* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.
          [Liftoff Houston: Pitching the Business]
          [00:00:12]
          THIS IS THE PITCHING THE BUSINESS WORKSHOP. 
          WE HAVE OUR TEAM, MYSELF, UH, JESSICA DEL GRECO, PROGRAM ADMINISTRATOR WITH THE OFFICE OF BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY, NELLY PENA PROGRAM SUPPORT WITH THE OFFICE OF BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY, BELINDA COX, PROGRAM SUPPORT WITH HOUSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY, AND THEN KENNETH THOMAS. 
          IT SUPPORT WITH HOUSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY. 
          SOME ATTENDANCE, SOME ATTENDANCE REMINDERS. 
          UM, SO YOUR ATTENDANCE IS REQUIRED FOR THIS WORKSHOP, AND YOU MUST VALIDATE YOUR ATTENDANCE AT THE BEGINNING AND AT THE END, WE ASK THAT YOU DO NOT MISS MORE THAN 15 MINUTES OF EACH WORKSHOP. 
          IF YOU'RE NOT ADMITTED, UH, YOU'LL NOT BE ADMITTED IF YOU ARRIVE MORE THAN 15 MINUTES AFTER THE START OF EACH WORKSHOP. 
          AND IF FOR ANY REASON YOU DO GET DISCONNECTED, PLEASE ATTEMPT TO REENTER THE MEETING IMMEDIATELY. 
          AND IF YOU HAVE ANY TROUBLE, UM, EMAIL US AT LIFTOFFHOUSTON@HOUSTONTX.GOV. 
          UM, OR IT PROBABLY IS A LITTLE BIT QUICKER IF YOU EMAIL ME DIRECTLY AT JESSICA DOT RECO@HOUSTONTX.GOV. 
          AND AS YOU ALL PROBABLY KNOW BY NOW, THE PASSWORD IS GIVEN AT THE END OF EACH WORKSHOP. 
          SO WE PLEASE ASK THAT YOU STAY UNTIL THE END TO RECEIVE THAT PASSCODE. 
          AND ALL PASSCODES ARE GONNA BE, NEED TO BE ENTERED INTO THE WORKSHOP SIX, UM, SURVEY TASKS WITHIN THE LIFTOFF HOUSTON PORTAL WITHIN 48 HOURS AT THE END OF THIS WORKSHOP ENDING. 
          SO IT'LL BE SEPTEMBER 27TH AT SEVEN 30. 
          YOUR PASSCODE WILL BE DUE. 
          SO AS WE'RE GETTING NEAR THE END, WE HAVE SOME PROGRAM REMINDERS. 
          UM, SO THE BUSINESS FINANCIALS WORKSHOP THREE THAT WAS CANCELED, UM, A FEW MONTHS AGO, A MONTH, ABOUT A MONTH AND A HALF AGO, HAS BEEN RESCHEDULED. 
          AND IT WILL TAKE PLACE, UM, THIS SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 30TH AT 10:00 AM. 
          SO IF YOU DID NOT, UM, COMPLETE THE BUSINESS FINANCIALS WORKSHOP, IT HAS BEEN RESCHEDULED FOR SATURDAY. 
          SO PLEASE BE SURE YOU ATTEND. 
          WE DO HAVE TWO IN PERSON WORKSHOPS NEXT WEEK. 
          SO WE HAVE THE BUSINESS PLAN WRITING WORKSHOP, UM, ON MONDAY, OCTOBER 2ND AT 6:00 PM THAT'LL BE AT YOUNG NEIGHBORHOOD LIBRARY. 
          SO THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY WHERE YOU WILL HAVE SCORE MENTORS IN PERSON TO GIVE YOU HANDS-ON ASSISTANCE WITH YOUR BUSINESS PLAN. 
          SO WE PLEASE ASK THAT YOU COME WITH, UM, SOME PROGRESS, UM, AND A AND A COPY OF YOUR BUSINESS PLAN SO THAT YOU CAN GO OVER IT WITH THEM. 
          AND THEN THE BUSINESS PLAN AND PITCH WORKSHOP WILL BE THURSDAY, OCTOBER 5TH AT YOUNG NEIGHBORHOOD LIBRARY. 
          AND THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY WILL, YOU'LL HAVE, UM, PREVIOUS LIFTOFF WINNERS WILL COME IN, AND THEY WERE GOING TO GIVE YOU FIRSTHAND ADVICE AND MENTORSHIP ON YOUR PITCH. 
          UM, SOME MENTOR RE UH, REQUIREMENTS THAT ARE GONNA BE DUE, YOUR FINANCIAL MENTOR APPOINTMENT IS DUE FRIDAY. 
          UM, SO THIS FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 29TH BY 5:00 PM YOUR BUSINESS MENTOR APPOINTMENT, UM, IS DUE WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11TH AT 5:00 PM AND THEN, UM, YOUR FINAL LIFTOFF EVALUATION WILL BE DUE WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11TH AT 5:00 PM AND KEEP IN MIND, BUSINESS PLANS ARE DUE OCTOBER 13TH BY 4:00 PM SO YOU HAVE LESS THAN A MONTH. 
          THAT DEADLINE'S COMING UP QUICK. 
          SO, UM, PLEASE BE SURE THAT YOU HAVE ALL OF THIS COMPLETED. 
          UM, ALL YOUR ORIENTATION AND ALL SIX WORKSHOPS MUST HAVE A GREEN CHECK MARK AND ALL YOUR MENTOR REQUIREMENTS MUST HAVE A GREEN CHECK MARK. 
          AND THAT FINAL SURVEY MUST BE COMPLETED FOR YOU TO TURN IN YOUR BUSINESS PLAN. 
          THAT BUSINESS PLAN TASK WILL NOT OPEN, UM, WITHOUT ALL YOUR TASKS BEING COMPLETE. 
          SO WE ARE NOW GOING TO DO, UM, THE ATTENDANCE CHECK-IN ONE, SO YOU CAN SCAN THE QR CODE OR, UM, TYPE IN THE CODE, THE LINK THAT'S IN THE SCREEN. 
          AND THEN KENNETH IS SENDING IT IN THE CHAT RIGHT NOW. 
          SO WE WILL GIVE YOU ALL A COUPLE MINUTES, UM, TO SCAN THAT. 
          ALL RIGHT, SO WHILE KENNETH IS SENDING THAT IN THE CHAT, WE'RE GONNA INTRODUCE OUR SPEAKERS. 
          SO WE HAVE SANDRA LUER, THE DIRECTOR OF ENTREPRENEURIAL INITIATIVES AND COMMUNITY RELATIONS WITH HCC. 
          AND THEN WE HAVE LINDSAY BRANTLEY, UM, WHICH I THINK, I THINK SHE'LL BE IN HERE. 
          UM, WE WILL GET AN UPDATE FROM HER SOON. 
          SHE'S THE CEO OF CAMIA. 
          AND ELISE ELISE, UM, SHE, AND SHE ALSO IS THE 2016 LIFTOFF HOUSTON WINNER. 
          AND I KNOW SHE WORKS VERY, UH, CLOSELY WITH SANDRA. 
          SO WE'RE SUPER EXCITED TO WATCH THEM PRESENT TODAY. 
          SO I'M GOING TO GIVE SANDRA AN OPPORTUNITY TO INTRODUCE HERSELF, AND I'M GONNA GET HER SLIDES PULLED UP. 
          OKAY. 
          HI THERE. 
          I'M SANDRA LUER AND I'M THE DIRECTOR OF THE CENTER FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP AT HCC NORTHWEST. 
          I STARTED THE FIRST CENTER FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP AT 
          [00:05:01]
HCC QUITE SOME TIME AGO, AND, UH, ENTREPRENEURSHIP HAS JUST REALLY TAKEN OFF. 
          THANK YOU FOR THE CLAPPING . 
          UM, AND IT'S BEEN SO WONDERFUL. 
          WE'VE GOT LOTS OF GREAT ENTREPRENEURIAL, UH, DEPARTMENTS AT HCC, THE, UH, HCC GOLDMAN SACHS 10,000 SMALL BUSINESSES PROGRAM, THE MINORITY BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT AGENCY BUSINESS CENTER THAT HELPS YOU LATER WHEN YOU ARE ALL, UH, BIG AND GROWN AND YOU WANNA GO TO THE NEXT LEVEL. 
          AND THEN WE HAVE THREE CENTERS FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP, THE GLENDA AND DAVID REGENBAUM CENTER FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP. 
          AND THAT'S, UH, DAVID REGENBAUM AND I AND LINDSAY DO THE PITCH TRAINING WE HAVE FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS. 
          WELL, DAVID AND I HAVE BEEN DOING IT FOR QUITE SOME TIME, BUT WE LOVE BRINGING IN, UH, PEOPLE THAT HAVE WON IT, BEEN THERE, UH, DONE THAT AND WON THAT AND LINDSAY'S THAT. 
          AND SHE'S ALSO GONE OVER LATER INTO OUR COMPETITION AND DONE WELL IN IT AS WELL. 
          AND SO, UM, WELL, IT'LL BE EXCITING TO HAVE LINDSAY IN HERE. 
          SHE'S HAVING TROUBLE GETTING IN IN TEAMS, BUT HOPEFULLY SHE'LL MAKE IT. 
          AND IF NOT, I WILL JUST KEEP GOING ON HER BEHALF BECAUSE, UH, I'VE BEEN VERY INVOLVED IN LIFTOFF SINCE YOU GUYS GOT STARTED. 
          IN FACT, I'VE BEEN A JUDGE IN THE COMPETITION BEFORE, AND WE JUST LOVE, UH, BEING PARTNERS WITH, UH, THE MAYOR'S OBO. 
          UM, SO IF YOU'LL CLICK TO THE NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE. 
          SO THAT'S DAVID REGENBAUM. 
          HE DID TRAINING SESSION NUMBER ONE. 
          UH, AND NOW YOU'RE IN TWO. 
          LINDSAY AND I ARE GONNA DO IT, AND IF YOU WANNA COME BACK AND DO IT AGAIN ON WEDNESDAY, DAVID AND I ARE GONNA DO IT TOGETHER. 
          SO, UM, HE'S, UH, BEEN A VERY SUCCESSFUL ENTREPRENEUR AND VERY WELL ESTABLISHED. 
          AND HE ALSO HAS, UH, BEEN ENTREPRENEUR IN RESIDENCE FOR THE CENTER FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP SINCE 2016. 
          AND HE LIKES US SO MUCH THAT HE ENDOWED OUR CENTER. 
          AND NOW, UH, WE'VE NAMED IT AFTER HE AND HIS WIFE GLEN AND DAVID REGENBAUM, CENTER FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP. 
          SO NOW LINDSEY, LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT HER. 
          UM, I LOVE LINDSEY. 
          SHE'S AMAZING. 
          I'VE KNOWN HER FOR A LONG TIME. 
          SHE, I MET HER WHEN SHE WENT THROUGH, UH, AFTER SHE WENT THROUGH LIFT OFF HOUSTON, THEN SHE TRIED TO GET INTO OURS, AND I THINK SHE DIDN'T GET IN THE FIRST TIME SHE APPLIED, BUT SHE GOT IN THE SECOND YEAR, AND, UH, SHE WON . 
          AND SO THE FIRST YEAR WHEN SHE WENT THROUGH LIFT OFF HOUSTON, SHE WAS WORKING ON DEVELOPING HER, HER, UM, SKINCARE PRODUCTS. 
          AND SO SHE DID LIFT OFF HOUSTON TO TRY AND, UH, CONTINUE FINISHING HER LAUNCH OF HER SKINCARE PRODUCTS. 
          AND THEN BY THE TIME SHE MADE IT INTO OURS, SHE WAS GOING TO THE NEXT LEVEL OF GROWTH. 
          SHE WANTED TO OPEN A NEW, NEW, UM, UH, PHYSICAL LOCATION. 
          AND SHE ALSO WANTED TO ADD INTO IT AN ACADEMY, UH, TO TRAIN PEOPLE HOW TO DO AND DELIVER THIS KIND OF, UM, THIS KIND OF SKINCARE. 
          AND SINCE THEN, SHE'S ALSO OPENED ANOTHER LOCATION, A A SPA LOCATION. 
          SO NOW SHE'S GOT TWO LOCATIONS. 
          SO SHE'S BEEN VERY GOOD AT CONTINUING ON APPLYING ALL THE TOOLS AND THE PRINCIPLES SHE LEARNED IN LIFT OFF, AND THEN SEEKING HELP WITH, UH, OTHER ENTITIES THAT HAVE HELPED HER AS MUCH AS LIFTOFF, LIKE OUR HCC BUSINESS PLAN COMPETITION TO GO TO THE NEXT LEVEL. 
          BECAUSE THERE'S SOMETHING REALLY MAGICAL ABOUT GOING THROUGH A COMPETITION LIKE THIS WITH OTHER LIKE-MINDED ENTREPRENEURS WHO ARE TAKING WHAT THEY'RE LEARNING SERIOUSLY, AND THEN THEY KEEP USING THOSE TOOLS. 
          SO YOU'LL PROBABLY FIND THAT IF YOU GET INSPIRED BY THIS IS THIS, IF THIS IS YOUR FIRST RUN AT A COMPETITION, YOU'LL START CONNECTING TO THE HOUSTON ENTREPRENEURIAL ECOSYSTEM, AND YOU'LL BE PURSUING LOTS MORE. 
          IN FACT, YOUR COMPLETION OF ALL THE TRAINING IN THE LIFTOFF USE COMPETITION, AND YOU ARE SUBMITTING A PLAN ON LIFT OFF HOUSTON, WE CONSIDER THAT A PREREQUISITE TO APPLYING FOR OUR COMPETITION IN JANUARY. 
          SO, UM, SO DO AS WELL AS YOU CAN IN LIFT OFF. 
          AND THEN IF YOU FEEL LIKE YOU'RE TRYING TO GO TO THE NEXT LEVEL, AGAIN WITH YOUR PLAN, YOU CAN APPLY FOR US IN JANUARY. 
          IF YOU MAKE IT IN, YOU'LL BE ABLE TO GO THROUGH SOME MORE TRAINING TO TAKE YOUR, YOUR PLAN TO ANOTHER LEVEL. 
          SO, UM, LINDSAY'S GONNA BE GREAT. 
          I'M SO HOPING THAT SHE CAN MAKE IT IN. 
          IF NOT, I'VE WORKED WITH HER A LOT. 
          SHE DOES PITCH TRAINING WITH US IN OUR COMPETITION AS WELL. 
          SO I, I WILL RELAY SOME OF THIS STUFF TOO. 
          OKAY. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          THEN THERE'S ME. 
          I'LL BE REALLY QUICK ON THAT. 
          I CAME WITH TO START THE FIRST CENTER FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP AT HCC. 
          AND, UH, SINCE THEN, WE'VE DEVELOPED, UH, MULTIPLE PROGRAMS. WE HAVE THREE CENTERS FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP NOW, AND THOSE OTHER TWO, UH, PROGRAMS I TOLD YOU ABOUT, THE, UH, HCC, GOLDMAN SACHS 10,000 SMALL BUSINESS PROGRAM AND THE HCC MATTRESS, MAX SCHOOL OF SELLING, WE'RE GONNA GRADUATE OUR FALL CLASS JUST, UH, THIS THURSDAY. 
          SO THAT'S A LOT OF FUN TOO. 
          SO THERE'S A LOT OF RESOURCES THAT YOU'LL KEEP LEARNING ABOUT IN THE MAYOR'S OBO, UM, UH, WEEKLY NEWSLETTER BECAUSE WE ALL HELP EACH OTHER OUT BY, UH, PROMOTING OUR PROGRAMS. SO SINCE 2016, WE'VE HAD A THOUSAND, UH, ALUMNI GRADUATE FROM OUR PROGRAMS, AND WE'VE OFFERED, UH, WORKSHOPS, SEMINARS, AND PROGRAMS, UH, UH, ATTRACTING ABOUT 18,000 IN ATTENDANCE. 
          SO WE'RE REALLY LOVING WHAT WE DO, AND WE LOVE PARTNERS LIKE, UH, THE MAYOR'S OBO. 
          OKAY, NEXT. 
          ALL RIGHT, YEAH, WE'VE WON SOME AWARDS. 
          UH, SO IN 2020 WE 
          [00:10:01]
RUN WON THE, UH, THE, UM, COLLEGE OF THE YEAR, ENTREPRENEURIAL COLLEGE OF THE YEAR FROM THE, THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR COMMUNITY COLLEGE ENTREPRENEURSHIP. 
          WE WON THE BELLWETHER AWARD IN 2022, AND WE WON A DIVERSITY AWARD FROM THE HOUSTON BUSINESS JOURNAL IN 2020, UH, ONE. 
          AND WE ALSO WON THE, UH, A GLOBAL, UH, AWARD IN 2022, EXCELLENCE IN SPECIALTY ENTREPRENEURSHIP. 
          AND WE, WE MADE THE FINALS FOR A GLO ANOTHER GLOBAL AWARD THIS YEAR, BUT WE HAVEN'T ADDED IT TO THE SLIDE YET. 
          SO WE'RE VERY PROUD OF WHAT WE DO, AND YOU SHOULD BE PROUD OF WHAT YOU DO TOO. 
          WHEN YOU START WINNING AWARDS, LIKE, LIKE LINDSAY, YOU HAVE TO KEEP PUTTING THEM ON YOUR LINKEDIN PAGE AND PUTTING THEM THERE TO SHOW YOUR CREDIBILITY AS AN ENTREPRENEUR AND YOUR SUCCESS. 
          SO DON'T THINK ABOUT IT AS JUST, UH, FOR YOU, THINK ABOUT IT AS A WAY TO, UH, BRING YOUR, YOUR SOLUTION TO PROBLEMS TO THE WORLD. 
          SO GO FOR AWARDS AND THEN, THEN LET THE WORLD KNOW YOU'RE WINNING THEM. 
          OKAY, NEXT. 
          ALL RIGHT, I GUESS WE'RE GONNA GET INTO IT. 
          AND THEN WHEN LINDSAY GETS HERE, SHE CAN SAY, SANDRA, I'M HERE. 
          AND THEN SHE CAN KEEP GOING. 
          OKAY. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          SO WITH A PITCH, A PITCH IS ANY TIME THAT YOU ASK SOMEONE FOR SOMETHING, YOU ARE MAKING A PITCH. 
          IN FACT, UM, WHEN YOU ASK A 3-YEAR-OLD TO EAT THEIR VEGETABLES, YOU'RE MAKING A PITCH. 
          WHEN A TEENAGER ASKS YOU TO, UH, ASK TO BORROW THE CAR, THEY'RE MAKING A PITCH. 
