“What is vitally important is making sure your message fulfills two objectives: First, you don’t want your message to trigger fear alarms. And second, you want to make sure it gets recognized as something positive, unexpected, and out of the ordinary – a pleasant novelty.” – Oren Klaff

Capturing your reader’s attention is the most important goal of your MBA application. You want the admissions officer to remember you after reading 20 applications that day. The longer you can keep his or her attention (in the right way!), the better your chances are of landing an interview.

In this episode, we take the core principles from Oren Klaff’s Pitch Anything, and discuss 4 ways you can get and keep attention in your application. The primal “croc brain” that hears a pitch is very different from the logical “neocortex” that designs a pitch. The “croc brain” is intrigued by pleasant novelty, movement, and suspense. Listen on for some very specific ways you can incorporate these elements into your MBA essays and resume.

Topics

• Introduction (0:00)
• Be a Pleasant Novelty (3:35)
• Use Frames that Make You the Prize (6:47)
• Always Show Movement (12:08)
• Have Strong Alternatives (13:30)

Show Notes

• Pitch Anything: An Innovative Method for Presenting, Persuading and Winning the Deal by Oren Klaff
• Great Applications for Business School by Paul Bodine
  

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