Elevator pitch – 15 or so seconds to tell somebody, as if you were in an elevator (or lift, for the Brits) with them, why you are so good at whatever and why that is important for them.

The web is full of comments about why this skill is so fundamental for most of us. I am particularly fond of a recent suggestion from a comedienne-turned-motivational speaker, who asks us to recall the meaning of a ‘punch line’. It makes you stop in your tracks and realise that something special has happened. In other words, get that ‘extra bit’ into your speech or pitch.

Here’s the catch. People are shown how to practice their pitch, like an actor. You can be encouraged to incorporate themes or facts. However, how do you bring it all together? What specifically are you going to say?

What made me think about this is meetings that I held this week with two business mentoring clients in Jerusalem. The first – call him Tom – is in the process of a creating a service business and has just benefited from a steep training course in an accelerator. Here, they drilled him through the routine of the elevator pitch.

I asked Tom to roleplay his speech, which he did to perfection. Only, I was left feeling empty, and blurted out ‘so what’. It was interesting and well delivered, but it lacked strong meaning and direction. No punch line. He had simply missed out a key phrase that made all the difference.

By comparison, today, I sat down for the first time with Wendy, a nervous biotech freak. Deeply committed to her field of expertise, I asked her why she wanted to become a consultant. The answer was uninspiring, and continued to be despite some extra probing. I was troubled.

So I gave Wendy a quick example, speaking as a business coach, explaining in a quarter of a minute how and why I was of value to an imaginary person standing opposite me in a lift. Wendy responded that I had not been fair. “In biotech, what counts is X, Y and Z. And that is where I have real experience,” she retorted haughtily. For the first time in the hour, she had become animated.

I let Wendy ramble on, and then brought her to a stop. She was unsure as to what had happened, until I had assured her that she had just uttered a great, if rough at the edges, elevator pitch. She smiled.

You see a core element to a creating a great elevator pitch is to understand your own passion. This is what protects and then enhances your commercial vision to a level that you want to share it with the world.