          SO LEARNING HOW TO DO A GOOD PITCH IS IMPORTANT. 
          ALL RIGHT, NEXT. 
          OKAY, NOW WE'RE GETTING TO IT. 
          OKAY. 
          THESE ARE THE NINE CS OF AN EFFECTIVE PITCH. 
          IT NEEDS TO BE CONCISE. 
          IN OTHER WORDS, FEW AS FEW WORDS AS POSSIBLE TO CONVEY THE MEANING. 
          SO, SO THE MEANING, THE, THE FEWER THE WORDS, THE BETTER. 
          UM, IF YOU CAN SAY IT, SAY IT RIGHT, AND THEN KEEP MOVING. 
          SO IT NEEDS TO BE CLEAR. 
          YOU DON'T WANNA FILL IT WITH A LOT OF ACRONYMS THAT PEOPLE DON'T UNDERSTAND, OR, YOU KNOW, MBA SPEAK OR THOSE MILLION DOLLAR WORDS. 
          YOU NEED TO TRY AND KIND OF MAKE IT A, UM, SOMETHING THAT YOU COULD, UH, TELL A LAY PERSON. 
          YOU KNOW, SOMEONE OUT THERE WHO'S NOT IN YOUR INDUSTRY. 
          YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO SAY IT VERY SIMPLY. 
          SOMETIMES YOU HAVE, UM, UH, CONCEPTS THAT ARE EASY TO UNDERSTAND. 
          THERE SHE IS. 
          HEY, LINDSAY, HOW ARE YOU? I'VE ALREADY TOLD 'EM ABOUT YOU. 
          SO, UH, MS. LINDSAY, MS. LINDSAY, YOU GOTTA UNMUTE. 
          CAN YOU FIND YOUR UNMUTE? WELL, LINDSAY'S FINDING HER UNMUTE BUTTON. 
          I WANTED TO TELL YOU THAT I HAD WRITTEN IN THAT LITTLE BIO THAT SHE, THAT SHE'S WON LOTS OF MORE COMPETITIONS SINCE, UM, SHE WON LIFTOFF AND THE HEC BUSINESS PLAN COMPETITION JUST, AND SHE'S WON AWARDS JUST THIS YEAR ALONE. 
          UH, WE NOMINATED HER, UH, FOR THE, UM, SBAS SMALL BUSINESS WOMAN OF THE YEAR, AND SHE WON THAT. 
          SHE'S WON, UH, UH, AN AWARD FROM THE HOUSTON BUSINESS JOURNAL, UH, UH, MOST ADMIRED, UH, CEOS WITH SOME INCREDIBLE PEOPLE IN, IN, IN THE SAME CATEGORY. 
          AND SHE RECENTLY WON THE HOUSTON MINORITY SUPPLIER DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL'S EMERGING 10 AWARD. 
          SO, CONGRATULATIONS, LINDSAY. 
          HAVE YOU FIGURED OUT HOW TO UNMUTE? I DON'T THINK SHE CAN HEAR EITHER. 
          SO WE'LL HAVE KENNETH GIVE HER A CALL AGAIN AND TROUBLESHOOT A LITTLE BIT. 
          OKAY. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          THAT'S WHY WE GOT THE AMAZING KENNETH HERE. 
          SO, ANYBODY ELSE, WHOEVER HAS TECHNICAL ISSUES, THAT'S WHAT WE GOT KENNETH HERE FOR? YES. 
          THANK YOU, KENNETH. 
          OKAY, TAKE IT AWAY, KENNETH. 
          I'LL, I'LL KEEP GOING ON THIS. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          SO WE WERE TALKING ABOUT COMPELLING, COMPELLING MEANS THAT YOU NEED TO START HELPING PEOPLE UNDERSTAND, IN PARTICULAR, FOR AN ELEVATOR PITCH FOR WHAT WE'RE DOING, THAT YOU EXPLAIN THE PROBLEM AND THAT YOU, YOU ALREADY ARE TELLING THEM WHAT THE SOLUTION IS, UH, TO THAT PROBLEM. 
          SO YOU WANNA LET THEM KNOW THAT EARLY ON SO THEY UNDERSTAND WHY THEY'RE INTERESTED IN IT. 
          AND INCREDIBLE, ONCE YOU TELL THEM WHAT THE PROBLEM IS AND THAT YOU'VE GOT A SOLUTION FOR IT, YOU WANT THEM TO UNDERSTAND THAT YOU HAVE THE CREDIBILITY AND THE EXPERTISE TO BE ABLE TO SOLVE THAT PROBLEM. 
          AND THEN, UH, THE APPROACH, THE CONCEPTUAL, CONCEPTUAL IS A, IS A, IT STAYS AT A KIND OF HIGH LEVEL, AND IT DOESN'T GO INTO TOO MUCH DETAIL. 
          SO YOU WANNA GIVE THEM THE OVERALL VIEW OF IT. 
          AND FOR A SHORT ELEVATOR PITCH, LIKE, UM, A ONE MINUTE PITCH, SAY YOU JUST WANT THEM TO WANT TO KNOW ENOUGH THAT THEY'RE GONNA ASK MORE QUESTIONS AND THEY WANNA GO DEEPER WITH YOU RATHER THAN WANTING YOU TO GO AWAY . 
          AND THEN FOR LIFTOFF HOUSTON, YOU'VE GOT FOUR MINUTES TO DO THIS, SO YOU'RE NOT GONNA HAVE, HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO TELL THEM EVERYTHING ABOUT IT. 
          BUT YOU WANNA TELL THEM ENOUGH THAT WHEN YOU GET SIX MORE MINUTES OF Q AND A, UM, THEY'LL BE ASKING SOME QUESTIONS THAT YOU WANTED TO TALK ABOUT ANYWAY, 
          [00:15:01]
AND YOU'VE GOT THE ANSWERS TO 'EM. 
          SO CONCEPTUAL MEANS YOU DON'T GO INTO TOO MUCH DETAIL, BUT EACH TIME YOU GO THROUGH A LEVEL OF DETAIL IT WANTS, IT MAKES THEM MORE COMPELLED TO WANNA KNOW MORE ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT. 
          AND THEN YOU WANNA BE, YOU WANT IT TO BE CONCRETE. 
          CONCRETE MEANS YOU WANT IT TO BE SPECIFIC AND TANGIBLE. 
          EVERYTHING YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT IS NOT HARD TO UNDERSTAND. 
          IT'S VERY, VERY TANGIBLE. 
          AND EACH TIME YOU TALK ABOUT SOMETHING, IT'S, IT NEEDS TO SOUND PRACTICAL AND DOABLE. 
          SO CUSTOMIZE, CUSTOMIZE MEANS YOU, WHEN YOU WANNA, YOU WANNA PAY ATTENTION TO WHO YOU'RE TALKING TO, AND YOU WANT THEM TO, FOR INSTANCE, IN LIFTOFF HOUSTON, THE JUDGES WHO ARE THE JUDGES GONNA BE, THEY'RE GONNA BE SOMEONE THAT'S IN BANKING. 
          IN FACT, CAPITAL ONE IS THE SPONSOR OF THE COMPETITION. 
          SO THERE'S ALWAYS A CAPITAL ONE PERSON ON A JUDGING, JUDGING PANEL. 
          THERE'S USUALLY SOMEONE WHO'S WON LIFTOFF HOUSTON BEFORE. 
          SO AN ENTREPRENEUR. 
          AND THERE'S OFTEN SOMEONE, UH, FROM A RESOURCE PARTNER LIKE SCORE, OR HOUSTON BUSINESS JOURNAL, OR I'VE BEEN A JUDGE IN THE COMPETITION BEFORE. 
          SOMEONE WHO'S GOT EXPERIENCE IN, IN BEING IN LIFT IN, UH, COMPETITIONS, SOMEBODY WHO HAS EXPERIENCE IN REVIEWING PLANS AND DECIDING WHETHER OR NOT THEY WANNA MOVE FORWARD ON THEM. 
          SO, UH, YOU WANNA KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE OR ARE YOU TALKING TO THE CUSTOMER? SOMETIMES, UH, UH, ELEVATOR PITCHES ARE MADE FOR A CUSTOMER OR THEY'RE MADE FOR SOMEONE THAT YOU WANNA INVEST, ATTRACT TO INVEST OR BELIEVE IN YOUR BUSINESS. 
          OKAY? AND THEN CONSISTENT, UH, EVERY VERSION OF AN ELEVATOR PITCH CONVEYS SOME BASIC MESSAGE. 
          AND SO YOU WANT IT TO BE CONSISTENT AND THAT YOU'RE, THAT YOU, UH, CONVEYING THE SAME MESS MESSAGE EACH TIME YOU DO IT. 
          SO ONCE YOU DEVELOP AN ELEVATOR PITCH, YOU CAN, YOU CAN ADJUST IT HERE OR THERE, BUT YOU SHOULD PRACTICE IT ENOUGH SO THAT IT COMES VERY NATURALLY TO YOU. 
          WE'LL GET TO THAT AND YOU'LL HAVE SOME TIME TO PRACTICE CONVERSATIONAL, RATHER, IN ORDER TO CLOSE THE DEAL, UH, YOU, YOU WANT AN ELEVATOR PITCH TO FEEL CONVERSATIONAL. 
          SO WE'RE GOING TO GIVE YOU SOME LINKS. 
          WE, WE WANNA MAKE SURE THERE'S A LOT OF TIME FOR Q AND A IN THIS SESSION, SO WE MIGHT NOT DO AS MUCH Q AND A. 
          WE'LL, WE'LL DO A LOT OF Q AND A. 
          WE'RE GONNA DO A BREAKOUT EXERCISE. 
          WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE WE GOT TO DO ONE, EVEN THOUGH WE'RE STILL ON ZOOM OR TEAMS. AND, UH, AND SO WE'RE, WE, WE'VE GOT A COUPLE OF LINKS TO SOME VIDEOS, AND SO IF WE'VE GOT TIME, WE'LL PLAY THOSE VIDEOS AND THEN WE'LL GIVE YOU SOME MORE VIDEOS TO GO DEEPER ON SOME OF THE STUFF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT. 
          SO, UM, SO YOU'LL SEE THAT IT'S ABOUT BEING CONVERSATIONAL AND WHEN YOU WATCH THE VIDEO, ONE SECOND EVERYBODY. 
          I'M NOT SURE WHERE SHE, WHERE SHE JUST WENT. 
          CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES. 
          I'M NOT SURE WHAT JUST HAPPENED, BUT I THINK WE HAVE YOU BACK NOW. 
          OKAY. 
          SORRY ABOUT THAT. 
          I DON'T KNOW HOW I GOT MUTED. 
          NO, NO PROBLEM. 
          I THINK YOUR, YOUR CAMERA MIGHT BE OFF NOW. 
          OH, OKAY. 
          I'M NOT SURE WHAT HAPPENED. 
          I DIDN'T PUSH ABOUT THERE IDEA WHAT JUST HAPPENED. 
           . 
          ALRIGHT, WELL, DID YOU HEAR THE LAST PART ABOUT CONVERSATIONAL? YES. 
          OKAY, WELL THEN YOU DIDN'T MISS MUCH. 
          LET'S KEEP GOING. 
          OKAY, SO WE ALREADY TALKED ABOUT THIS A LITTLE BIT. 
          ARE YOU CREDIBLE? UH, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? UH, YOU HAVE SEVEN TO 10 SECONDS IN, IN EVEN A ONE MINUTE PITCH TO ESTABLISH YOUR CREDIBILITY. 
          YOU KNOW, WHAT'S YOUR, WHAT'S YOUR, YOUR, UM, YOUR AUDIENCE'S IMPRESSION OF YOU, UH, RIGHT AWAY? SO YOU WANNA, IT'S ALSO A, A, A VERBAL AND, UH, A SIGHT KIND OF THING. 
          ARE YOU CONFIDENT? ARE YOU, ARE YOU SPEAKING LIKE, YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT? ARE YOU SPEAKING LIKE YOU'RE AT, AT EASE? SO THAT MEANS IF YOU'RE NOT THAT AT EASE WITH TALKING IN NETWORKING, UM, INSTANCES OR UP ON A STAGE, THE ONE THING THAT YOU COULD DO TO MAKE IT ALL BETTER IS TO PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE. 
          AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT THAT A LITTLE BIT MORE. 
          BUT THE IMPORTANT THING IS, YOU KNOW, TO, UM, TO LOOK LIKE YOU ARE COMFORTABLE WITH WHAT YOU'RE DOING. 
          SO HAND, IF YOU HOLD YOUR HANDS KIND OF IN A BOX THAT'S KIND OF LIKE YOU'RE TRUSTWORTHY AND TRUTHFUL, UM, IF YOU'RE, IF YOU LOOK LIKE YOU'RE HOLDING A BALL, THEY SAY 
          [00:20:01]
IT'S KIND OF COMMANDING AND DOMINANT. 
          UH, IF YOU HAVE PYRAMID HANDS, THEY SAY IF YOU'RE, YOU'RE RELAXED AND SELF-ASSURED. 
          SO YOU CAN LOOK UP STUFF LIKE THAT AND YOU CAN START PRACTICING A LITTLE BIT OF SIGNALS. 
          AND THE WAY YOU STAND THERE, WHERE YOU'LL BE USING A, A, A POINTER, OR EXCUSE ME, A A, UM, ONE OF THOSE THINGS TO, WHAT DO YOU CALL THAT? THE CLICKER. 
          YOU'LL USE A CLICKER WHEN YOU'RE UP THERE AS WELL. 
          SO THE POINT IS, IS HAVE A WIDE STANCE. 
          YOU'RE, YOU'RE CONFIDENT YOU'RE IN CONTROL. 
          PALMS UP, PALMS UP, MEANING HONEST AND ACCEPTING. 
          PALMS DOWN MEAN STRONG AND EXERTIVE. 
          YOU CAN GOOGLE THIS KIND OF STUFF. 
          UM, BUT THE POINT IS, IS PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT YOU LOOK LIKE AND LOOK LIKE YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, AND THAT YOU'RE SOMEONE THAT, THAT, UH, KNOWS WHAT WHAT THEY'RE ABOUT TO DO AND CAN DELIVER WHAT THEY'RE ABOUT, WHAT THEY'RE ABOUT TO, WHAT THEY'RE TELLING YOU THEY'RE ABOUT TO DO. 
          SO THAT'S LIKE A, THE SOURCE OF THAT IS THE CENTER FOR BODY LANGUAGE. 
          SO GOOGLE THAT, LOOK IT UP, AND YOU CAN PAY MORE ATTENTION TO THAT. 
          THROW SOME OF THAT STUFF IN. 
          YOU PRACTICED YOUR WORD SPURTS, AND YOU'LL PRACTICE YOUR DELIVERY. 
          LINDSAY, CAN YOU HEAR US? YOU JUST WERE, UH, UNMUTED AND THEN YOU BECAME MUTED. 
          SO CLICK THAT BUTTON AGAIN SO YOU CAN UNMUTE. 
          CAN YOU HEAR US? CAN YOU HEAR ME? WE CAN HEAR YOU. 
          I, I AM NOT SURE IF SHE COULD HEAR US. 
          LINDSAY, CAN YOU HEAR US? SHE'S GONNA COME BACK IN AGAIN. 
          OKAY. 
          LET'S DO THIS ONE. 
          ALL RIGHT, SO IN YOUR BUSINESS PITCH PREPARATION, YOU DEFINITELY WANNA TALK ABOUT WHAT PROBLEM ARE YOU SOLVING? SO WHAT'S THE, THE AUDIENCE FIRST, AUDIENCE'S FIRST IMPRESSION OF YOU? CAN YOU HEAR US? LINDSAY? I CAN HEAR YOU. 
          CAN YOU HEAR ME? WOO. 
          OH MY GOODNESS. 
          OKAY, WE'RE GLAD YOU'RE HERE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          I'M SO SORRY, GUYS. 
          TODAY WAS JUST LIKE A CRAZY TECHNICAL DAY. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH, KENNETH, FOR ALL YOUR HELP. 
          THANK YOU, KENNETH. 
          OKAY, WELL, AND I WANNA TELL YOU THAT LINDSAY'S GOTTEN SOMETHING BIG THAT'S HAPPENING TO HER, AND WE'RE GONNA FIND OUT MORE ABOUT IT. 
          LOOK UP LINDSAY ON LINKEDIN, AND TOMORROW EVENING YOU'RE GONNA KNOW, KNOW WHY SHE HAD TO TRAVEL TODAY AND, AND LOG IN FROM A HOTEL KENT EXCITEMENT. 
          OKAY, I'M NOT SAYING ANOTHER THING. 
           ABOUT THAT. 
          . 
          OKAY, SO WHERE WERE YOU AT, SANDRA, WITH THE PITCH? I'M ON SLIDE, I'M ON SLIDE NINE RIGHT HERE. 
          BUSINESS PITCH PREPARATION. 
          WE'RE STARTING TO GO INTO HOW DO YOU PREPARE AND HOW DO YOU ADDRESS EACH OF THESE LITTLE, LITTLE POINTS AS YOU START TO GET READY TO CREATE YOUR PITCH? OKAY? DO YOU WANNA TAKE IT FROM HERE? ABSOLUTELY. 
          ABSOLUTELY. 
          OKAY. 
          OKAY, YOU GUYS. 
          SO WHENEVER YOU ARE STANDING FRONT, IN FRONT OF AN AUDIENCE, THERE WILL ALWAYS BE BASIC QUESTIONS THAT NEED TO BE ANSWERED. 
          AND SO THESE ARE THE ONES THAT ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT SO THAT THE JUDGES UNDERSTAND MORE ABOUT YOUR BUSINESS. 
          SO THE FIRST ONE IS, WHAT PROBLEM ARE YOU SOLVING? LIKE, WHAT IS THE ACTUAL SOLUTION THAT YOU'RE PROVIDING? AND THEN YOU WANNA GO INTO LIKE, WHAT IS YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE? SO THESE ARE THINGS THAT ARE KEY TO HELPING THEM UNDERSTAND LIKE, WHAT IS IT, WHAT EXACTLY IS THIS PRODUCT? LIKE, WHY ARE YOU BUILDING IT? YOU KNOW? AND THEN WHO ARE YOU SERVING, RIGHT? SO WHO IS THIS PRODUCT OR SERVICE FOR? UM, IN ADDITION TO THAT, ANY JUDGE YOU HAVE IS GONNA WANNA KNOW AND UNDERSTAND LIKE, WHAT IS THE, YOU KNOW, MARKET OPPORTUNITY? IS THIS SOMETHING THAT I CAN POTENTIALLY MAKE, YOU KNOW, A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS ON A MILLION DOLLARS OR A BILLION DOLLARS? YOU KNOW? SO THEY HAVE TO UNDERSTAND HOW BIG IS THE MARKET FOR WHAT YOU ARE, UM, PROPOSING? UM, WHAT'S YOUR COMPETITIVE EDGE? YOU KNOW, IS THIS SOMETHING THAT'S NEW THAT'S NEVER BEEN DONE BEFORE? IS THIS AN IMPROVEMENT ON SOMETHING THAT ALREADY EXISTS? YOU KNOW, ARE THERE PEOPLE OUT HERE THAT HAVE SOMETHING SIMILAR TO WHAT YOU HAVE? AND LET ME JUST ANSWER THIS. 
