to say all this in your introduction?

  Of course not. That would make you a blowhard. But you do need to review all of the concrete things you could share about yourself and choose the specific information that:

  Is most relevant to that audience. (If you are speaking at Harvard, mention your degree. If you are speaking at a start-up conference, mention your personal bootstrapping story.)

  Will shut down the nagging doubt in the audience’s mind.

  “Is she too young to talk about this topic?” “Does this consultant have any real-world experience building a software product?” “Is she one of those people who just teaches others to make money on the Internet so that she can make money off those people on the Internet?” One time, a local friend who I had known for a few years said to me, “You know what my problem is with you? You are like one of those people who create an infomercial to teach people how to create infomercials.” To which I responded, a bit stunned, “Do you have any idea what I do, and have you ever read my book?” It turned out that he didn’t, and he hadn’t. I thanked him immensely for the feedback, because if he was brave enough to say it to my face, it meant that there were a whole bunch more people who thought it and just said it behind my back.