Going through the ETA process (excavate-tell-affirm) personal brand process will ready you for the key moment of meeting a new contact.
Think back to the moment you met one of your best business associates. How much time did it take before you made up your mind that this was someone you wanted to get to know?
In some cases, the sense of connection we feel with another person seems to form instantly.
Research supports the idea that first impressions are indeed made very quickly. Business Insider reports that people form an opinion of someone they are meeting for the first time within just 7 seconds. Similarly, ExecuNet reports that people make an impression of a person based on scanning a resume for just 6.5 seconds. And Forbes suggests a tenth of a second is all it takes to start determining core traits like trustworthiness.
All of this suggests that if you want to make a great first impression, you not only have to know who you are and what you stand for but also how to express that information quickly and well. I like to say “concise equals connection.” But who of us is consistently able to be concise when we’re speaking off the cuff? How do we encapsulate a storied career in just one or two sentences?
While the first step of the time-proven ETA™ process helps people “excavate” who they are, the second helps them “tell” their unique brand story. (Read about the third here.)
Indeed, the ETA process helps leaders prepare for the critical moment of meeting someone new. Going through the process develops a variety of messaging options that you can deliver depending on the circumstance, such as an elevator speech, a CV, resume, biography, TEDTalk, website or social media content. The framework derived from the ETA process is also essential for preparing for a speaking engagement like a TEDTalk, a podcast or media interview or a board presentation/investor pitch. With your messaging options in hand, you’ll be ready to respond to any new contact’s desire to be convinced that your brand is on-purpose, forward-thinking and focused on innovation.
My sign-off on this blog is my signature, one of the ways I can quickly express my brand. What’s your signature, and more importantly is it making a good first impression?