          A LOT OF PEOPLE SAY, WELL, THERE'S NO COMPETITION, RIGHT? THAT'S NOT TRUE. 
          THERE WILL ALWAYS BE SOMETHING, IT MAY NOT BE EXACTLY THE SAME AS WHAT YOU'RE DOING, BUT THERE'S SOMETHING THAT YOU CAN COMPARE WHAT YOU'RE DOING TO, FOR INSTANCE, UM, LYFT, RIGHT? OR UBER ORIGINALLY, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS NO ONE WHO HAD THIS APP WHERE YOU COULD GET IN YOUR OWN CAR AND DRIVE PEOPLE AROUND, BUT THERE WERE TAXI CABS, RIGHT? SO THERE'S ALWAYS GONNA BE SOMETHING, AND YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO EXPLAIN HOW WHAT YOU HAVE IS AN IMPROVEMENT UPON OR NEWER OR BETTER OR EDGIER THAN THE COMPETITOR. 
          AND THEN, UH, THE MOST IMPORTANT THING I WOULD TELL YOU GUYS, WHAT ARE YOU ASKING FOR THAT'S GONNA CHANGE WITH EVERY PITCH THAT YOU DO? YOU KNOW, THIS 
          [00:25:01]
PARTICULAR ONE, YES, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE ASKING FOR A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF MONEY. 
          I PERSONALLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU ACTUALLY ASK FOR WHAT YOU NEED, NOT THE PRIZE MONEY. 
          IF I AM PITCHING FOR $10,000, I NEVER ASK FOR 10,000. 
          I ASK FOR, I DON'T KNOW, THE 50,000 THAT I REALLY NEED, UM, AND EXPLAIN WHAT I'M TRYING TO RAISE, BECAUSE YOU NEVER KNOW WHO'S IN THE ROOM AND WHO MIGHT ACTUALLY HAVE THE $50,000 THAT YOU NEED. 
          AND THEN, UM, IT NEEDS TO BE CLEAR, NOT JUST WHAT ARE YOU ASKING FOR, BUT WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO WITH IT IF YOU GET IT? AND, UM, THEN YOU WANNA CLOSE. 
          I TYPICALLY LIKE TO USE THINGS LIKE HUMOR TO CLOSE OR SOMETHING THAT, YOU KNOW, WILL KIND OF LEAVE THE JUDGE REMEMBERING WHO YOU ARE AND WHAT IT IS THAT YOU'RE PROPOSING. 
          SO THESE ARE SOME OF THE KEY ELEMENTS THAT YOU NEED, UM, WHEN YOU'RE PREPARING FOR YOUR PITCH. 
          OKAY? SO, UM, AND SANDRA, YOU CAN ACTUALLY PUT TWO OR THREE OF THEM UP THERE. 
          'CAUSE I'M GONNA TALK TO A COUPLE AT A TIME. 
          OKAY? SO A COUPLE THINGS THAT YOU NEED TO KNOW. 
          YOU GUYS, YOU HA YOU ARE THE EXPERT, RIGHT? YOU ARE THE EXPERT IN YOUR PRODUCT OR SERVICE. 
          NOBODY CAN EXPLAIN IT MORE THAN YOU CAN. 
          SO IF YOU HAVE THIS, I DON'T KNOW, IT'S A NEW TYPE OF WATCH AND SOMEONE SAYS, OKAY, WELL WHAT DOES IT DO? HOW DO YOU DO? AND YOU CAN'T EXPLAIN IT, YOU'VE ALREADY LOST THE JUDGES. 
          SO YOU HAVE TO KNOW YOUR PRODUCT AND SERVICE INSIDE AND OUT. 
          UM, AND THEN YOU HAVE TO IDENTIFY WHEN YOU ARE PITCHING, WHAT IS THE NEED FOR THIS PRODUCT OR WHAT IS THE BENEFIT OF THIS PRODUCT OVER THE NEXT ONE? OR WHAT ARE SOME OF THE RESULTS THAT CAN BE EXPECTED IF I USE YOUR PRODUCT OR SERVICE OVER THE NEXT PERSONS? SO YOU'VE GOT TO KNOW HOW TO ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS. 
          AND THEN YOU NEED TO KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE. 
          UM, LIKE I SAID, WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT LIKE, WHO IS MY TAR TARGET AUDIENCE, YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO EXPLAIN WHO THAT PERSON IS. 
          IS IT A MAN? IS IT A WOMAN? WHAT AGE GROUP? UH, WHERE ARE THEY LOCATED? THOSE ARE THINGS THAT YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO EXPLAIN TO THE JUDGES, BECAUSE I ALWAYS SAY LIKE, IF YOU HAVE A NEW SHAMPOO, RIGHT? YOU NEED TO KNOW IS THIS, YOU KNOW, IF THE AUDIENCE IS BALD, YOU KNOW, THE, IT IT IS, YOU KNOW, THE SHAMPOO FOR BALD PEOPLE OR IS IT TO MAKE YOUR HAIR MORE VOLUMOUS, RIGHT? UM, AND THEN YOU ALSO HAVE TO BE PASSIONATE ABOUT THE VALUE THAT YOU'RE ADDING TO THE CUSTOMERS. 
          WHAT IS IT ABOUT THIS NEW PRODUCT OR SERVICE OR INNOVATION THAT'S GONNA HELP THAT TARGET AUDIENCE THAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT? AND IF YOU'RE NOT PASSIONATE ABOUT IT, NOBODY ELSE IS GONNA BE PASSIONATE ABOUT IT, AND NO ONE ELSE IS GONNA LEND YOU MONEY, OKAY? . 
          SO YOU HAVE TO BE PASSIONATE ABOUT IT, AND YOU HAVE TO SHOW WHAT THE VALUE IS. 
          AND THEN JUST LIKE I MENTIONED BEFORE, YOU NEED TO KNOW WHO YOUR COMPETITORS ARE. 
          NEVER SAY THAT YOU HAVE NO COMPETITORS. 
          FIGURE OUT WHAT IT MIGHT BE THE CLOSEST OR NEXT BEST THING TO WHAT YOU HAVE. 
          THERE'S ALWAYS A COMPETITOR. 
          IT MAY NOT ALWAYS LOOK LIKE WHAT YOU'RE DOING, BUT IT'LL BE SOMETHING SIMILAR. 
          AND THEN THE LAST THING IS, WHEN YOU ARE PITCHING, YOU ABSOLUTELY WANNA BUILD A STORY. 
          AND MY STORY, YOU GUYS, AND I'LL TELL YOU WHAT YOURS SHOULD BE, WHY ARE YOU STARTING THIS BUSINESS? YOU KNOW, WAS IT THERE'S A PERSONAL NEED OR SOMETHING THAT CONNECTED YOU TO IT, OR THERE WAS SOMETHING YOU SAW THAT YOU IDENTIFIED AS A NEED, AND SO YOU CREATED THIS. 
          WHATEVER YOUR PURPOSE IS, PUT THAT IN YOUR PITCH BECAUSE WE ALL WANNA CONNECT TO THAT PERSON, THAT SERVICE THAT THING. 
          SO MAKE SURE THAT YOU ARE BUILDING THE STORY IN AND EXPLAINING, YOU KNOW, WHAT THE PURPOSE WAS FOR YOU STARTING THE BUSINESS. 
          OKAY? YOU CAN GO TO THE NEXT ONE, THE NEXT SLIDE, SANDRA. 
          ALL RIGHTY. 
          SO, UM, PITCH PRESENTATION. 
          THESE ARE THE THREE BASIC MOST IMPORTANT THINGS THAT YOU WANT IN THE PRESENTATION, BUT YOU'RE GONNA BUILD ON THEM. 
          UM, THE, THE WHAT HAS TO BE, WHAT IS THE PRODUCT OR SERVICE, UM, YOU KNOW, WHAT EXACTLY IT IS THAT YOU ARE DEVELOPING. 
          AND I WILL TELL YOU, I HAVE ACTUALLY AN ENGINEERING BACKGROUND BEFORE I WENT INTO BEAUTY, RIGHT? BUT A LOT OF US GET SO TECHNICAL AND INTO THE WEEDS. 
          SO I WANT YOU GUYS TO KEEP IN MIND THAT YOU NOT ONLY DO YOU HAVE TO KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE, RIGHT? WHO ARE YOU TRYING TO SELL THIS TO, BUT WHO ARE YOU PITCHING TO? BECAUSE IF YOU START USING A BUNCH OF TECHNICAL TERMS THAT NOBODY UNDERSTANDS, YOU'RE GONNA LOSE YOUR JUDGES AND LOSE YOUR AUDIENCE. 
          BUT WHAT IS IT THAT YOU DO? OR WHAT IS IT THAT 
          [00:30:01]
YOU'VE CREATED THAT HAS TO BE, UM, ESSENTIAL AND IT HAS TO BE ANSWERED CLEARLY. 
          AND THEN HOW, HOW DO YOU DO WHAT YOU DO? AND HOW ARE YOU DOING IT DIFFERENTLY THAN THE NEXT PERSON, FOR INSTANCE, WITH A PRODUCT? THEY WANNA KNOW, LIKE, IF YOU ARE DEVELOPING THIS PRODUCT, WHO'S GONNA BUILD IT AND MANUFACTURE IT? IS IT SOMETHING THAT'S IN YOUR KITCHEN THAT YOU'RE MAKING, OR DO YOU HAVE A MANUFACTURER? DO YOU WANNA ANSWER THOSE KIND OF QUESTIONS? AND THEN WHY? I JUST MENTIONED THIS TO YOU, BUT THE WHY IS SO IMPORTANT. 
          WHY ARE YOU DOING WHAT YOU'RE DOING? WHY ARE YOU DEVELOPING THIS BUSINESS? WHAT'S THE PASSION BEHIND IT? WHAT MADE YOU COME UP WITH A SOLUTION FOR THE PROBLEM? SO YOU HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU EXPAND ON THESE THINGS AND EXPLAIN THEM WELL WHEN YOU ARE PITCHING. 
          CAN I ADD SOMETHING? CAN I ADD SOMETHING TO THAT? ABSOLUTELY. 
          OKAY. 
          SO WHAT I ALSO WANNA SAY IS, WHEN YOU'RE DOING A PITCH, YOU DO SOMETHING TO PULL THE PERSON IN TO BELIEVE IN YOU. 
          SO WHAT, WHAT SIMON SINEK, THIS GUY NAMED SIMON SINEK IS AMAZING. 
          AND HE'S GOT LIKE A SIX MINUTE VIDEO. 
          HE'S GOT A TWO MINUTE VIDEO, AND WE'RE GONNA GIVE YOU A 17 MINUTE VIDEO ON THIS. 
          IT'S CALLED START WITH THE Y. 
          IN OTHER WORDS, WHEN I, IF YOU, IF YOU GO BACK AND LOOK AT THE, THE, WE DON'T HAVE TO DO THAT NOW, BUT THE LITTLE THING I WROTE ABOUT LINDSAY, YOU KNOW, EVEN IN HER, UH, BIO, SHE STARTS WITH, I HAD THESE PROBLEMS WITH, UM, I KNOW SKIN BUMPS AND, AND ET CETERA. 
          WHEN I WAS YOUNG AND I HAD DIFFICULTY FINDING THE RIGHT KIND OF PRODUCTS FOR IT. 
          I LOOKED AROUND AND MY FRIENDS DIDN'T HAVE IT EITHER. 
          AND SO I DECIDED I WAS GONNA TRY AND CREATE NATURAL, NATURAL PRODUCTS. 
          I, UH, AM I HAVE THIS BACKGROUND, I KNOW HOW TO DO THIS, AND THAT'S WHAT I DECIDED TO DO. 
          SO SHE, SO SHE HAD A GREAT WHY THAT SHE STARTED WITH, EVEN IN HER BIO, I SAID, SEND ME YOUR BIO REAL QUICK, LINDSAY. 
          AND, AND SHE STARTED WITH THE WHY, AND EVERYBODY THEN UNDERSTANDS WHY SHE DID IT. 
          AND THEN PEOPLE START BUYING INTO YOUR WHY. 
          AND THEN YOU START TALKING ABOUT, UH, WHAT HOW YOU DO AND WHAT YOU DO. 
          BUT A LOT OF PEOPLE START WITH WHAT, AND THEY START WITH HOW, AND PEOPLE AREN'T, AREN'T WITH YOU YET. 
          THEY'RE, THEY'RE, IT'S LIKE YOU'RE SELLING YOURSELF. 
          IT SEEMS LIKE YOU'RE SELLING YOURSELF IF YOU START WITH YOUR WHY, THEY GET INVOLVED IN A HUMAN LEVEL WITH YOU, AND THEN THEY'RE INTERESTED IN THE OTHER STUFF. 
          SO THAT'S THE ORDER THAT YOU DO IT, THAT'S IMPORTANT. 
          AND WE'RE GONNA GIVE YOU A LINK SO YOU CAN LEARN MORE ABOUT THAT. 
          ABSOLUTELY. 
          AND LET ME JUST SAY, UH, TO THAT, SANDRA, I ACTUALLY, THIS IS FOR YOU GUYS. 
          I NEVER START MY PITCH. 
          HI, I'M LINDSEY BRANTLEY, FOUNDER OF DAH, DAH, DAH. 
          I NEVER START MY PITCHES THAT WAY. 
          IF I'M PITCHING FOR THE PRODUCTS, I NORMALLY START OFF BY SAYING, DID YOU KNOW THAT OVER 5 MILLION PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, ARE, UH, DIAGNOSED WITH PSEUDO FOLLICULITIS EVERY YEAR? SO MOST PEOPLE ARE GONNA TUNE IN 'CAUSE THEY'RE GONNA SAY, WHAT? FIRST OF ALL, WHAT IS THAT? THAT'S A LOT OF PEOPLE, YOU KNOW? SO YOU, YOU GET PEOPLE IN REALLY QUICKLY WHEN YOU START OFF WITH SOMETHING CATCHY. 
          SO THAT'S A PIECE OF ADVICE I WOULD GIVE AS WELL. 
          ABSOLUTELY. 
          OKAY. 
          ALL RIGHTY. 
          SO A COUPLE THINGS THAT YOUR PITCH NEEDS TO BE, IT NEEDS TO BE EFFICIENT. 
          UM, YOU NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU ARE GOING THROUGH, YOU ONLY HAVE SO MUCH TIME, AND LET ME SAY, EVERYONE THINKS, OH, I HAVE FIVE MINUTES. 
          THAT'S PLENTY OF TIME WHEN YOU GET ON A ROLL, , THAT TIME GOES BY REALLY QUICKLY. 
          SO YOU WANNA BE EFFICIENT, MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE ANSWERING THOSE MOST IMPORTANT QUESTIONS. 
          IT NEEDS TO BE EFFECTIVE AND COMPELLING. 
          IT NEEDS TO TELL YOUR STORY, AND IT NEEDS TO CAPTURE YOUR AUDIENCE BECAUSE IF NOT, THEY'RE GONNA TUNE OUT. 
          OKAY? UM, IT NEEDS TO BE SIMPLE, LIKE I WAS SAYING, NOT TOO MANY TECHNICAL TERMS WHERE PEOPLE DON'T UNDERSTAND WHAT IT IS YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT. 
          UM, MEMORABLE. 
          I ALWAYS JUST SAY, USE A LITTLE BIT OF HUMOR OR USE, YOU KNOW, SOME OF YOUR PERSONALITY INTO THE PITCH. 
          IT SHOULDN'T BE THAT YOU'RE JUST STANDING THERE TALKING AND THEN IT DOES NEED TO BE CONVINCING. 
          WHY SHOULD I INVEST IN YOU, RIGHT? AT THE END OF THE DAY, THAT'S THE QUESTION THAT A JUDGE WANTS ANSWERED WHILE YOU'RE ON STAGE. 
          SO THESE ARE EXTREMELY IMPORTANT THINGS WHEN YOU ARE DELIVERING THE MESSAGE OF WHAT YOU ARE TRYING TO BUILD. 
          SO YOU WANNA MAKE SURE THAT IT'S CONVINCING AND MEMORABLE. 
          YOU KNOW, LIKE I SAID, MAYBE YOU END WITH A FUNNY TAGLINE OR YOU START WITH LIKE, HERE'S THE PURPOSE. 
          YOU KNOW? SO YOU WANT TO EITHER START OR END WITH SOMETHING REALLY POWERFUL THAT IS MEMORABLE TO YOUR JUDGES. 
          OKAY? SO THE ONE MINUTE PITCH PRESENTATION. 
          SO KEEP IN MIND THAT WE'RE GONNA DO A SMALL ACTIVITY AND YOU GUYS ARE ACTUALLY GONNA HAVE A ONE MINUTE, UH, PRACTICE PITCH. 
          SO A COUPLE THINGS THAT YOU WANT, LIKE I SAID, YOU WANT A HEADLINE. 
          THAT'S WHY I SAY I START OFF WITH SOMETHING CATCHY LIKE A STATISTIC, RIGHT? SO YOU WANT A HEADLINE, YOU WANT A WHO YOU ARE, YOU KNOW, AND, AND THE RELEVANT BACKGROUND. 
          YOU NEED TO EXPLAIN 
          [00:35:01]
TO THEM WHY YOU ARE QUALIFIED TO BRING THIS SOLUTION FORWARD, RIGHT? YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE AN EXPERT IN WHATEVER, BUT YOU HAVE TO HAVE A JUSTIFICATION TO SAY, TRUST ME WITH THIS NEW AND INNOVATIVE PROJECT BECAUSE, OKAY, UM, AND THEN MAKING THE CONNECTION, THEY, YOUR JUDGES NEED TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IT IS THAT YOU'RE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH. 
          ARE YOU TRYING TO GET THIS PRODUCT INTO WALMART OR YOU TRYING TO, YOU KNOW, HAVE THE NEXT STARBUCKS AND HAVE COFFEE SHOPS ON EVERY BLOCK? WHAT IS IT THAT YOU ARE TRYING TO DO WITH THE SOLUTION? AND THEN YOU HAVE TO ASK, YOU HAVE TO ASK FOR WHAT IT IS THAT YOU WANT KNOW AND UNDERSTAND THAT EVERY PITCH IS SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT. 
