那么，应该怎么做？围绕对方正在考虑的问题展开对话。亚斯特罗称：“大多数面试官或电梯里的高管，更关心公司如何实现当前的目标，而不是你的生活故事。所以要围绕对方考虑的问题展开对话。关注公司真正需要的东西（往往不会在正式职务说明中提到），肯定能让你有机会提到自己的能力和经验会在哪些地方派上用场。向对方证明，他们所关心的也是你所关注的。”

    要这么做，首先需要做一名优秀的倾听者。最成功的推销员从来都是花更多的时间去倾听，而不是说话，到目前为止，这一直都是不言而喻的真理。毕竟，在求职面试（或电梯）中，你要推销的是你自己。

    在《放弃游说》一书中，亚斯特罗解释了如何将演员的即兴表演技巧应用于商业环境。举例来说：说“是的，而且……”亚斯特罗解释道：“在即兴场景下，演员会仔细倾听对方所说的话，然后据此做出反应。这正是在对话中建立亲和力的诀窍所在。”

    他指出，人类是天生的即兴创作者，我们很少会提前计划要说什么或什么时候说，而是把谈论的发展方向作为组织话语的线索。他说道：“在面试或做销售拜访时，不要把它想成一次强行推销，更重要的是用心去听，你一定能找到合适的插话机会。”

    他补充道，同样的原则也适用于现实或网络中的人际交往。亚斯特罗表示：“通过围绕与对方有关的话题并按照对方希望的方向开展对话，让对方对你产生兴趣。”尤其是就你而言，你有二十年的丰富经验，他认为“相比大声背诵自己的履历，即兴组织一场新鲜的、自发的对话，会更有意义，更有可能让你得到想要的结果。”

    反馈：你是否曾通过电梯演讲达成自己想要的结果？如果你是被游说的对象，这样的演说能激起你的兴趣吗？欢迎评论。（财富中文网）

    译者：刘进龙/汪皓

    How? By making the conversation about what's on the other person's mind. "Most job interviewers, or executives in an elevator, care a lot more about what the company needs to meet its goals right now than about your life story," Yastrow notes. "So make the conversation about that. Focusing on what the company is really looking for -- which isn't always in the formal job description -- inevitably leads to your having a chance to mention where your skills and experience fit in. Show that what they care about is what you care about, too."

    To do that, you first need to be a great listener. It's a truism by now that the most effective salespeople spend much more time listening than talking, and in a job interview (or in an elevator), after all, what you're selling is yourself.

    In Ditch the Pitch, Yastrow explains how some of the same improvisation techniques that actors use can apply to business situations too. One example: Saying "Yes, and ..." Explains Yastrow, "Actors in improvised scenes listen carefully to what someone else just said and then build on it. It's how you create affinity in conversations."

    Humans, he points out, are natural improvisers who rarely plan ahead of time what they'll say or when they'll say it, but rather let the flow of a discussion be their cue. "Don't think of this as 'winging it' in an interview, or a sales call," he says. "It's really more about listening, so you can pick the right moment to chime in."

    He adds that the same principle applies in networking, both in person and online. "Get the other person interested in you by having a conversation that matters to them, and goes where they want it to go," Yastrow says. Especially in your case, with a couple of decades of varied experience, he says, "improvising a fresh, spontaneous conversation makes a lot more sense -- and is a lot more likely to get the results you want -- than essentially reading your resume aloud."

    Talkback: Has an elevator pitch ever gotten results for you? If you've been on the receiving end of one, did it pique your interest? Leave a message below.