Real Superheroes Don’t Make Elevator Pitches

The most gripping leaders never make elevator pitches. They share stories about people. And they focus their message on what the audience cares about most.

Last week was graduation weekend at MIT for a cohort of global leaders creating change in fintech, agtech, creative arts, education, healthcare, commerce, circular economy, and manufacturing. They’d been selected to study business, entrepreneurship and innovation to intensify the impact of their initiatives. I was invited to hear their final project summaries.

On some level, I was dreading the parade of final reports ahead. I anticipated a tone that would emphasize individual accomplishments, with a generic format of bullet points. After all, it was the last presentation before graduation for a cohort of leaders who had spent months bringing their early stage ideas to fruition.

When I walked into the boardroom, I settled in for what I thought would be hours of recitation and typical pitches.

What I experienced instead taught me what inspiring leaders should do when we have the stage.

As soon as the first speaker began, I realized that there would be no elevator pitches. These leaders were true superheroes; they brought the audience into the midst of their worlds and helped us see how the projects they described were making the world a better place.

The Rules for Being A True Superhero

The most gripping leaders bring forward a superpower of insight that puts the spotlight on what matters most to the audience by telling the story of what matters most to people. To the communities, customers, partners—the people whose lives became better based on the projects the leaders made a reality.

We have to resist the temptation to broadcast our accomplishments.

Avoid generic elevator pitches and buzzword-laden zombie decks.

Here’s how the MIT Legatum Fellows Pitch Day Had the Audience on the Edge of Our Seats:

• The leader of an agtech startup explained how she brought financial independence to thousands of farmers. A neurosurgeon shared the impact from the company he started that eliminates hours of red tape that doctors deal with so they can provide better care for their patients
  

• An award-winning filmmaker traced her progress to equip local communities with the tools to own their narrative
  

• The head of a new breed of schools talked about how to expand opportunities for the next generation with radical + refreshing education
  

• A tech entrepreneur traced his journey to provide protection for people who had never had access to insurance before
  

Because the presenters focused on what the audience cared about and allowed us to see ourselves in the stories they shared, everyone wanted to be part of the next steps.

Whenever you have a chance to present, start here:

• What makes people’s lives better based on what we’re about to say?

• What will make us care?

• How might we be inspired to take a different course of action tomorrow based on what we heard today?
  

At the end of the weekend, I shared a graduation address to the graduates. It’s about how to keep the flames burning on our passions and dreams. Here’s a link to the speech I presented to the MIT Legatum Fellows, that’s based on the same formula.