          SOMETIMES YOU'RE NOT ASKING FOR MONEY, SOMETIMES YOU'RE ASKING FOR CONNECTIONS OR WHATEVER, BUT WHAT IS IT THAT YOU'RE ASKING FOR? AND THEN LAST, YOU WANNA KIND OF CLOSE OUT WITH SOMETHING MEMORABLE OR CATCHY. 
          SO THAT'S HOW, LIKE THE ONE MINUTE PITCH WOULD BE. 
          UM, SANDRA, ARE WE GONNA WATCH THE ONE MINUTE, UM, SHAKE AND BAKE? AS A MATTER OF FACT, WE WERE GONNA DO THAT ON THE NEXT SLIDE. 
          UM, SO BECAUSE WE WERE TALK FIRST TALKING ABOUT THE HEADLINES, AND THE NEXT SLIDE IS A LITTLE BIT, JUST TALK ABOUT HEADLINES, LIKE REAL HEADLINES. 
          WELL, WE'LL GO BACK TO THE OTHER ONE FIRST. 
          UM, TO, UH, KENNETH, PLEASE. 
          SO, SO REMEMBER WE'RE TALKING ABOUT A HEADLINE. 
          A HEADLINE MAKES YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO THE REST OF IT. 
          SO THESE ARE REALLY ACTUAL HEADLINES. 
          LIKE APPLE SECRETLY USES THESE THREE INTERVIEW TESTS EASILY SEPARATE CANDIDATES. 
          IT MAKES YOU WANT TO KNOW WHAT'S ABOUT TO COME AFTER THAT. 
          SO THINK OF THE FIRST, UH, LINE OR TWO THAT YOU SAY IN THE, IN YOUR ONE MINUTE PITCH AS YOUR HEADLINE, UH, THAT YOU'RE ALREADY TALKING ABOUT SOMETHING THAT THEY'RE GONNA WANT LATER. 
          I WANT WHAT'S HAPPENING NEXT. 
          SAME WITH THE, THE, THE WHAT, ONE SENTENCE. 
          MARK CUBAN JUST PROVIDED THE PERFECT DEFINITION OF CAPITALISM. 
          WHAT, HOW CAN YOU DO THAT? THAT'S, LET ME KEEP GOING. 
          THAT'S RIGHT. 
          SO YET ANOTHER STUDY CONFIRMS YOU'RE WILDLY UNDER, UH, UNDERESTIMATING HOW MUCH PEOPLE WANT TO HELP YOU. 
          SO WHAT, SO THESE ARE COMPELLING. 
          I GET SOME OF THESE, YOU KNOW, LIKE FROM INK OR FROM, UM, AND I DO CLICK ON A LOT OF THOSE ARTICLES BECAUSE IT SEEMS LIKE YOU'RE GONNA BE, BE ABLE TO BE HELPED AND QUICKLY AND SUCCINCTLY. 
          AND SO THE NEXT ONE IS A LITTLE BIT MORE, UM, WE'RE, WE'RE GETTING READY FOR THE ONE MINUTE, BUT LET'S, LET'S LOOK AT THESE FIRST. 
          OKAY? STEVE JOBS, JOBS, WHEN HE FIRST DEVELOPED THE IPOD, THE I THE IPOD ALLOWS YOU TO CARRY 1000 SONGS IN YOUR POCKET. 
          SEE, IT'S, THAT'S ALMOST LIKE A HEADLINE, BUT IT'S A, IT'S A VERBAL HEADLINE. 
          GOOGLE ORGANIZES THE WORLD'S INFORMATION AND MAKES IT UNIVERSALLY ACCEPTABLE. 
          HCC CREATES A PATHWAY FOR LIFELONG LEARNING FOR ENTREPRENEURS FROM LAUNCH TO EXIT STRATEGY. 
          WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON THAT FOR A WHILE. 
          AND NOW ALL THOSE DIFFERENT ENTITIES THAT WE'VE GOT REALLY DO HAVE PEOPLE COMING BACK FOR MORE. 
          AND, UH, IT'S JUST A GREAT WAY TO GET STARTED ON THIS IS WHERE WE'RE HEADED. 
          I'M ABOUT TO TELL YOU ABOUT THIS. 
          SO HOW DO YOU TURN ALL OF THAT INTO A ONE MINUTE PITCH? AND YOU KNOW WHAT, IF YOU EVER GET TO THE RICE BUSINESS PLAN COMPETITION, THEY ACTUALLY OPEN UP THE WHOLE COMPETITION WITH THE ONE MINUTE PITCH. 
          AND IT IS EXCITING AND AMAZING. 
          AND THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF A ONE MINUTE PITCH RIGHT NOW, OF THE $46 BILLION AMERICANS SPEND ON FISHING EQUIPMENT EACH YEAR, 30 BILLION OF THAT IS SPENT ON FISHING LURES ALONE. 
          WOULDN'T IT BE NICE IF FISHERMEN DIDN'T HAVE TO BUY A LURE FOR EVERY TYPE OF FISH THEY WANNA CATCH? OUR GOAL IS TO REVOLUTIONIZE THE ECONOMICS OF FISHING IN FAVOR OF THE CUSTOMER THROUGH THE INTRODUCTION OF THE SHAKEN BAIT, A UNIVERSAL LURE THAT REPLACES HUNDREDS OF MANUALLY TROLLED LURES WITH A COMBINATION OF ITS VIBRATING DC MOTOR AND UNIQUE COLORING. 
          IT IS PROVEN TO IMITATE A STRUGGLING FRESHWATER FISH LEADING TO HAPPY TIMES AND COST-EFFECTIVE FISHING. 
          INITIALLY, WE WILL MARKET AT TRADE SHOWS AND PLANS ARE IN THE WORKS TO INTRODUCE IT TO RETAIL CHAINS SUCH AS GANDER MOUNTAIN AND FIELD AND STREAM. 
          WE SEEK A $50,000 INVESTMENT FOR PRODUCTION AND MARKETING, AND INVESTORS CAN EXPECT A TWO X RETURN IN THREE YEARS. 
          WHY GO FISHING FOR LURES WHEN YOU COULD GO FISHING WITH A SHAKEN BAIT? SUPER EFFICIENT, RIGHT? I MEAN, YOU CLEARLY, LIKE SHE STARTS OFF WITH THAT 46 BILLION STATISTICS. 
          SO NOW I'M TUNED IN. 
          I'M LIKE, THAT'S A LOT OF PEOPLE. 
          YOU KNOW, SHE TELLS YOU WHAT THE PROBLEM IS, WHAT HER SOLUTION IS, SHE TELLS YOU EXACTLY WHAT THEY'RE ASKING FOR. 
          KEEP IN MIND SHE WON $1,500, RIGHT? BUT SHE WAS ASKING FOR 50,000. 
          SHE SAID WHAT THE INVESTORS COULD EXPECT, UM, AND THEN, I MEAN, SHE JUST ENDED IT VERY EFFICIENTLY. 
          SO THAT, I MEAN, THAT'S ONE MINUTE. 
          IMAGINE YOU'VE GOT, YOU KNOW, FIVE OR 10 TO GO OVER ALL THE DETAILS, BUT YOU WANNA BE EXTREMELY EFFICIENT SO THAT YOU ARE, YOU KNOW, MINDFUL 
          [00:40:01]
OF ALL THE INFORMATION THAT YOU HAVE TO GET OUT IN THAT SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME. 
          WELL, WHAT I'D LIKE TO ADD ALSO IS WHAT WE TEND TO DO IN OUR TRAINING, ESPECIALLY IN LIFTOFF BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN DOING THIS, THIS FOR QUITE A WHILE, IS SAY, HEY, FIRST YOU START WITH A ONE MINUTE PITCH AND THEN THEN IT FEELS LUXURIOUS TO BE ABLE TO EXPAND IT TO THE FOUR MINUTES THAT YOU'RE GONNA GET IN LIFT OFF HOUSTON, RIGHT? FIRST YOU'VE GOTTA DO THE BEST FRAMEWORK POSSIBLE AND UNDERSTAND, AND YOUR ONE MINUTE PITCH YOU'RE GOING TO USE A LOT ANYWAY BECAUSE IT REALLY IS LIKE A CONVERSATION PIECE A LITTLE BIT. 
          IT'S MORE CONVERSATIONAL WHEN YOU'RE NETWORKING, BUT A ONE MINUTE PITCH IS, IS IMPORTANT AND IT'S VERY USABLE. 
          SOMETIMES YOU CAN EVEN, UH, DOVER DIFFERENT VERSIONS OF ONE MINUTE PITCHES AND POST 'EM ON YOUR WEBSITE, RIGHT? IN FACT, IN OUR COMPETITION YOU EVEN TURN IN A ONE MINUTE PITCH JUST AS AN INTRODUCTION OF YOURSELF. 
          UM, BUT THEN LATER WHEN YOU PITCH TO JUDGES, YOU GET EVEN LONGER THAN A LIFTOFF USE. 
          BUT LET'S FOCUS ON YOU'RE DOING A ONE MINUTE PITCH PRACTICE WITH THAT. 
          AND THEN WHEN IF YOU START GETTING READY FOR LIFTOFF HOUSTON TO PRESENT, YOU'RE GONNA THEN BE ABLE TO EXPAND THAT TO HAVE A SLIDE DECK THAT GOES WITH IT AND FOUR MINUTES, AND THAT'LL FEEL GOOD TOO. 
          AND THEN YOU'LL HAVE SIX MORE MINUTES FOR TO BE ABLE TO ANSWER QUESTIONS THAT YOU MIGHT ACTUALLY LEAD THEM TO WANT TO ASK BECAUSE YOU WANT THEM TO ASK THOSE QUESTIONS. 
          SO LET'S KEEP GOING. 
          THIS IS HOW TO START BRAINSTORMING ABOUT THIS. 
          DO YOU WANNA COVER THIS ONE, LINDSAY? YES, SURE. 
          SO YOU GUYS, THIS IS ACTUALLY A VERY USEFUL TOOL THAT I'VE USED MYSELF. 
          SO I KIND OF USE STICKY NOTES ALMOST LIKE THAT WALL WHERE IT'S JUST LIKE, WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT YOU WANT THE JUDGES TO UNDERSTAND ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE DOING, RIGHT? SO YOU'RE JUST GONNA KIND OF PUT A COUPLE STICKY NOTES OR PUT IT DOWN ON A PAPER. 
          LIKE I NEED THEM TO KNOW THAT THIS IS GONNA REVOLUTIONIZE THE BEAUTY INDUSTRY. 
          I NEED THEM TO KNOW THAT IT'S GOING TO, YOU KNOW, CURE CANCER, WHATEVER IT IS. 
          YOU KNOW, YOU'RE GONNA WRITE DOWN WHAT SOME OF THOSE IDEAS ARE AND IT'S GONNA BE A LOT MORE THAN YOU'LL BE ABLE TO GO THROUGH, BUT YOU, IT'S BETTER TO HAVE MORE IDEAS AND TO THEN JUST KINDA FLOW, MAKE EVERYTHING FLOW LATER THAN FOR YOU TO ONLY HAVE LIKE THREE THINGS AND, AND HAVE TO EXPAND ON ALL OF IT. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, DO A STICKY NOTE FOR DIFFERENT BENEFITS, DO A STICKY NOTE FOR, YOU KNOW, YOUR FINANCIAL ASK AND WHAT YOU'RE GONNA DO WITH IT. 
          SO YOU JUST WANNA KIND OF BRAINSTORM AND GET ALL OF THOSE THINGS TOGETHER, AND THOSE LITTLE STICKY NOTES ARE ULTIMATELY WHAT'S GONNA HELP YOU MAKE THAT PITCH. 
          SO THAT'S DAVID'S SLIDE. 
          HE LOVES THAT ONE BECAUSE HE HAD HIS GRANDDAUGHTER HAD TO DO AN EXERCISE LIKE THIS AND SHE MADE IT MORE FUN WITH HER MOM. 
          YEAH. 
          AND THEN NOW THERE'S A LOT OF STICKY NOTES ON THAT WALL. 
          I DON'T KNOW IF I HAD QUITE THAT MANY, BUT, YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST A WAY TO HELP YOU KIND OF PUT EVERYTHING DOWN AND THEN FIGURE OUT HOW TO CONNECT IT AND HELP IT FLOW BETTER SO THAT YOU CAN PUT YOUR, YOUR PRESENTATION TOGETHER, RIGHT? AND SOMETIMES IT'S ALMOST LIKE YOU'RE DOING THAT WHEN YOU HAVE A MENTOR IN LIFT OFF HOUSTON, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE WRITING DOWN ALL THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS AND THEN THEY KEEP, THEY HELP YOU AND YOU HELP YOURSELF START NARROWING IT DOWN TO WHAT ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS. 
          AND WE'VE ALREADY KIND OF TOLD YOU WHAT SOME OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS ARE, YOU KNOW, IN TERMS OF ANSWERING THESE QUESTIONS, YOU KNOW, AND THEN YOU'LL ANSWER THEM IN THAT ORDER. 
          SO, UM, SO YOU KNOW, WHAT'S THE PROBLEM YOU'RE GONNA SOLVE? YOU KNOW, UH, WHAT'S YOUR SOLUTION? YOU KNOW, AND WHAT'S YOUR WHY? UH, YOU KNOW, THAT KIND OF THING. 
          SO WHEN YOU, YOU START WRITING DOWN POST-ITS THE ANSWERS TO THOSE, YOU GET 'EM ALL OVER THE PLACE AND THEN YOU CAN START CATEGORIZING THEM INTO WHERE, WHICH SECTIONS OF YOUR BUSINESS PLAN WILL THEY GO IN. 
          AND THEN YOU PICK UP THE MOST IMPORTANT ONES TO TELL THE LITTLE, UH, OVERARCHING ONE MINUTE, UH, PITCH. 
          AND THEN YOU'LL BE ABLE TO BRING SOME MORE IN FOR THE FOUR MINUTE PITCH. 
          SO IT'S, IT'S ALL LIKE A, AN OUTLINE IN THAT OUTLINE THAT THEY'VE GIVEN YOU FOR YOUR BUSINESS PLAN. 
          SEEMS BIG, BUT WHEN YOU START BREAKING IT DOWN INTO THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN EACH SECTION, OR A BUNCH OF IMPORTANT THINGS IN EACH SECTION, THEN YOU PULL OUT THE MOST IMPORTANT ONES BECAUSE YOU'VE GOT A BUNCH OF POST-IT NOTES TO PLAY WITH, OR YOU'RE MOVING IT AROUND ON A, ON A WORD DOCUMENT, RIGHT? ABSOLUTELY. 
          OKAY, AND WE CAN GO TO THE NEXT ONE. 
          WELL, LET ME JUST SAY ONE THING ABOUT THAT MIND MAP. 
          THAT'S JUST ANOTHER WAY TO DO IT. 
          YOU'LL NOTICE THAT EACH BRANCH WAS, YOU KNOW, POTENTIALLY A SECTION OF YOUR BUSINESS PLAN, AND THEN YOU KEEP GIVING YOURSELF IDEAS, BUT THEY'RE ALL IN THE SAME CATEGORY OR THE SAME SECTION OF YOUR PLAN. 
          SO, UM, OR HOW YOU'RE GONNA RUN YOUR COMPANY, COMPANY. 
          SO A MIND MAP IS ANOTHER WAY TO DO IT. 
          AND YOU CAN GO OUT ON THE INTERNET AND FIND A DIFFERENT FREE, UH, WAYS TO CONSTRUCT MIND MAPS, UH, AND, UH, SOMETIMES THEY'RE ELECTRONIC AND SOMETIMES YOU JUST DRAW ONE. 
          SO THAT'S ANOTHER WAY TO DO IT. 
          THAT'S A DIFFERENT WAY THAN DIFFERENT METHODS YOU POST-ITS. 
          BUT ALL OF THOSE LITTLE BRANCHES ARE POST-ITS. 
          CAN WE ADVANCE TO THE NEXT ONE? DO YOU WANNA DO 
          [00:45:01]
THE SEVEN KEYS TO A GREAT PITCH? CAN YOU SEE THAT NOW? I CANNOT, BUT IT'S OKAY. 
          I'LL MOVE IT OVER. 
          WAIT, I, I CAN READ THEM OUT LOUD TO YOU AND THEN YOU CAN SPEAK TO THEM. 
          OKAY, THESE ARE SURE. 
          OH, THESE ARE MEGAN'S, UH, SEVEN KEYS TO A GREAT PITCH. 
          CONFIDENT BODY, LANGUAGE AND VOICE. 
          OKAY, SO ACTUALLY I ALWAYS LOVE READING THESE AND PRESENTING THESE BECAUSE IF THERE'S ONE THING THAT I CAN SAY HAS PROBABLY SET ME APART, IT HAS REALLY AND TRULY BEEN MY CONFIDENCE AND MY PASSION WHEN I AM PITCHING YOU GUYS, YOU WANNA MAKE SURE THAT YOU ARE, YOU KNOW, HAPPY, YOU'RE SMILING, YOU ARE SPEAKING LOUDLY SO PEOPLE CAN, OR LOUD ENOUGH, RIGHT? YOU DON'T HAVE TO SCREAM, BUT SPEAKING LOUD ENOUGH FOR PEOPLE TO ACTUALLY HEAR YOU. 
          UM, YOUR POSTURE MATTERS WHEN YOU'RE JUST LIKE SLUMPED OVER AND NOT, YOU KNOW, NOT LOOKING EXCITED. 
          PEOPLE CAN TELL. 
          UM, AND THEN EYE CONTACT DOES MATTER. 
          UM, I KNOW THAT WE'RE ALL LIKE TRYING TO SEARCH OUR BRAINS AND REMEMBER THE THINGS THAT WE WANTED TO SAY, BUT EVERY NOW AND THEN GLANCE AT YOUR JUDGES SO THAT THEY SEE THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW THAT THEY'RE PRESENT. 
          SO THAT IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT. 
          UM, THE NEXT THING IS ALWAYS SHOW, LIKE I SAID, WHAT YOUR MARKET IS AND WHY YOU ARE THE BEST SOLUTION FOR IT. 
          YOU KNOW, KNOWING AND UNDERSTANDING THAT THERE MAY BE SOMEBODY OUT THERE THAT HAS SOMETHING SIMILAR, BUT YOU ARE THE BEST PERSON TO BRING THIS THING FORWARD. 
          UM, AND, AND WHAT YOU'RE DOING IS GONNA BE THE BEST SOLUTION. 
