What I Would do if I Pitched Deals

Isaac Moorehouse, the founder of the Praxis Program, says that having purpose can kill you.

You place undue stress on yourself by saying “this is my purpose,” because you must fit everything you do into the label you gave yourself.

A better approach is to ask questions. Instead of saying “I want to help others be creative” say, “What makes people creative?” Instead of “I want to be free to travel” ask “What would it take to travel independently?”

So I decided to tackle one of mine. “I want to pitch deals” becomes “What would I do if I pitched deals?”

Pitching Ideas

There’s a gap in the startup world. Brilliant ideas that could change hundreds and thousands of lives fail every day.

I would help them succeed. I would find startups, businesses, and real estate deals that have the potential to affect real change and get them the funding they needed.

As I worked with them, I would create a pitch that positions them as a high-status, highly desireable investment. The investors would understand the why behind the idea, not just the numbers and profit projections. I would make them want to be part of it.

Learning to Pitch

Before I can do that, I need practice. I know some of the best principles of making a pitch. I’ve studied books on pitching and psychology from such masters as Oren Klaff, an investment deal pitchman and author of Pitch Anything, and Sally Hogshead, author of Fascinate.

These and other books lay a foundation for an intellectual understanding of what makes an amazing pitch, but I have little experience applying them.

This year, I’ll change that. I will practice and apply what I know so I can be persuasive when it matters most. I need to be ready.

So what about you? What do you define yourself as? Now shift that definition into a question. What do you see differently?