If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up the men to gather wood, divide the work and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea.
– Antoine de Saint Exupéry (this quote is perhaps misattributed, but it’s great anyway.)
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Recently, Vinod Khosla tweeted this link to an old Dave McClure post, with some advice on making an elevator pitch. That surely is reason to pay attention.
“Here’s the secret: PITCH THE PROBLEM, NOT THE SOLUTION.”“That’s it. done! that’s all there is… just tell me the problem FIRST, not the SOLUTION. the reason is, i may not be able to understand what your solution does, but if you connect emotionally with me on what the problem is — and i hopefully i also have the problem, or know someone who does — then i’ll give you PERMISSION to tell me more about how you’re going to solve the problem.”
I have a prior post about Vinod Khosla and his “black swan” approach to thinking about an opportunity by focusing on the size of problem, even where there is a 90% chance that there might be failure.
It’s not just evaluating opportunities and pitching them; there is something inherently more collaborative and emotionally engaging about discussing the problem statement in motivating and connecting with yourself and others, rather than jumping into a solution, which creates more distance with and resistance by the listener. There is much more risk in the “solution first” approach of coming off as a know-it-all, distracting from your idea however good. Chances are too that you have a great target and opportunity, but you need to pivot with your solution. You may be more likely to get the chance to pivot if you have made others “yearn” to solve your problem.
takingpitches 