          UM, THEN BUILDING YOUR CREDIBILITY AS A FOUNDER, LIKE I SAID, YOU, YOU WANNA MAKE SURE THAT THEY UNDERSTAND WHY YOU ARE THE PERSON TO BRING THIS FORWARD. 
          IS IT YOUR EDUCATION? IS IT, YOU KNOW, YOUR INNOVATION? IS IT, YOU KNOW, FROM A PAST LIFE EXPERIENCE? WHATEVER REASON IT IS, YOU WANNA BUILD YOUR CREDIBILITY AS A FOUNDER SO THAT PEOPLE ARE WANTING TO INVEST IN YOU. 
          UM, THE FOURTH ONE THAT SHE RECOMMENDED, BEING REALISTIC WITH YOUR PROJECTIONS IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT AS WELL. 
          UM, YOU WANNA COME UP WITH PROJECTIONS THAT ARE REALISTIC. 
          YOU DON'T WANNA BE OUTLANDISH AND TELL PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GONNA SELL 10 MILLION, YOU KNOW, SNOW CONES THE FIRST YEAR. 
          THAT'S A LOT, RIGHT? LIKE, SO WHERE DID YOU GET THIS NUMBER FROM? WHERE DID YOU GET THIS ASSUMPTION FROM? IT NEEDS TO BE SOMETHING THAT'S REALISTIC. 
          UM, AND THEN ANOTHER PART THAT, THIS IS ACTUALLY SOMETHING THAT BOTH MEGAN AND I BOTH DO AS PART OF OUR LIKE PITCH PROCESS IS JUST KIND OF VIDEOTAPING YOURSELF EVERY NOW AND THEN. 
          IT HELPS TO VIDEOTAPE YOURSELF WHILE YOU'RE SAYING THESE THINGS SO THAT YOU CAN SEE LIKE, WHAT FACES AM I MAKING? YOU KNOW, AM I DOING SOMETHING WEIRD? AM I LIKE LOOKING UP TO THE SKY BECAUSE I'M TRYING TO REMEMBER THINGS? DO I LOOK CRAZY? RIGHT? SO I NOW SHE SAYS MANY TIMES I PERSONALLY, I ONLY MAYBE PRACTICE MY PITCHES ONE OR TWO TIMES 'CAUSE I DON'T WANT THEM TO START SOUNDING LIKE I REHEARSED IT RIGHT? BUT YOU DEFINITELY WANNA MAKE SURE THAT YOU PRACTICE A COUPLE TIMES AND VIDEOTAPE YOURSELF OR HAVE, YOU KNOW, FRIEND, FAMILY AUDIENCE LOOK AT YOU TO KIND OF CRITIQUE YOU. 
          OKAY? UM, SIMPLE AND CONCISE SLIDES. 
          I, AND WE MIGHT TALK ABOUT THIS LATER, BUT I WILL SAY THAT I TYPICALLY DO NOT HAVE MORE THAN FIVE BULLET POINTS ON A SLIDE. 
          AND I DON'T HAVE WAY TOO MANY PICTURES. 
          I'M PRETTY SURE THAT THE LIFT OFF GROUP WILL TELL YOU TOO MANY VIDEOS IS NOT A GOOD THING. 
          THAT'S WHEN YOU START OPENING YOURSELF UP TO ALL KINDS OF TECHNICAL ISSUES WHERE THE VIDEO'S NOT RUNNING. 
          UM, SO YOU JUST WANT IT SIMPLE AND CONCISE TO THE POINT. 
          AND ALSO YOU GUYS, WHAT YOU DON'T WANT IS SO MUCH CRAP ON A SLIDE THAT YOUR JUDGE IS TRYING TO READ YOUR SLIDE AND THEY'RE NOT LISTENING TO WHAT YOU SAY. 
          OKAY? SO IT NEEDS TO BE VERY SIMPLE AND IT DOESN'T HA NEED TO HAVE A LOT OF THINGS ON IT. 
          UM, AND THEN THE LAST ONE, DRESSING PROFESSIONALLY IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT AS WELL. 
          I TELL EVERY STUDENT THAT I HAVE, YOU DO NOT GET A SECOND CHANCE TO MAKE A FIRST IMPRESSION. 
          WHEN YOU WALK OUT THERE ON THAT STAGE, WHAT IS IT THAT YOU WANT TO CONVEY? WHEN I PITCHED FOR LIFTOFF, I WAS PITCHING MY SKINCARE PRODUCTS THAT I HAD FORMULATED AND I CAME OUT THERE WITH A LAB COAT ON. 
          OKAY? YES. 
          IN FACT, CAN I ADD SOMETHING TO THAT? MM-HMM . 
          OKAY. 
          SO YES, LINDSAY WAS GREAT. 
          SHE WORE A LAB COAT AND UH, SHE DID A GREAT JOB. 
          WE WERE GONNA PLAY HER VIDEO OF HOW SHE PITCHED IN LIFT OFF HOUSTON, BUT IT DIDN'T, THE, THE AUDIO DIDN'T COME OUT VERY GOOD. 
          BUT MEGAN INGS IS ALSO ANOTHER WINNER IN LIFT OFF HOUSTON. 
          AND WE HAVE A VIDEO TO PLAY IF YOU WANNA SEE A FOUR MINUTE PITCH LIVE BY THE LADY WHO WON, ANOTHER LADY WHO WON LIFT OFF 
          [00:50:01]
HOUSTON AND WROTE THESE SLIDES FOR YOU. 
          WE'RE, WE'RE GONNA DO IT. 
          KENNETH. 
          I DID WANNA ADD REAL QUICK, I'M REALLY GLAD THAT LINDSAY BROUGHT UP ABOUT THE SLIDESHOW BECAUSE WE HAVE HAD A FEW PEOPLE IN THE PREVIOUS YEARS WHO DO HAVE A LOT OF VIDEOS, A LOT OF TRANSITIONS, A LOT OF PICTURES, AND THE DAY BEFORE PITCH DAY, WE ALLOW YOU TO GO THROUGH YOUR SLIDES AND TO TEST IT OUT. 
          AND WE GAVE THIS INDIVIDUAL A WARNING THAT ALL OF THE VIDEOS AND THE TRANSITIONS WERE MAKING THEIR SLIDES LAG A LITTLE BIT. 
          UM, AND, AND THEY WANTED TO KEEP IT AS IS. 
          AND THEN THE DAY BEFORE WHEN THEY TESTED OUT THEIR SLIDES, THEY SAID, I NEED TO CHANGE THESE. 
          SO VERY LAST MINUTE THEY HAD TO CHANGE THEIR SLIDES. 
          UM, SO THAT'S JUST SOMETHING TO KEEP IN MIND. 
          UM, IF YOU DO GET TO THAT POINT AND YOU DO HAVE TO MAKE SLIDES. 
          SO THANKS FOR BRINGING THAT UP, LINDSAY. 
          'CAUSE WE HAVE HAD THAT COME UP IN THE PAST. 
          ABSOLUTELY. 
          AND LET ME JUST SAY THIS, YOU DON'T WANT TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, FIVE VIDEOS THAT YOU WERE DEPENDING ON, LIKE SHOWING ALL THESE THINGS AND THEN LIKE YOU'RE CLICKING AND IT DOESN'T WORK. 
          SO YOU WANNA MAKE SURE THAT AT THE END OF THE DAY YOU MAKE IT AS SIMPLE AS POSSIBLE SO THAT YOU DON'T LEAVE YOURSELF OPEN FOR ALL KINDS OF, YOU KNOW, ERRORS THERE. 
          YES. 
          I MEAN, ESPECIALLY IN LIFTOFF. 
          YOU HAVE FOUR MINUTES. 
          SO YOU ARE THE VIDEO, THE SMALL BUSINESS. 
          HIS NAME IS SALE LIFESTYLE. 
          THANK YOU VERY MUCH. 
          NICE ROUND OF APPLAUSE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          OKAY, I'M GONNA FIRST START WITH A FEW QUESTIONS. 
          WHO HERE LIKES TO WORK OUT? KEEP YOUR HANDS RAISED. 
          FANTASTIC. 
          WHO HERE SWEATS WHETHER YOU WORK OUT OR NOT? OKAY, KEEP 'EM UP. 
          AND THEN WHO HERE DOES NOT LIKE THAT FUNKY SMELL OF ASSOCIATED WHEN YOU SWEAT AND YOU WORK OUT? I'M ASSUMING EVERY HAND'S GOING TO GO UP. 
          FANTASTIC. 
          I'M GOING PUT YOUR HANDS DOWN. 
          THE GREAT NEWS IS MOST HANDS WENT UP. 
          YOU'RE GONNA LOVE MY PRESENTATION. 
          MAKE SURE THAT, OH GOOD, IT WORKED. 
          MY NAME IS MEGAN INGS. 
          I'M THE FOUNDER, CEO OF EXCEL LIFESTYLE. 
          WITH MY PASSION FOR FITNESS AND FASHION AND MY BACKGROUND IN CHEMISTRY, I'VE CUSTOM DESIGNED FABRIC AND FITNESS APPAREL THAT DOES NOT SMELL. 
          SO THE WORKOUT CLOTHES TODAY, WE ALL KNOW THERE ARE MAJOR, MAJOR PROBLEMS GOING ON. 
          ONE OF THEM IS THE SMELL THAT IS JUST A BYPRODUCT OF THE SWEAT. 
          WHAT HAPPENS IS THE BACTERIA THAT WE ALL HAVE LOVE SYNTHETIC FIBERS AND SYNTHETIC SYNTHETIC FIBERS ARE THE MOST POPULAR HOLD THAT DIDN'T JUST COME. 
          YEAH. 
          DOES THAT STILL WORK? SOMETHING JUST FELL OUTTA MY CLICKER. 
          EXCUSE ME. 
          TECHNICAL ISSUES, BUT YOU GOTTA KEEP GOING. 
          WELL, IT'S, IT JUST, OKAY, IT WAS JUST A COVER. 
          SO, UH, HOLD FOR THE CLOCK WAS STOPPED. 
          JUST SAYING. 
          OKAY, COOL. 
          I'M BACK ON TRACK. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          OKAY, HERE WE ARE. 
          SO, UH, BASICALLY THE BACTERIA THAT CAUSES THE SMELL ACTUALLY LIVES IN THE FIBER. 
          SO IT LIVES IN THE FIBER. 
          EVEN SOME OF THE CLOTHES YOU'RE WEARING TODAY IN MY JACKET, YOU CAN'T WASH IT OUT IN A REGULAR WASH CYCLE. 
          SO SOME COMPANIES OUT THERE HAVE WHAT THEY CALL ANTIMICROBIAL TREATMENTS. 
          WELL, THE PROBLEM WITH THAT IS THOSE WASH OUT IN FIVE TO 20 WASHES AND THEN YOU'RE JUST STUCK WITH THAT SAME FABRIC THAT COLLECTS THAT BACTERIA THAT CAUSES THE SMELL AND NOW YOU CAN'T WASH IT OUT. 
          AND THE, THE FOURTH PILLAR OF CHALLENGES, WHICH IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO ME, WE'VE ALL HEARD OF SWEATSHOPS OVERSEAS AND ANY RESEARCH YOU DO, A LOT OF OUR APPAREL, WHETHER IT BE FITNESS OR REGULAR ON MAIDEN SWEATSHOPS WITH THIS CHILD LABOR, UH, PEOPLE ARE NOT, YOU KNOW, TREATED FAIRLY PAID ACCORDINGLY. 
          AND SO THAT'S GONNA BE ONE OF MY SOLUTIONS FOR EXCEL LIFESTYLE SOLUTIONS. 
          I'M USING TRADE SECRET PROTECTIVE SCIENCE EMBEDDED IN THE FABRIC. 
          WHAT THIS MEANS IS IT DOES NOT WASH OUT. 
          THERE'S NO TREATMENT THAT WASHES OUT WHEN IT'S IN THE FABRIC. 
          IT'S IN THE FABRIC. 
          AND I'VE DEVELOPED IT MYSELF, UM, SINCE IT'S EMBEDDED IN THE FABRIC, WHEN YOU ACTUALLY NOW WASH YOUR CLOTHES, THEY'RE CLEAN. 
          THERE'S NO BACTERIA TO WASH OUT OR SMELL TO WASH OUT BECAUSE THEY NEVER EVEN GOT IN THE FABRIC TO BEGIN WITH. 
          AND THEN FOURTH, BEING SOCIALLY CONSCIOUS, I'M A COMPANY OF ONE RIGHT NOW, SO TO ACTUALLY MONITOR, I VISITED EVERY FACTORY AND MILL THAT I'M WORKING WITH. 
          AND FROM FIBER TO FINISHED GARMENT, EVERYTHING IS SOURCED AND MADE HERE IN THE UNITED STATES. 
          XCEL LIFESTYLE IS THE FIRST SOCIALLY CONSCIOUS FITNESS APPAREL BRAND FOR PEOPLE WHO SWEAT AND DON'T LIKE TO SMELL MARKET SIZE. 
          OKAY? WE ALL KNOW PEOPLE ARE WEARING GYM CLOTHES EVERYWHERE. 
          THEY'RE WEARING GYM CLOTHES, PROBABLY IN SOME AREAS WHERE THEY SHOULDN'T BE, BUT THAT'S GOOD FOR ME. 
          AN EXCEL LIFESTYLE, $44 BILLION WORTH SPENT IN THE UNITED STATES ALONE IN 2016. 
          UH, 16% INCREASE BETWEEN 2015 AND 2016 JUST IN THE US ALONE. 
          AND AN ESTIMATED $200 BILLION BEING SPENT ON WORKOUT CLOTHES IN 2020. 
          SO I'D LIKE TO THINK THAT I'M IN A GREAT MARKET MARKETING STRATEGY. 
          I HAVE THIS SAYING, IF YOU DON'T HAVE CUSTOMERS, YOU DON'T HAVE A COMPANY. 
          SO I ALREADY HAVE SOME LOCAL PARTNERSHIPS THAT I'M WORKING ON WITH PLACES SUCH AS DEFINE AND RIDE IN CITIZENS, PILATES AND OTHERS. 
          I HAVE MY GOAL SET ON QUITE OTHER MORE, BUT, UH, THAT'LL BE IN THE FUTURE. 
          ALSO AMBASSADORS. 
          I'M GONNA HAVE EXCEL LIFESTYLE AMBASSADORS BECAUSE MY TARGET MARKET, THE MILLENNIALS, THEY WANT TO WEAR WHAT THESE, YOU KNOW, SOULCYCLE RIDES. 
          SO CITIZENS PILATES INSTRUCTORS 
          [00:55:01]
ARE WEARING. 
          SO THOSE INSTRUCTORS, I'M GONNA BE PUTTING THEM IN EXCEL LIFESTYLE. 
          AND THEN POPUP SHOPS, OBVIOUSLY MY ACCENT, I'M FROM THE NORTHEAST, SO I HAVE CONNECTIONS ON NEW YORK CITY, UH, CHICAGO, LA IN TERMS OF FITNESS AND FASHION, I'LL BE HOSTING POPUP SHOPS WITH EXCEL LIFESTYLE AND AGAIN, SOME NICE WORKOUTS IN AS WELL. 
          SALES CHANNELS. 
          I'M GONNA START ON EXCEL LIFESTYLE.COM. 
          I'M ALSO GOING TO EXPAND INTO OTHER E-COMMERCE SITES SUCH AS JUJU, ACTIVE BASED OUTTA NEW YORK CITY AND CARBON 38, BIG SIDE OF LA. 
          AND THEN CROWDFUNDING. 
          CROWDFUNDING'S ALSO AWESOME FOR MARKETING FOR YOUR COMPANY, BUT ALSO JUST TO START GENERATING MONEY BEFORE YOU ACTUALLY LAUNCH. 
          AND THEN PARTNERSHIPS WITH BRICK AND MORTAR SUCH AS, UH, NEIMAN MARCUS AND BLOOMINGDALE'S SALES PLAN. 
          I CAN SPEND ABOUT AN HOUR ON THIS, BUT I GOT ABOUT 30 SECONDS. 
          SO HERE WE GO. 
          I'M STARTING OUT WITH SHIRTS, SHIRTS FOR MEN AND WOMEN, FASHIONABLE STYLES WHERE THE FABRIC DOES NOT SMELL. 
          HOWEVER, FULL SCALE, I'M GONNA HAVE A FULL FITNESS LINE. 
          APPAREL, I'M GONNA HAVE YOGA PANTS WITH AN ANTIMICROBIAL LINER. 
          I'M GONNA HAVE SPORTS BRAS THAT DON'T SMELL SWEAT, BANDS THAT DON'T SMELL SOCKS, THAT DON'T SMELL. 
          UM, AND I PLAN ON BEING ON, IN SPORTS TEAMS TOO. 
          COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS. 
          ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW IS THIS AXIS IS ANTIMICROBIAL. 
          THIS AXIS IS MADE IN THE USA FOCUS ON THAT LOGO ON THE TOP RIGHT HAND CORNER. 
          THAT'S MY COMPANY, XCEL LIFESTYLE. 
          I'M THE ONLY COMPANY THAT HAS TRULY SOURCED THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA WITH FABRIC THAT DOES NOT SMELL. 
          AND I DO NOT USE THE TREATMENT THAT WASHES OUT BUSINESS TIMELINE. 
          TWO WEEKS AGO, I ACTUALLY JUST FINISHED MY THIRD ROUND OF SAMPLE FABRIC, AND IT'S NOW GOING FOR TESTING. 
          TEXT TESTING IS SLATED TO BE DONE SECOND WEEK IN JANUARY, AND, UH, PLANNING ON LAUNCHING SPRING OF NEXT YEAR. 
          UH, MY NAME IS MEGAN EDDINGS, I'M FOUNDER, CEO OF EXCEL LIFESTYLE WORKOUT CLOTHES THAT DON'T SMELL. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          THE OPPORTUNITY. 
          GOOD JOB. 
          SO DID YOU GUYS NOTICE THAT I WAS ACTUALLY THE JUDGE  FOR PITCH COMPETITION? SO, YEAH, THAT IT WAS ACTUALLY A LOT OF FUN, BUT MEGAN WON FIRST PLACE AND AS YOU GUYS CAN SEE, EVERYTHING WAS EXTREMELY EFFICIENT. 
          SHE, FROM THE VERY BEGINNING, SHOWED YOU EXACTLY WHAT IT IS, WHAT HER DIFFERENTIATOR WAS, YOU KNOW, THE FACT THAT OTHER PEOPLE'S STUFF, YOU CAN BUY IT, BUT FIVE TO 10, YOU KNOW, FIVE TO 20 WASHES, IT WASHES OUT. 
