Why You Need an Elevator Speech

A resource every nurse should have in their back pocket!

Michael M. Heuninckx RN-BSN

Indeed. I may not have a set one, but I do have a couple of blurbs

Interesting!

In today's employment milieu anything that helps a prospective job seeker gain an edge is POSITIVE. Have never thought about this and I'm a talker. This wouldn't be too diff for me - I always found composing for 'the written word' easy.

I always liked a handshake. To me, handshakes were always a typical MAN-THING the guys were comfortable with. Took me a while to get used to giving a handshake that I was relaxed with. I found if I initiated the handshake, it felt good. I found extending a hand to visiting families was positive.

Edited May 12, 2015 by amoLucia
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This is so relevant for students. I recently landed myself on an elevator with the CNO and DON at a hospital I was doing clinicals at. They introduced themselves and asked me how I was enjoying clinicals at their hospital. I tried to give my best answer but I left the elevator feeling like I should have said more. The truth is I had already applied to their residency program and was not selected but you never know who can help you if you make a good impression!

I didn't get my first job due to what I said on an elevator, but rather due to a discussion at a babysitting job.

I was chatting with the childrens' father. He asked me about nursing school and my graduation, which was coming up shortly. He asked me what specialty I wanted to work in. I told him I wanted to work in psych. He asked me if I'd applied to "X Hospital," and I said, "Oh, not, they don't have any jobs for psych nurses." He said he was pretty sure they did, and I again repeated that I didn't think they had any jobs, and that I hadn't even bothered to apply there. Then I said jokingly, "Do you have some kind of insider information?"

With a smile, he said, "Well, I'm the CEO of the hospital, and I know for a fact that we are looking for psych nurses. I think you should apply for a job in the new psych unit we're opening." Talk about wanting the earth to just swallow me up. I had no idea he was the CEO of the hospital; trust me, I wanted to kill the person who referred me for that babysitting job for not telling me he was in charge of "X Hospital." That would have been important information to know.

It gets better...or worse, depending on your perspective. I got an interview, but it was smack in the middle of my night shift rotation. I was unaccustomed to night shift, so of course, during the interview my eyes got heavy, and I struggled to stay awake. In spite of my drowsiness, and in spite of my conversation with the CEO, I got the job...my first job out of nursing school.

Can I ask what your looking for during the interview process and with the resumes? I have had several nursing jobs already, but can't land one I really want or a hospital job. I think I'm horrible at interviewing, and my resume' needs improvement, but I'm not sure how to improve it. I actually had a professional resume writing company write one for me, and was still told it needed improvements. I have asked this question before on this site, but never get a response. Does age make a difference in getting hired?

Thank you for any responses in advance!

I got my first job offer thanks to my elevator speech as a new grad!

Can I ask what your looking for during the interview process and with the resumes? I have had several nursing jobs already, but can't land one I really want or a hospital job. I think I'm horrible at interviewing, and my resume' needs improvement, but I'm not sure how to improve it. I actually had a professional resume writing company write one for me, and was still told it needed improvements. I have asked this question before on this site, but never get a response. Does age make a difference in getting hired?

Thank you for any responses in advance!

Resumes must stand out bc it's so competitive. They must be visually appealing (format, use of white space, bullet points are good). You need to modify your resume to each employer to show how you are a good fit for them. Identify keywords in their job description (teamwork, professionalism, respect) and reflect those back in your resume using examples.

Interviewing is your real time chance to show them what a good fit you are for their organization and nursing unit. You want to prepare for questions such as "Tell us about a time you (resolved a conflict with a coworker, went above & beyond in customer, service, etc"). Meaning ahead of time, prepare a couple of examples from your past on conflict skills, patient satisfaction/customer service.

Practice ahead of time answering "Why should we hire you?" and "Tell us about yourself"

Good luck to you, I wish you the best in landing a great nursing job. Soon. :)

Congrats congrats congrats! Happy dance :)

They saw the real you through the grogginess and the caught-off-guardness. Congrats. I love those kind of stories.

Lol and to think 36 years ago, I walked into Personnel, fresh out of college, with a shiny new BSN, and filled out an application. The Personnel lady looked at it, asked if I had time to talk to the Head Nurse of the about to be opened Pediatric unit. Of course I said "Yes", my dream job was Pediatrics. Never mind that I was in jeans and a t-shirt, since I was just planning on filling out applications at area hospitals. Up to the unit we went. Thirty minutes later I walked out with my first job. I don't envy new grads nowadays.