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How many times in a typical month are you asked the question: “What do you do for a living?”

Maybe 5, 10, 20 times or more?

I don’t know about you, but I work from home, so it’s not all that often.  I’d guess maybe 5-10 times per month {Yeah, I probably need to get out of the house a bit more!}.  But for most of you reading this I’d bet it’s a LOT more than that.

Am I right?

Regardless of how frequently you are asked this question, the way you answer it tells a LOT more about you than just what do you do to pay your bills or what consumes your time from 9-5 Monday through Friday.

Actually the power, meaning, and clarity of the answer you give is a direct result of how you feel about yourself, your life, and the contribution you’re making {or not making} in this world.

I’m about to share with you how a simple {semi-secret} formula will guarantee you represent yourself and what you do in a way that others can relate to, fully understand, and take action on.

Why does this matter?  Well if doubling your confidence, your contribution, and your income means anything to you, then I’d suggest you put a few minutes into the exercise below.

Here are a few samples to illustrate my point:

Example 1:

{BEFORE} “I help successful business men who want beach body abs, get them without diets, without a gym, in less than 30 minutes per day.”

Not bad eh? I’d agree it’s a start, but look what happens after applying the formula:

{AFTER} “I help 35-45 year old guys who want to get rid of their gut, without putting themselves through the grueling torture and punishment of running and sweating on a treadmill, and without giving up eating juicy steak or having to dramatically change their diet, get beach body abs in under 90 days. Do you know anybody who wants to lose their gut and get a six pack in less than 90 days?”

Example 2:

{BEFORE} “I help sales professionals harness the power of the internet to generate higher quality sales leads for their business.”

That one was actually from my personal collection.  Check out how much more specific and powerful it gets after applying the formula:

{AFTER} “I help full-time Real Estate agents who are sick and tired of making cold calls and wasting money buying lame advertising spots on bus-benches and billboards, to cut their ad cost in half and actually kick back and relax while their phone rings off the hook with new, excited, pre-qualified clients who are desperate to buy or sell their home, and I help them do this in less than 30 days.  Do you know any full time real estate agents who’d like to stop throwing money down the drain and would LOVE to be overwhelmed with too much business?”

Example 3:

{BEFORE} “I teach workshops around the country for single men and women who want to learn communication and dating techniques to attract their soul mate.”

If I heard this, the conversation in my head might go something like: “Hmm… Interesting. I’ve already found my soul mate… cool… have a nice day”.  I guess there is a chance it MIGHT stick in my mind a bit, but I’d doubt it would make much of an impact and I can’t say I’d jump on the horn right away and start calling my single friends to check this person out. Now look at it again after applying the formula:

{AFTER} “I help women who are stuck in unfulfilling, dead-end relationships, dump their loser of a man with confidence, take back their power, and become so irresistible that they’ll hardly keep from putting a rock on their own finger.”

You starting to see a pattern here {other than the length of course}?

There’s a formula and a process involved here that is very simple. In marketing it’s called “Word-Smithing”.  It’s an art that I believe anyone who cares to learn can practice in order to jazz up their communications, and inject meaning into otherwise mundane interactions such as the infamous “What Do You Do?” that we all run into so frequently.

The difference between answering this question with your standard knee-jerk {boring} every day response, vs. doing it skillfully and magnetically is the difference between putting someone to sleep, or getting their mouth to water, heart to thump, and their head to SPIN with possibility.

You might accidentally INSPIRE someone if you’re not careful, or you may have such a powerful effect on them that dozens of names start popping into their mind like little popcorn kernels of perfect candidates for your product/service or program.

You ready to try it out?  First let’s go over the formula, then we’ll do an exercise.

The Formula goes like this:

I Help… [Specific Prospect]

Who… [Specific Problem (describe it better than they can)]

Avoid/Achieve/Get… [Specific Result]

With/Without… [Specific Convenience]

Hook: Do you know anyone who [Recap]?

Now you try it.  Take a pen and a piece of paper out right now and follow me through this:

Step #1- Pretend we both just checked in at the same hotel, and just so happened to be getting in the same elevator and both had a room on the 25th floor.  This is the perfect moment for your “Elevator Speech”.  What would you say RIGHT NOW without using the formula?  Be honest.

Don’t “try” to make your statement cool or interesting {yet}.  Just write it down as you would say it off the cuff.  We’ll dig into it in just a minute.  Do it now.

Ok. Time for your breakthrough.

Step #2- Take what you have and apply the formula above to your statement.  Keep in mind that most people share what they do in a confusing, or just plain old boring way. This doesn’t do anything for anybody.  No one’s going to be inspired to take action.

Hopefully you see that your 2nd statement packs more punch, feels more authentic and exciting.  Most importantly it’s now going to get people into action.  Whether that’s referring you business or whipping out their wallet on the spot for what you’ve got, the point is, through word-smithing, the value was translated.

This is much less about “selling” or “promoting” yourself or your product/service, and much more about mastering the art of translating what you do, into terms that allow another person to easily understand and relate with.  At the end of the day it’s about communication and compassion for another person’s perspective.

In fact, compassion is the most powerful AND profitable skill on the planet.  And as Eben Pagan says, it requires you becoming a “Jedi-Communicator”.  This exercise is one step on the road to mastering compassionate and effective communication.

Now get out there and look for opportunities today to practice this. Watch the look on people’s faces when you share your new version. Deliver it smoothly and with confidence, and I’ll bet that you create a fresh new buzz with those you meet.

I’d also venture to bet that your bank account will thank you for taking the time to put this into action as well.

So my final question to you is: “What Do You Do For A Living?”