          OURS DOES NOT. 
          SO IT WAS VERY, VERY EASY TO FOLLOW, VERY EASY TO UNDERSTAND. 
          YOU UNDERSTOOD WHAT THE PROBLEMS WERE, WHAT THE SOLUTIONS WERE, AND THEN WHAT SHE WAS TRYING TO DO WITH THE BUSINESS WHERE SHE WAS TRYING TO GO. 
          SO YOUR PRESENTATION NEEDS TO BE EFFICIENT LIKE THAT AS WELL. 
          AND SO, LIKE I SAID, THESE ARE HER, THESE WERE HER SEVEN KEYS TO A GREAT PITCH. 
          AND AS YOU GUYS, I'M SURE COULD SEE, SHE HIT MOST OF THOSE THINGS EVEN, EVEN WITH WORKOUT CLOTHES, RIGHT? SHE WAS WEARING ONE OF HER WORKOUT SHIRTS, BUT SHE WORE A REALLY NICE BLAZER OVER IT. 
          SO SHE DRESSED IT UP, MADE SURE THAT SHE LOOKED REALLY NICE AND PROFESSIONAL. 
          OKAY, SO I'LL DO THIS ONE. 
          THIS IS A NEW SLIDE THAT DAVID ADDED. 
          HE ALSO HAS EXAMPLES, BUT WE'LL JUST DO THE FIVE BECAUSE I THINK THEY'RE PRETTY SELF-EXPLANATORY AND YOU'VE JUST GOTTEN A GREAT EXAMPLE. 
          IT'S NOT A PITCH, IT'S A SHOW. 
          AND THE INVESTMENTS ARE IN YOU. 
          MEANING THEY BELIEVE NOW THAT SHE CAN DELIVER WHAT SHE SAID. 
          SO, UH, YOU ARE NEVER SELLING. 
          YOU DON'T WANNA SOUND LIKE YOU'RE SELLING, BUT YOU REALLY ARE BECAUSE OF THE WAY YOU TELL THE STORY. 
          SO YOU TAKE YOUR AUDIENCE ON AN EMOTIONAL RIDE LIKE SHE DID, AND YOU HELP SOLVE A REAL PROBLEM. 
          SO, SINCE WE WANNA GET YOU INTO YOUR LITTLE EXERCISES, WE'RE GONNA KEEP GOING ON THIS INSTEAD OF ME GIVING TWO MORE EXAMPLES, , PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE IN THE MIRROR. 
          YOU KNOW, I THINK YOU CAN PRACTICE IN THE MIRROR AND JUST SAY THE WORDS AND GET COMFORTABLE WITH SAYING THE WORDS AND HOW YOU LOOK. 
          AND THEN YOU START PRACTICING IN FRONT OF PEOPLE THAT WAY YOU'RE USED, YOU'RE NOT DISTRACTED BY YOUR OWN VOICE AND YOU CAN START REFINING IT. 
          YOU WANNA ADD SOMETHING TO THAT? NO, I MEAN, AS I MENTIONED TO YOU GUYS BEFORE, I, I REALLY DO BELIEVE IN VIDEOTAPING YOURSELF WHEN YOU'RE PRACTICING. 
          SO YOU CAN SEE YOUR FACIAL EXPRESSIONS AND ALL THAT, AND THEN GET AN AUDIENCE IN FRONT OF YOU AS WELL. 
          BUT I WILL SAY THIS, WHEN YOU ARE PICKING YOUR AUDIENCE, THAT AUDIENCE NEEDS TO BE PEOPLE WHO ARE GONNA BE HONEST WITH YOU. 
          YOU DON'T WANT PEOPLE THAT ARE JUST LIKE, OH, IT WAS GREAT. 
          YOU KNOW, YOU WANT PEOPLE WHO WILL GIVE YOU GENUINE FEEDBACK SO THAT YOU CAN GET BETTER AND BE BETTER PREPARED. 
          BUT YOU ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO PRACTICE. 
          I WOULD NOT LET YOUR PITCH ON STAGE BE THE FIRST TIME YOU EVER PITCHED IT, RIGHT? SO NOW IT'S YOUR TURN. 
          SO WHAT WE WANNA DO IS WE WANT YOU TO START THINKING ABOUT WHAT ARE THE, WHAT ARE THE THINGS YOU WOULD LIKE TO SAY IN A ONE MINUTE PITCH? SO WE'LL HAVE SOME, WE'RE GONNA GO INTO BREAKOUT SESSIONS WHERE THERE'S THREE PEOPLE PER BREAKOUT SESSION. 
          YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES OF QUIET TIME TO THINK, WHAT WOULD I SAY IN ONE MINUTE HERE? NOW REMEMBER, IF YOU HAVEN'T DONE THIS VERY MUCH, IT'S JUST, 
          [01:00:01]
IT'S, YOU'RE JUST GETTING YOUR, YOUR VOICE WORKING, YOUR IDEAS WORKING. 
          SO YOU'RE GONNA HELP EACH OTHER. 
          EACH PERSON'S GONNA GET THE CHANCE. 
          THEN AFTER THREE MINUTES TO PARTICIPANT ONE IN YOUR BREAKOUT ROOMS, DOES THEIR PITCH FOR A MINUTE, AND THEN THE OTHER TWO IN THE BREAKOUT ROOM, GIVE THEM A LITTLE BIT OF FEEDBACK. 
          THEN BOOM, AFTER THREE MINUTES, THE NEXT PERSON DOES THEIR PITCH AND GETS FEEDBACK FROM THE OTHER TWO. 
          SO YOU'RE ALL IN THE SAME BOAT, YOU'RE ALL GONNA BE NICE TO EACH OTHER, YOU'RE ALL GONNA GIVE EACH OTHER SOME, SOME WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT. 
          DOES THAT SOUND GOOD? YES. 
          I, WE DO HAVE ONE QUICK QUESTION THAT I WAS WONDERING IF YOU GUYS COULD GO OVER, UM, BEFORE WE GO INTO THE BREAKOUT ROOMS. UM, JUST SO THIS PERSON CAN ADJUST THEIR PITCH, UM, AS NEEDED. 
          SO IT WAS ASKED, WHAT IF YOU DON'T WANT TO PUBLICIZE YOUR WHY? HMM, I WAS THINKING ABOUT THAT. 
          I SAW THAT EARLIER. 
          I'LL TAKE A STAB AT THAT. 
          'CAUSE I REMEMBER, UM, I WAS DOING AN INTERVIEW FROM SOMEONE WHO WON THIRD PLACE IN OUR BUSINESS PLAN COMPETITION OR SECOND OR SOMETHING. 
          AND, UM, AND WE WERE TALKING ABOUT, UH, GOING, UH, YOU SOMETIMES YOU COULD SAY SOMETHING WHERE YOU'RE NOT TELLING THE WHOLE STORY, BUT YOU'RE TELLING PART OF IT. 
          LIKE, UH, WHEN MY PARENTS WERE AGING, UH, YOU KNOW, THEY GOT, UH, THEY, THEY WERE IN ANOTHER STATE, THEY GOT TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF. 
          UH, AND THERE WAS A LOT MORE TO THAT THAN SHE WANTED TO TALK ABOUT. 
          BUT SHE STILL WAS ABLE TO USE A LITTLE BIT OF IT TO, TO MAKE HER WHY, OF WHY SHE WANTED TO HELP OTHERS IN, IN, UH, HOME HEALTHCARE. 
          SO THAT KIND OF STUFF DIDN'T HAPPEN TO THEM. 
          SO YOU CAN, YOU WHY DOESN'T HAVE TO BE SO PERSONAL THAT YOU DON'T WANNA TELL IT. 
          IT CAN BE SOMETHING A LITTLE BIT MORE LIKE, I'VE HAD SOMETHING LIKE THIS HAPPEN IN MY LIFE WITHOUT GOING MORE DEEPLY INTO IT. 
          SO I DON'T KNOW IF THAT HELPS OR NOT. 
          I'M NOT QUITE SURE. 
          YEAH, I I WOULD ANSWER IT THE SAME WAY. 
          UM, SIMPLIFY IT IN SUCH A WAY THAT YOU DON'T GO INTO TOO MANY DETAILS WHERE YOU'RE UNCOMFORTABLE. 
          FOR INSTANCE, I HAVE HAD SOMEONE THAT WANTED TO PITCH A, A BREAST CANCER PRODUCT BECAUSE SHE WAS A BREAST CANCER SURVIVOR, BUT SHE DIDN'T WANT TO SAY THAT AT THE TIME, AND I UNDERSTOOD. 
          SO SHE JUST SAID, YOU KNOW, I'VE FACED HEALTH CHALLENGES OR I'VE SEEN, YOU KNOW, AMAZING THINGS WHERE PEOPLE OVERCAME THIS AND THAT. 
          AND SO HERE'S WHY I AM DOING A, B, C. 
          SO SHE DIDN'T HAVE TO SAY I HAD BREAST CANCER. 
          SHE JUST SAID, I'VE SEEN THINGS THAT INSPIRED ME TO DO A, B, AND C. 
          SO YOU CAN KIND OF SIMPLIFY THE WHY WITHOUT GOING INTO TOO MANY DETAILS OR USE ANOTHER WHY. 
          I MEAN, SHE PROBABLY HAS A LOT OF, I, I KNOW WHEN YOU GO THROUGH BREAST CANCER, YOU LEARN, YOU MEET OTHER BREAST CANCER PATIENTS AND A LOT, AND EVERYBODY KNOWS SOMEONE WHO'S HAD BREAST CANCER, UH, AS A FRIEND OR AS A, A RELATIVE. 
          SO YOU CAN CHANGE IT THE WHY A LITTLE BIT TO A DIFFERENT TRUTH, YOU KNOW? YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. 
          OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          SO KENNETH IS GOING TO, UM, OPEN UP THE ROOMS. SOME GROUPS MAY HAVE MORE THAN THREE. 
          WE'RE GONNA POP IN AND CHECK IN ON EVERYBODY, UM, AND MAKE SURE EVERYTHING'S KIND OF GOING WELL. 
          BUT PRETTY MUCH THE GIST IS WE WANT EACH OF YOU, UM, IN YOUR SMALL GROUPS TO DO JUST A ONE MINUTE PITCH, UM, AND PRACTICE IT A LITTLE BIT. 
          AND WE KNOW A LOT OF YOU PROBABLY HAVE NOT THOUGHT ABOUT THIS, UH, BUT IT'S A GOOD OPPORTUNITY TO KIND OF SPRING OF THE MOMENT. 
          HOW WOULD YOU PITCH YOUR BUSINESS RIGHT NOW? AND THEN THAT'S A GOOD FRAMEWORK FOR YOU TO GET STARTED, GET STARTED. 
          AND CAN I ALSO SAY THAT THIS IS ACTUALLY AN EXTREMELY IMPORTANT EXERCISE BECAUSE YOU JUST NEVER KNOW WHO YOU'RE GONNA RUN ACROSS. 
          WE TALK ABOUT ELEVATOR PITCHES ALL THE TIME, RIGHT? YOU MIGHT BE GOING UP AN ELEVATOR WITH SOMEONE AND FIND OUT THAT PERSON IS, I DON'T KNOW, A BILLIONAIRE WHO'S LOOKING FOR THE NEXT BIG THING. 
          YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO BE READY. 
          SO THERE'S NOT, LIKE, WE'RE NOT EXPECTING YOU GUYS TO JUMP IN HERE AND HAVE A PERFECT ONE MINUTE PITCH. 
          IT'S JUST PRACTICING. 
          THE MORE THAT YOU DO IT, THE EASIER IT GETS. 
          AND YOU'RE GONNA GET THE SLIDES. 
          AND IN FACT, WE HAVE ANOTHER SLIDE AT THE END THAT YOU'LL BE ABLE TO USE TO TAKE IT LATER AND, AND PRACTICE IT WITH FRIENDS AND ET CETERA. 
          SO THIS IS JUST THE VERY BEGINNING. 
          SO HAVE FUN WITH IT. 
          ALRIGHT, SO WE'RE GONNA GIVE, UH, KENNETH A MOMENT JUST TO OPEN UP THE ROOMS AND THEN, UM, WE'LL POP IN AND MAKE SURE EVERYTHING GOES WELL. 
          IF YOU DO STAY IN THIS MAIN MEETING, IT'S BECAUSE YOU MIGHT HAVE SOME SETTINGS ON THAT WILL, UM, PREVENT YOU FROM JOINING A BREAKOUT ROOM. 
          SO YOU CAN JUST TYPE IT IN THE CHAT OR UNMUTE YOUR MIC IF IT'LL LET YOU. 
          I KNOW WE HAD A COUPLE THAT THEIR SETTINGS WON'T ALLOW IT. 
          SO LINDSAY, EVERYBODY, YEAH, THERE THEY GO. 
          EVERYBODY SHOULD HAVE GOT A POPUP THAT TOLD 'EM THAT, EXCEPT THE ROOM CHANGE. 
          SO THEY SHOULD BE GOOD TO GO. 
          SO LINDSAY AND I STAY HERE, OR DO WE POP AROUND TOO? YOU CAN STAY HERE, YOU CAN POP AROUND IF YOU LIKE. 
          YOU MIGHT HAVE THE ABILITY, UM, TO GO IN THERE. 
          CAN YOU SEE IT? NO. 
          NO, I DON'T SEE IT EITHER. 
          AT THE TOP OF YOUR SCREEN YOU'LL SEE WHERE IT SAYS ROOMS. I DON'T SEE THAT. 
          YEAH, I DON'T HAVE IT. 
          HELLO? WELL, I, MY NAME IS CRYSTAL. 
          I'M UNABLE. 
          I DIDN'T GET THE POPUP AND I DON'T KNOW WHY MY SETTINGS WOULDN'T ALLOW IT 
          [01:05:01]
'CAUSE I'VE DONE IT BEFORE IN OTHER WORKSHOPS. 
          YEAH, SO THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE, UM, LET ME CHECK ON IT, BUT I KNOW THOSE OF YOU ARE IN HERE WHEN WE ARE TRYING TO ASSIGN THE ROOMS. UM, SOME OF THEM WERE JUST, UM, YOU WERE BLURRED OUT, SO IT WASN'T LETTING US, SO IT, IT MIGHT BE A GROUP THAT WE HAVE TO DO, UM, IN HERE, IN HERE. 
          I WAS JUST THINKING THAT. 
          YEAH. 
          YES. 
          LEAVE THAT UP. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          SO I'LL KIND OF FIGURES THAT OUT. 
          UM, WITH EVERYBODY ELSE. 
          I'M GONNA GO PUMP IN THE OTHER ROOM. 
          CAN THE OTHERS IN THEIR BREAKOUT ROOMS, SEE THIS, THE SLIDE THAT'S UP, I'M GOING TO GO POST IT IN THERE. 
          OKAY, I'M GONNA GO POP IN THOSE SO THAT THEY HAVE THE INSTRUCTIONS. 
          BUT EVERYBODY WHO'S IN THIS MEETING RIGHT NOW, UM, YOU MIGHT JUST HAVE TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS ONE. 
          IT'S LIKELY BECAUSE, UM, YOUR, YOUR, SOMETHING IN YOUR SETTINGS WOULDN'T ALLOW IT. 
          UM, SO YOU CAN JUST ALL START IN HERE. 
          UM, DRAFT UP YOUR ONE MINUTE PITCH, AND THEN WHOEVER WANTS TO UNMUTE THEIR MIC CAN GO AHEAD AND UNMUTE THEIR MIC AND INTRODUCE YOURSELF AND GET STARTED WITH YOUR PITCH. 
          OKAY. 
          HELLO? CAN, CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES. 
          OKAY. 
          MY NAME. 
          I KNOW WE DON'T SUPPOSED TO SAY OUR NAME, . 
          I'M TRYING TO DO IT AS MUCH AS I CAN, BUT, UM, SO THIS IS, I'M LIRA BROWN AND I AM, UM, AN ORGANIC SOAP MAKER. 
          OH, I KNOW I WASN'T SUPPOSED TO SAY THAT. 
          I'M SORRY. 
          WHY? WHY WOULDN'T YOU SAY THAT? YOU'LL, YOU'LL, YOU JUST SAY IT IN A DIFFERENT ORDER, SO JUST KEEP GOING AND THEN YOU, THEN YOU'LL GET IT IN THE RIGHT ORDER LATER. 
          OKAY. 
          SO, UM, SOME 6 MILLION PEOPLE, UM, HAVE ECZEMA OR ACNE, AND THESE SKIN ISSUES COME FROM. 
          UM, SOME PEOPLE SAY THAT IT COMES FROM, UM, YOU KNOW, PASSED DOWN FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION, BUT I FOUND THAT, UM, USING ORGANIC SOAP AND ORGANIC MOISTURIZERS, UM, CAN HELP THE SKIN, UM, WITH ACNE AND ECZEMA ON A REGULAR BASIS. 
          UM, WHEN I STARTED MAKING SOAP, I MADE IT BECAUSE I HAVE, UH, I HAD A THYROID ISSUE. 
          I HAD A LARGE GOITER AND THEY DID RADIOACTIVE IODINE THERAPY ON MY NECK, AND THEY DID IT FOR TOO LONG AND IT MADE MY SKIN CHEMICALLY SENSITIVE. 
          SO WHEN I WAS RELEASED FROM THE HOSPITAL, I BATHED WITH, UH, REGULAR SOAP AND IT BURNT MY SKIN. 
          UM, MY DOCTOR RECOMMENDED THAT I JUST BATHE WITH BETADINE. 
          THE BETADINE. 
          I'M SORRY YOU'VE GONE MUCH LONGER THAN A MINUTE, BUT, UM, YOU'VE COVERED SOME GOOD GROUND, BUT I I, LINDSEY, DO YOU WANNA GIVE HER A LITTLE BIT FEEDBACK? YES. 
          OKAY. 
          SO A COUPLE THINGS. 
          SO I WILL TELL YOU THAT YOUR OPENING LINE IS ACTUALLY THE STATISTICS. 
          DID YOU KNOW THAT 6 MILLION PEOPLE SUFFER FROM, YOU KNOW, THAT SHOULD BE YOUR OPENING LINE, BUT WHAT YOU, WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH YOU, YOU ARE VERY PASSIONATE ABOUT IT, BUT YOU'RE GETTING A LITTLE BIT FURTHER INTO THE STORY OF HOW YOU CREATED IT. 
          AND YOU WANNA BE A LITTLE BIT MORE EFFICIENT. 
          LIKE, WE KNOW WHY YOU CREATED IT, BUT WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO DO WITH IT? AND THEN HOW MUCH MONEY ARE YOU ASKING FOR? SO REMEMBER IN THAT ONE MINUTE YOU WANT TO PUT YOUR ASK IN THERE, YOU WANNA PUT, UM, A COUPLE OTHER THINGS. 
