The Dangling Goal Elevator Pitch
End the pitch with what you're focused on — and let it dangle in the air.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~days to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 79%
Stahl's elevator pitch is a four-part process; the part she calls the gold is the goal at the end. First you have to hear the invitation, which may not sound like 'tell me about yourself' — it might be 'what brought you here' or 'what are you doing', all the same thing. You deliver your pitch, close with 'so that's what brings me here', then add a succinct one-liner: at the moment I'm looking to transition into PR in the fashion world, or I'm focused on meeting more podcasters who want representation for sponsors. Then you let it dangle in the air. The paired power question — do you have any suggestions for how I can stand out as a candidate for X — invites people to help you.
Origin
Stahl developed the formula the hard way during six weeks of relentless DC networking as a broke graduate: she fell on her face, said the wrong things, and then learned her own formula for how to give an elevator pitch and talk to someone in a way that creates opportunities.
Core principles
- 01The pitch invitation rarely sounds like 'tell me about yourself' — train your ear for the variants.
- 02The goal is the gold part of the pitch: a succinct one-liner about what you're focused on at the moment.
- 03Let the goal dangle in the air rather than asking directly.
- 04'Do you have any suggestions for how I can stand out as a candidate for X?' invites people to help you.
- 05The ask converts differently by context — a resume to HR, an intro to a buyer.
- 06Constantly put it out there, ask for feedback, stay conversational.
How to run it
- 1
Train your ear for the invitation
Recognise the pitch invite in all its forms — 'tell me about yourself', 'what brought you here', 'what are you doing'. It's all the same prompt.
Watch out Waiting for the textbook phrasing means you'll miss most of your openings.
- 2
Deliver the pitch and land it
Give your pitch, then close it with a bridge: 'so that's what brings me here'.
- 3
Add the dangling goal
Follow with one succinct line about what you're focused on right now: 'at the moment I'm looking to transition into PR, particularly in the fashion world.'
Pro tip Specificity is what makes it actionable — 'PR in fashion' beats 'a new opportunity'.
- 4
Let it dangle
Stop. Don't convert it into a request. Letting the goal hang in the air is what makes it powerful.
- 5
Ask the power question
Ask: do you have any suggestions for how I can stand out as a candidate for X, Y, or Z? It invites people to help you.
Pro tip In the workforce it draws out 'I can pass your resume to HR'. As a business owner it draws out 'I know someone that needs those services.'
In the wild
Stahl models the dangling goal live using Hala's agency: 'at the moment, I'm really focused on meeting more podcasters who want representation for sponsors' — one succinct line about the present focus, then silence.
→ Stahl calls having that succinct one-liner and letting it dangle in the air really, really powerful for the elevator pitch.
Common mistakes
Ending on your history
A pitch that only explains who you've been gives the listener nothing to act on. The goal at the end is the gold part — without it there's no reason for the conversation to produce anything.
Missing the invitation
The pitch invite is often disguised as small talk — 'what brought you here'. If your ear isn't trained for the variants, you answer the question instead of taking the opening.
Is it for you?
Best for
Job seekers, business owners chasing contracts, and anyone in a career pivot.
Not ideal for
Purely social settings where introducing a goal would read as transactional.
From the transcript
“The most important thing to have in your elevator pitch, I know it's a four-part process, so I'll give you the gold part of it…”
“Having a very succinct one-liner that's like, 'Here's what I'm focused on at the moment.' Letting it dangle in the air um is really, really…”
“Another power question to ask people is, 'Do you have any suggestions for how I can stand out as a candidate for X, Y, or…”
From the episode
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