          SO I THINK YOU, YOU'RE OFF TO A GREAT START, BUT JUST REMEMBER EFFICIENT, UM, YOU DON'T WANNA GO TOO FAR INTO THE BACK STORY OF 
          [01:10:01]
HOW YOU STARTED AND LOSE PEOPLE. 
          OKAY? OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THAT WAS, THAT WAS MY FIRST TIME ACTUALLY. 
          I WAS VERY . 
          OH, THAT'S GREAT. 
          OKAY. 
          . 
          OKAY, WHO'S NEXT? WHO ELSE IS IN HERE? NO VOLUNTEERS. 
          CRYSTAL. 
          YEAH, WE GOT CRYSTAL. 
          GO FOR IT. 
          OKAY. 
          HELLO EVERYONE. 
          I WANNA TAKE YOU BACK IN TIME TO THE END OF THE PANDEMIC. 
          ALL OF US LEFT, UH, ISOLATION AND WE ENTERED THE REAL WORLD AGAIN, RIGHT? BUT MANY TIMES, MANY OF US STILL STAYED ISOLATED. 
          WE'RE WORKING REMOTE. 
          SOME OF US MOVED TO NEW CITIES AND HOUSTON ALONE. 
          HOUSTON GOT 364,000 NEW RESIDENTS IN THE LAST THREE YEARS. 
          BUT OF THOSE PEOPLE, MANY OF THEM ARE STILL WORKING REMOTE. 
          ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE WAS ME. 
          I RELOCATED TO A NEW CITY, KNEW NO ONE WAS WORKING REMOTE, SPENT MOST OF MY TIME ALONE. 
          AND THE ONLY WAY THAT I FOUND COMMUNITY WAS GOING TO COFFEE SHOPS TO WORK. 
          MY NAME IS CRYSTAL GLOVER AND I HAVE MY MASTER'S DEGREE IN MARRIAGE COUPLE AND FAMILY THERAPY AND CLINICAL MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELING. 
          AND I AM A COFFEE SHOP ENTHUSIAST. 
          I GO THERE TO FIND COMMUNITY, I GO THERE TO GET AWAY FROM BEING ALONE AT MY HOUSE WORKING, AND IT HAS BEEN THERAPY FOR ME. 
          SO MY COMPANY THAT I HAVE FORMED, IT'S CALLED GOOD DAY COFFEE AND THERAPY. 
          IT'S A COFFEE SHOP IN HOUSTON THAT ALSO OFFERS THERAPY LIKE ENVIRONMENT. 
          I WANT TO HAVE SPACE FOR PEOPLE TO DO CLASSES, TO DO WORKSHOPS ON MENTAL HEALTH, ON MANAGING YOUR STRESS, ON CHANGING YOUR ENVIRONMENT, ON GETTING OUTSIDE AND MAKING FRIENDS. 
          BUT I ALSO WANT TO BE A PLACE WHERE PEOPLE CAN COME GET THEIR, THEIR COFFEE, GET THEIR TEA, RELAX WORK, OR MAYBE JUST READ A BOOK AND FEEL LIKE THEY'RE IN A SAFE SPACE. 
          MY TARGET MARKET IS MILLENNIALS, ACCORDING TO DA, TO DATA. 
          637,000 MILLENNIALS LIVE IN HOUSTON. 
          ACCORDING TO US NUMBERS, 76% OF MILLENNIALS DRINK COFFEE. 
          SO IT'S A NEED AND IT'S ALSO BEEN AN INCREASE IN STRESS, ANXIETY, AND DEPRESSION DUE TO ISOLATION AND WORK LIFE BALANCE IN MILLENNIALS. 
          SO I BELIEVE CREATING A SPACE WHERE THEY CAN SOLVE TWO PROBLEMS AT ONCE IS A PERFECT RECIPE FOR WHAT HOUSTON NEEDS. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, YOU'RE LIKE, YOU'RE OFF TO A GREAT START. 
          I DIDN'T HEAR YOUR ASK THOUGH. 
          DID I MISS IT? OH, I DIDN'T ASK FOR THE MONEY. 
          HOW DID I FORGET THAT? OKAY. 
          , I HAVE TO ASK FOR THE MONEY. 
          OKAY. 
          YEAH. 
          UM, AND LIKE I SAID, YOU GUYS, EVEN IF YOUR ASK IS NOT MONEY, IT COULD BE LIKE I SAID, NETWORKING ISSUES OR YOU KNOW, WHATEVER, IT COULD BE CONNECTIONS OR WHATEVER, BUT YOU ALWAYS WANNA ASK FOR SOMETHING, OKAY? RIGHT. 
          WELL, IN, IN A NETWORKING SITUATION, YOU KNOW, YOU'LL WANT CONNECTIONS AND STUFF LIKE THAT, BUT IN, IN LIFT OFF HOUSTON, YOU WANT MONEY? OH YEAH, . 
          YEAH, YEAH, YEAH. 
          WELL OF COURSE FOR LIFTOFF, YES. 
          BUT I, I ALWAYS JUST LIKE TO PUT THAT OUT THERE 'CAUSE I'M LIKE, THERE'S SO MANY PITCH OPPORTUNITIES YOU NEVER KNOW, RIGHT? BUT YES, FOR LIFT OFF, YOU WANT MONEY, YOUR ASK SHOULD BE MONEY . 
          AND I BELIEVE YOU MENTIONED EARLIER THAT YOU'LL ASK FOR, YOU COULD ASK FOR THE 50,000, BUT I THINK YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO ALSO SAY IN LIFTOFF, I DON'T KNOW IF IT HAS TO BE IN THE PITCH OR NOT, BUT IN THE PLAN, I REMEMBER YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO TELL THEM WHAT YOU, WHAT YOU, WHAT YOU'LL DO WITH THE MONEY IF YOU WIN AS WELL. 
          SO, OH, IT IT NEEDS TO BE IN THE PITCH. 
          YEAH. 
          BECAUSE, UH, AND I'M SURE WE'LL TALK ABOUT THIS LATER, BUT YOU KNOW, YOU GUYS ARE GONNA HAVE BANKERS THERE, SO THEY'RE GONNA WANNA KNOW, IF YOU'RE ASKING ME FOR 50,000, WHAT DO YOU NEED IT FOR? RIGHT? BUT IN THE SHANK AND BAIT ONE, AND IN MOST OF THEM YOU ASK FOR THE AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT YOU NEED, AND THEN YOU SAY, AND THEN, THEN IN LIFTOFF YOU SAY, AND IF I WIN HERE, I'M GONNA USE THE MONEY FOR THIS, THIS, AND THIS. 
          RIGHT? IT'S JUST A SIMPLE ADD ON, ADD-ON SENTENCE. 
          YEAH. 
          SO EVERYBODY'S, YOU KNOW, OFF TO A GOOD START. 
          THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS TO GET STARTED AND KEEP DOING IT AND KEEP DOING IT. 
          AND THEN, YOU KNOW, THERE'S ANOTHER SLIDE IN THE SLIDE DECK THAT YOU'LL GET WHERE IT JUST REMINDS YOU WHAT'S YOUR, WHAT PROBLEM YOU ARE SOLVING, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS YOUR SOLUTION? HOW, THEN HOW DO YOU MAKE THEM CREDIBLE? BECAUSE ONCE THEY FIGURED OUT THAT THEY BOUGHT INTO YOUR WHY AND THEY BOUGHT INTO YOUR HOW, THEN THEY, THEY, YOU, YOU ESTABLISH YOUR CREDIBILITY, YOU KNOW, AND YOU KNOW, YOU JUST HAVE TO COVER CERTAIN POINTS BY LOOKING AT THE SLIDE AT THE SLIDE AND MAKE SURE I'M HITTING, HEADING THESE THESE DIFFERENT POINTS IN MY ONE MINUTE. 
          AND THEN YOU'LL GET TO EXPOUND ON IT, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU KEEP TALKING TO THE PERSON OR IN THE Q AND A. 
          IS THERE SOMEONE ELSE WHO HASN'T PRACTICED YET? YEAH. 
          WHO ELSE DO WE HAVE? JONATHAN. 
          TIFFANY, ARE YOU HERE? MARK. 
          DESIREE. 
          HUGO, ANYBODY? ARE THEY IN OTHER ROOMS? 
          [01:15:01]
THEY SHOULD BE HERE WITH US. 
          YOU'RE BEING QUIET, JONATHAN. 
          OH, JOSE. 
          I DID JOSE, I HAD ONE OTHER THING. 
          UH, JOSE, YOU CAN GO NEXT, BUT I DID WANNA SAY, I FORGOT FOR THE FIRST PITCH, YOU GUYS BE VERY CAREFUL WITH YOUR FILLER WORDS. 
          OKAY. 
          THAT WAS ONE THING I NOTICED. 
          I THINK YOURS, UH, WAS, UM, SO, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU GUYS ARE PRACTICING, THAT'S WHY IT'S GOOD TO VIDEOTAPE YOURSELF IF YOU HAVE WELL, BUT, UM, THINGS LIKE THAT. 
          TRY TO PRACTICE USING THOSE WORDS LESS. 
          YES. 
          OKAY. 
          ALL RIGHT, JOSE, YOU'RE UP. 
          OKAY, I'LL TRY TO DO THIS IN, UH, IN A MINUTE. 
          THAT SOUNDS HARD, . 
          UM, BUT HI, MY NAME IS JOSE. 
          I'M THE CO-FOUNDER OF TECH 23. 
          WE'RE A MEDIA AND ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF LATINOS IN TECH. 
          GLOBALLY. 
          THERE'S A HUGE STEM SKILLS GAP. 
          CURRENTLY THERE'S THOUSANDS OF OPEN JOBS IN THE TECHNOLOGY SECTOR, INCLUDING THE REST OF STEM. 
          THE LARGEST INCOMING WORKFORCE IS PREDOMINANTLY LATINO OR HISPANIC IN THE UNITED STATES. 
          UM, COMPANIES RIGHT NOW HAVE SEVERELY UNDERINVESTED INTO THIS GROUP. 
          AND BECAUSE OF THAT, THE RESULT IS THAT ALTHOUGH LATINOS MAKE UP AN ASTRONOMICAL NUMBER OF USERS OF TECHNOLOGY PRODUCTS, WE'RE ACTUALLY ONLY 8%, UH, THAT WE MAKE UP THE TECH INDUSTRY, WHICH IS VERY, VERY, UH, LOW. 
          UH, WE BELIEVE THIS IS DUE TO A COMMUNICATION PROBLEM. 
          THE WAY THE TECH INDUSTRY SPEAKS TO THE LATINO COMMUNITY IS, UM, TOO BORING AND NOT CULTURALLY RELEVANT. 
          SO OUR SOLUTION IS TO CREATE ENTERTAINING, UH, AND ENGAGING CULTURALLY RELEVANT CONTENT. 
          OUR BUSINESS, UH, THROUGH ENTERTAINMENT WILL BE CREATING LOTS OF, UH, PODCASTS AND, AND VIDEO CONTENT AND THEN ALSO IN-PERSON EVENTS AND CONFERENCES TO START BUILDING THIS COMMUNITY AND GET A HIGHER PERCENTAGE OF LATINOS INTO TECH. 
          OUR BUSINESS MODEL IS EASY. 
          WE'RE GONNA BE MONETIZING OUR PODCAST AND OUR CONTENT AND ALSO A TRADITIONAL FORMAT OF HOW EVENTS MAKE MONEY THROUGH TICKET SALES AND CORPORATE SPONSORS FOR THE EVENTS. 
          OUR MARKET IS ABOUT 1 MILLION LATINOS IN TECH CURRENTLY IN THE UNITED STATES. 
          SO WE EXPECT ALL THOSE TO BE, UH, ENGAGED WITH OUR CONTENT. 
          UM, WE'RE LOOKING TO SEPARATE OURSELVES FROM THE COMPETITION BY BEING MORE ON THE EXPERIENTIAL SIDE AND HAVING A LATINO FIRST APPROACH, WHICH MEANS WE'RE CREATING CONTENT AND EVENTS FOR AND BY LATINOS IN TECH. 
          AND, UH, OUR TEAM RIGHT NOW. 
          THAT WENT OVER THE MINUTE. 
          YEAH,  WELL IT DID, IT WENT OVER THE OVER A LITTLE BIT, BUT YOU KNOW, I THINK YOU DID PRETTY WELL. 
          I'M JUST NOT CERTAIN IF THERE'S SOME MORE PEOPLE THAT WE NEED TO GIVE A CHANCE. 
          SO WHY DON'T WE HAVE LINDSAY GIVE YOU SOME FEEDBACK ON WHAT YOU DID SO FAR, AND, UM, UM, I WOULD SAY THAT YOU ARE, YOU'RE OFF TO A GREAT START IS EFFICIENT. 
          UM, JUST CONTINUE BUILDING ON IT AND WATCH YOUR TIMING. 
          THE ONLY THING THAT I WANTED TO GIVE YOU FEEDBACK ON, AT A CERTAIN POINT YOU SAID SOMETHING ABOUT, UH, LATINOS USING AN ASTRONOMICAL AMOUNT, BE MORE SPECIFIC. 
          LATINOS MAKE UP, YOU KNOW, THIS PER, SO TRY NOT TO USE WORDS LIKE ASTRONOMICAL. 
          PUT AN ACTUAL NUMBER TO THAT. 
          PERFECT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          MM-HMM . 
          HAS SOMEONE ELSE NOT HAD A CHANCE YET? I'M ON MS. SANDRA. 
          WE ARE ALL BACK. 
          YEAH. 
          OH, YOU'RE ALL BACK. 
          OKAY. 
          YES. 
          MA'S BACK. 
          OKAY. 
          SO HOW'D IT GO? DID EVERYBODY GET A LITTLE MESSY WITH THEIR, WITH THEIR, UM, THERE? ONE MINUTE. 
          AT LEAST YOU GOT IN THERE, RIGHT? UH, IT'S NOT, IT IS NOT SUPPOSED TO BE PERFECT THIS TIME. 
          THIS IS ALL ABOUT PRACTICE. 
          WE HAD SOME PEOPLE THAT WENT, UH, THAT DID A GREAT JOB, BUT THEY WENT OVER AND THEY GOT SOME GOOD FEEDBACK. 
          I HOPE YOU GUYS GAVE SOME GOOD FEEDBACK TO EACH OTHER. 
          OH, UM, ACTUALLY SANDRA, I WAS GONNA ASK YOU, DO WE HAVE TIME FOR LIKE ONE OR TWO OF THEM TO DO A PRACTICE SPEECH OR NO? WELL, IS JESSICA BACK? YES, WE, I THINK WE DO HAVE A COUPLE QUESTIONS, SO WE MIGHT WANNA GET TO Q AND A SO WE DON'T RUN OVER. 
          UM, OH YES, TOO, TOO MUCH. 
          LET ME, OKAY. 
          ALRIGHTY. 
          AND I, I DID WANT TO JUST LET EVERYBODY KNOW THAT WE DO HAVE THE PITCH WORKSHOP ON OCTOBER 5TH. 
          SO IN CASE YOU DIDN'T GET A CHANCE TO PRACTICE OR YOU WANT MORE PRACTICE, UM, YOU'RE MORE THAN WELCOME TO JOIN US OCTOBER 5TH AS WELL. 
          YEAH, THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING. 
          YES. 
          SO WE DO HAVE, UM, A COUPLE QUESTIONS. 
          I BELIEVE LET GO BACK AND SO SOMEBODY WORKSHOP, PARDON ME, DO WE REGISTER FOR THE PITCH WORKSHOP OR WE JUST SHOW UP? UM, YOU CAN JUST SHOW UP. 
          WE, WE DO ASK THAT YOU REGISTER JUST SO WE KIND OF KNOW WHO IS, WHO'S GONNA BE THERE. 
          UM, BUT IF YOU FORGET TO REGISTER, THAT'S NO BIG DEAL. 
          THANK YOU. 
          NO PROBLEM. 
          SO ONE OF THE QUESTIONS THAT WE DID HAVE, UM, WAS WHAT IS YOUR, I LOST 
          [01:20:01]
IT. 
          CAN YOU SHARE YOUR PITCH PRACTICE PROCESS? SO I WOULD SAY, YOU KNOW, FOR YOU LINDSAY, WHAT, WHAT IS YOUR PROCESS WHEN YOU DO PRACTICE YOUR PITCH? YES. 
          SO I ACTUALLY SAW THAT QUESTION. 
          THAT'S WHY WHEN I WAS ON MEGAN SLIDES, I MADE SURE TO LET YOU KNOW, TO MENTION IT. 
          BUT MY PROCESS IS NORMALLY THE BRAINSTORMING PART. 
          LIKE WHAT ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS THAT I NEED TO GET ACROSS? AND THEN PUTTING IT ALL IN THE SLIDES, LIKE MY WHO, WHAT, WHEN SLIDES TOGETHER AND THEN I'LL START PRACTICING. 
          I'LL PUT TOGETHER A SCRIPT AND START PRACTICING. 
          SO IT'S NOT REALLY ANYTHING SPECIAL, BUT I DO ALWAYS PRACTICE VIDEOTAPE MYSELF ONE OR TWO TIMES WELL BEFORE I'M GOING ON STAGE. 
          UM, AND IT JUST TAKES, IT JUST TAKES PRACTICE AND THE MORE YOU DO IT, THE EASIER IT'S GONNA BE. 
          UH, BUT I DID HAVE TWO PIECES OF ADVICE BASED ON EVERYONE THAT WE DID SEE PRACTICE. 
          ONE THING THAT I WANTED TO MENTION TO EVERYBODY, PLEASE, YOU GUYS BE VERY CAREFUL ABOUT YOUR FILLER WORDS. 
          OKAY. 
          BECAUSE WHEN YOU GET ON STAGE, AND IF YOU'RE SAYING, WELL, BUT THIS OR, BUT THIS OR, WELL, WELL LIKE THAT DOES KIND OF, UH, BECOME A LITTLE BIT OF A DISTRACTION. 
          SOMEONE SAID SOMETHING. 
          OKAY. 
          SO THAT, THAT'S ONE THING. 
          AND THEN THE OTHER THING IS TRY TO GIVE AS MANY LIKE SPECIFICS ON STATISTICS AS YOU CAN AS WELL. 
          IF YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT YOUR AUDIENCE OR USAGE, THINGS LIKE THAT. 
          TRY TO PUT A NUMBER BEHIND IT. 
          'CAUSE UH, THOSE THINGS DO MAKE A DIFFERENCE AS WELL. 
          OKAY. 
          I'LL, I'M SORRY. 
          BUT YEAH, THAT'S, I MEAN, MY PROCESS IS PRETTY SIMPLE. 
          LIKE I, I GET TOGETHER THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS THAT I WANT TO PUT ACROSS. 
          I START PUTTING MY SLIDES TOGETHER AND THEN I DEVELOP A SCRIPT BASED ON THAT. 
          AWESOME. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND I SEE WE HAVE A COUPLE HANDS UP. 
          UM, I'M NOT SURE IF THOSE ARE FROM EARLIER, BUT JOSE, DID YOU HAVE SOMETHING YOU WANTED TO ASK? NO, I THINK I FORGOT TO PUT MY HAND DOWN FROM EARLIER. 
          SORRY. 
          NO PROBLEM. 
          AND THEN SAME FOR YOU, UH, LIRA. 
          YES. 
          I WANTED TO ASK, UM, HOW DO WE SIGN UP FOR THE BUSINESS PLAN AND PITCH? UM, OCTOBER 5TH. 
          SO WHEN YOU GO TO THE PROGRAM CALENDAR, THAT'S LOCATED IN THE RESOURCES PAGE, THERE'S DIRECT LINKS ON IT THAT SAY, REGISTER HERE. 
          OKAY, THANK YOU. 
          NO PROBLEM. 
          NO OTHER QUESTIONS. 
          SANDRA, YOU DID TELL THEM THAT I'VE WON OVER A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS ON PITCH COMPETITIONS, RIGHT? ? I DID LET THEM KNOW YOU WON QUITE A BIT. 
          YES. 
          I'M LIKE, NOW IS THE TIME TO ASK THE QUESTIONS. 
          YOU GUYS, I WAS LITERALLY SITTING IN Y'ALL'S EXACT, UH, SEATS. 
          IT WAS IN 2016. 
          IT'S BEEN A WHILE, BUT YOU KNOW, NOW IS THE TIME TO ASK ANY OTHER QUESTIONS. 
          UH OH. 
          AND I DID MENTION TO SOME OF THE PEOPLE WHO ARE HERE PRACTICING NOT ONLY KNOWING YOUR, YOUR AUDIENCE STATISTICS FOR MARKETING, BUT KNOW THE AUDIENCE OF THE PEOPLE YOU'RE GONNA BE PITCHING TO. 
          UM, IT'S, THERE'S ALWAYS GONNA BE AT LEAST ONE BANKER, YOU GUYS, THERE'S GONNA BE SOMEBODY THERE THAT EXPECTS NUMBERS. 
          SO KNOW YOUR NUMBERS. 
          AND THEN THERE'S ALWAYS GONNA BE AT LEAST ONE OTHER BUSINESS OWNER THERE WHO RUNS A BUSINESS. 
          SO JUST KNOW THAT YOU'RE GONNA TALK TO SOMEONE WHO IS MORE, YOU KNOW, KNOWLEDGEABLE ABOUT MAYBE NOT YOUR INDUSTRY, BUT ABOUT BUSINESS OPERATIONS. 
          SO KEEP THOSE THINGS IN MIND FOR SURE. 
          AND, AND, UH, ANOTHER THING I'LL ADD IS THIS ONE MINUTE PITCH EXERCISE IS A GREAT WAY TO GET STARTED, ALTHOUGH YOU'LL, IT'LL FEEL GOOD THAT YOU'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO EXPAND IT TO FOUR MINUTES AND A SLIDE DECK FOR LIFTOFF HOUSTON. 
          SO THE ONE MINUTE PITCH YOU'LL USE OFTEN ANYWAY, AND IT'S A GREAT WAY TO GET STARTED ON THE FOUR MINUTE PITCH. 
          AND THEN THE FOUR MINUTE PITCH WITH SLIDES IS, IS A BIG DEAL. 
          IT'S, IT'S A LOT BETTER. 
          IT'S A LOT EASIER TO RELAY WHAT YOU WANNA RELAY. 
          SO SOMETIMES PEOPLE WORK ON THE ONE MINUTE PITCH, THEY PLAY AROUND WITH IT FOR A WHILE, BUT THEN THEY ALSO WORK ON THEIR FOUR MINUTE PITCH AND THEY KEEP GOING BACK AND FORTH AND THEY WORK WITH THEIR MENTORS ON WHAT GOES IN THE ONE MINUTE AND WHAT GOES IN THE FOUR MINUTE PITCH. 
          AND THEN WHAT, WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO ANTICIPATE THEY'RE GONNA BE ASKING IN TERMS OF QUESTIONS. 
          SO YOU CAN GET ANOTHER, UH, ANOTHER GOOD AMOUNT, UH, INTO THE SIX MINUTES OF Q AND A, UM, WHERE YOU'RE READY TO ANSWER QUESTIONS THAT MAY, YOU MAY NOT HAVE GOTTEN TO IN THE FOUR MINUTE PITCH. 
          SO, UM, AND THEN ANOTHER THING IS TO BE READY FOR QUESTIONS WHEN YOU, WHEN YOU PRESENT AND LIFT OFF YOU. 
          SO YOU'VE GOT FOUR MINUTES, IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY, TO PITCH SIX MINUTES OF Q AND A AND, UM, AND YOU KNOW, YOUR AUDIENCE, KNOW YOUR JUDGES AND REMEMBER TO KNOW YOUR NUMBERS AND KNOW, KNOW THEM WELL ENOUGH TO BE ABLE TO ANSWER 
          [01:25:01]
QUESTIONS ABOUT THEM. 
          'CAUSE SOMEONE WILL ASK QUESTIONS ABOUT YOUR NUMBERS. 
          AND THEN THERE'S USUALLY, UH, A JUDGE IN THERE. 
          THE, THE WHAT DO ENTREPRENEURS NORMALLY ASK? I USED TO ASK QUESTIONS ABOUT MARKET POSITIONING AND, AND COMPETITION. 
          UM, BECAUSE THAT WAS MY FAVORITE PART OF THE PLAN THAT SOMETIMES I FIND IS WEAK OR HASN'T, HASN'T HAD A CHANCE TO BE EXPLAINED OR CREDIBILITY OF THE, IF I KNOW, IF I READ THE PLAN, I CAN LIFT OFF, THE JUDGES WILL HAVE READ THE PLAN. 
          AND I REMEMBER LISTENING TO SOMEONE PITCH AND THEY FORGOT TO MENTION THE, THE QUALIFICATIONS OF OTHERS IN THEIR, IN THEIR BUSINESS. 
          AND THAT GAVE STRENGTH TO THE CONCEPT. 
          AND SO I ASKED A QUESTION ABOUT, UH, WHO HAD, DO YOU HAVE SOMEONE IN YOUR COMPANY THAT HAS EXPERIENCE IN THIS AREA? AND HE REMEMBERED HE WAS GRATEFUL TO BE ABLE TO SAY HE HAD THAT. 
          HE AND HE HE MENTIONED THAT. 
          SO LINDSAY, WHAT WOULD YOU SAY ABOUT REALLY BEING IN FRONT OF THE JUDGES? YEAH, SOME, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I ALWAYS ASK AS A JUDGE, YOU GUYS ARE GONNA BE UP THERE PITCHING, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER YOUR IDEAS CONCEPT IS, BUT BE READY TO ACTUALLY ANSWER THE QUESTION, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE SO FAR? LIKE, YOU KNOW, 'CAUSE I WANNA UNDERSTAND HOW FAR YOU GUYS HAVE GOTTEN BECAUSE REALISTICALLY RIGHT, I'M GONNA PROBABLY WANNA GIVE MORE MONEY TO THE PERSON THAT IS LIKE ALREADY GOTTEN STARTED. 
          THEY HAVEN'T GOTTEN FAR, BUT THEY'RE, THEY'RE MAKING STEPS TOWARDS THEIR PROGRESS VERSUS SOMEONE WHO HASN'T STARTED AT ALL. 
          SO THAT MIGHT BE A QUESTION THAT YOU COME UP THAT YOU GET AS WELL. 
          OKAY, PERFECT. 
          AND I KNOW WE'RE PROBABLY GONNA RUN OVER, WE HAVE A FEW MORE QUESTIONS. 
          WE, UM, SO WE'RE GO, WE'LL GO AHEAD AND ANSWER THOSE. 
          UM, BUT IF YOU HAVE TO LEAVE, YOU'RE MORE THAN WELCOME TO LEAVE. 
          I KNOW WE'RE A LITTLE BIT OVER THE TIME. 
          THE PASSCODE IS SPEECH. 
          KENNETH IS PUTTING THE LINKS IN THE CHAT. 
          SO THE PASSCODE IS SPEECH. 
          AND WE'RE GONNA GO AHEAD AND FINISH UP THESE QUESTIONS. 
          UM, WE HAVE JUST A FEW. 
          SO WE HAVE A HAND UP, UM, LIRA. 
          YES. 
          UM, I QUICKLY, I I I WANTED TO SEE, UM, I WANTED HER, I WANTED SANDRA TO EXPLAIN, UM, THE, ONE OF THE NINE CS AND THAT I MISSED AND THAT WAS COMPELLING. 
          OKAY, HOLD ON JUST A SECOND. 
          OKAY. 
          I JUST WANNA CHECK MY NOTES ON THAT 'CAUSE I HAVE MY OWN OPINION ABOUT THAT AS WELL AS WE, UM, HAVE SOME NOTES HERE. 
          SO LET ME REFER TO THE NOTES FIRST. 
          COMPEL DID, DID YOU SAY COMPELLING COMPELL? YEAH. 
          COMPELLING. 
          YEAH, COMPELLING JUST IS, IS KIND OF WHAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT ALL THE WAY THROUGH. 
          IT MEANS THAT WHAT YOU'RE SAYING, UH, DRAWS THE PERSON IN AND THEY WANNA KNOW MORE. 
          EACH TIME YOU SAY SOMETHING, THEY, THEY'RE INTERESTED AND THEY WANNA, THEY WANNA KNOW THE NEXT THING THAT YOU'RE ABOUT TO SAY. 
          SO AN EFFECTIVE EL ELEVATOR PITCH, IT EXPLAINS THE PROBLEM AND THE SOLUTION THAT YOU'RE BRINGING AND IT EXPLAINS IT EARLY ON. 
          AND THEN IT MAKES PEOPLE WANNA BE ON THE RIDE WITH YOU ONCE YOU EXPLAIN THE PROBLEM. 
          AND THEN YOU, UM, EXPLAIN HOW YOU'VE SAW YOU'VE GOT THE SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM, THAT'S WHEN YOU START TELLING THEM, UM, WHAT YOUR, WHAT, HOW YOU'LL, WHAT YOUR QUALIFICATIONS ARE AND HOW YOU'LL DELIVER IT AND EACH, AND SO THE COMPELLING PART IS THE JOURNEY THAT YOU BRING THEM ON. 
          IT'S A, IT'S AN EMOTIONAL JOURNEY THAT YOU'LL BRING THEM ON. 
          SO THAT'S WHAT WE MEAN BY COMPELLING. 
          EACH TIME YOU SAY SOMETHING, IT, IT BUILDS YOUR CASE AND THEY WANT, THEY WANNA KEEP GOING WITH YOU. 
          THEY SHOULD WANNA ASK QUESTIONS. 
          THANK YOU. 
          LIKE YOU WANT THE JUDGES TO BE ENGAGING AND, AND WANT TO KNOW MORE. 
          AWESOME. 
          THANK YOU TERRY. 
          THE NEXT ONE. 
          HI, THIS QUESTION IS FOR LINDSAY, AND I THINK I MAY HAVE ASKED THIS QUESTION IN A SIMILAR CLASS, BUT YOU MENTIONED ABOUT MAKING SURE WE KNOW OUR NUMBERS AND MY MIND WENT BACK ON THE STATEMENT WHERE YOU SAID, UM, YOUR COMPETITION AND KNOWING YOUR AUDIENCE AND WHO YOU ARE SELLING YOUR PRODUCT OR, OR WHO ARE YOU MARKETING YOUR PRODUCT TO? WHAT TYPE OF TOOL DO YOU RECOMMEND FOR SOMEONE DOING THE RESEARCH ON, UM, THE TYPE OF MARKET? YOU KNOW, UM, WHAT, WHAT RESEARCH DID YOU USE? WHAT TYPE TOOLS DID YOU USE WHEN GETTING THAT INFORMATION? OKAY, SO LET ME FIRST CLARIFY ONE THING. 
          NORMALLY WHEN I SAY KNOW YOUR NUMBERS, IT'S GONNA BE KNOWING YOUR ACTUAL LIKE PRODUCT SERVICE PROFITABILITY NUMBERS. 
          OKAY? SO JUST LIKE THEY ASK ON SHARK TANK, RIGHT? THEY'RE LIKE, OH, YOU'VE SOLD A MILLION DOLLARS, HOW MUCH DID YOU PROFIT? OR, OH, YOU SELL THIS THING FOR $20, HOW MUCH DOES IT COST YOU TO MAKE IT? THAT'S NORMALLY WHAT I MEAN WHEN I SAY KNOW YOUR NUMBERS. 
          BUT AS FAR AS MARKET RESEARCH, I ACTUALLY USED THE SBD SEATS, SMALL 
          [01:30:01]
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL, AND I WENT OVER AND AND WAS LIKE, HEY, YOU KNOW, IF I WANNA OPEN A SPOT IN THIS AREA, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS THE POPULATION IN THIS AREA AND HOW MUCH MONEY DO THE PEOPLE IN THIS AREA MAKE? SO THOSE ARE, UH, LIKE PUBLIC CENSUS TYPE THINGS THAT THE SBDC CAN HELP YOU GUYS WITH. 
          UM, I DO USE A LOT. 
          AND YOU GO TO THEIR OFFICE? YEAH. 
          YEAH. 
          OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, AND I DO, I DO USE GOOD OLD GOOGLE A LOT. 
          LIKE I'LL LOOK UP, I'LL LOOK UP LIKE STATISTICS FOR SKINCARE OR STATISTICS FOR, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT THINGS. 
          THERE'S LIKE STATISTICS WEBSITES THAT YOU CAN GET SOME OF THIS INFORMATION PUBLICLY FROM AS WELL. 
          OKAY. 
          SO GOING BACK TO WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT THE NUMBERS FOR, UM, YOU KNOW, MEETING THE REAL NUMBERS, YOUR PROFIT MARGIN NUMBERS, UM, WHEN YOU'RE DEALING WITH A NEW STARTUP COMPANY THAT'S OFFERING A PRODUCT LIKE WHAT WE HAVE, UH, MINI PIES, WHAT RECOMMENDATION WOULD YOU GIVE TO US TO MAKING SURE THAT THOSE NUMBERS, YOU KNOW, ARE ACCURATE AND WE CAN PROVE ? YEAH, I MEAN, IT'S, IT'S SIMPLE, RIGHT? LIKE, YOU KNOW HOW MUCH IT COSTS YOU TO MAKE THAT PIE, RIGHT? BECAUSE YOU BOUGHT ALL THE INGREDIENTS SO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH IT'S GONNA COST YOU, AND YOU SHOULD HAVE AN IDEA OF WHAT YOUR PROFIT MARGIN'S GONNA BE. 
          SO IF IT COSTS YOU $10 AND YOU WANT MM-HMM . 
          YOU KNOW, 50% PROFIT, THEN YOU'RE GONNA SELL IT FOR 2020. 
          GOTCHA. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, I WOULD ALSO LOOK UP THOUGH, YOU CAN LITERALLY ON GOOGLE, LOOK UP WHAT IS THE AVERAGE PROFIT MARGIN FOR BAKED GOODS. 
          AND GOOGLE WILL TELL YOU, OH, I LOST YOU. 
          WHAT IS THE AVERAGE PROFIT MARGIN FOR WHAT NOW? BAKED GOODS. 
          OH, OKAY. 
          YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE DOING A PIE OR YOU COULD, I, I CAN LOOK IT UP FOR SPA SERVICES FOR BEAUTY THING. 
          LIKE, BECAUSE EVERY INDUSTRY CARRIES A DIFFERENT AVERAGE PROFIT MARGIN. 
          GOTCHA. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          MM-HMM . 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          DO WE HAVE ANY, ALRIGHT, WE HAVE JUST ONE MORE, UM, AND THEN WE HAVE ONE PERSON THAT HAS THEIR HAND UP. 
          SO WE'LL GO, WE'LL DO, JUST DO THESE LAST TWO AND THEN WE'LL WRAP IT UP. 
          SO, UM, JONATHAN ASKED, HOW DO YOU PITCH SOMETHING REALLY TECHNICAL  BY, BY DUMBING IT DOWN AS MUCH AS YOU CAN. 
          I MEAN, REALLY AND TRULY WHEN YOU HAVE A TECHNICAL SOMETHING, WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS? LIKE, HOW IS THIS GONNA MAKE LIFE EASIER FOR ME? RIGHT? LIKE, I MEAN, I MIGHT UNDERSTAND SOMETHING A LITTLE BIT BETTER THAN, YOU KNOW, OTHER PEOPLE JUST BECAUSE I DO HAVE AN ENGINEERING BACKGROUND. 
          WE HAD ONE YEAR WITH LIFTOFF, SOMEBODY THAT HAD LIKE THIS TECHNICAL WATER WELL, THING THAT HE WAS DOING, BUT IT'S LIKE, HOW IS THAT GONNA MAKE THE AVERAGE CONSUMER'S LIFE BETTER? RIGHT? SO THAT'S WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR. 
          SO IF YOU CAN JUST EXPLAIN THE BENEFITS OF IT, IT'LL, IT'LL HELP. 
          OKAY. 
          UH, THANK YOU. 
          I THINK I WORRY ABOUT THAT THE, BECAUSE FROM A INVESTOR STANDPOINT, THIS, THE BUSINESS I'M PITCHING IS A, A NEW TYPE OF ION ENGINE FOR SPACE TRAVEL. 
          AND SO THE, THE PEOPLE I'M SELLING TO ARE GONNA BE BUSINESSES, UM, AND THEY'RE, THE PEOPLE AT THOSE BUSINESSES ARE GONNA BE SUPER TECHNICAL. 
          UM, AND THE BENEFITS ARE SUPER TECHNICAL. 
          AND EVEN TALKING ABOUT LIKE HOW THIS MAKES IT SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO GRAVITY ASSIST MANEUVERS, YOU SAY GRAVITY ASSIST MANEUVER AND YOU'VE GONE SUPER TECHNICAL, RIGHT? LIKE THAT THE BENEFIT ITSELF IS SUPER TECHNICAL. 
          SO I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DO IT. 
          WELL, I MEAN, LOOK, SOMEBODY ELSE HAS SAID FELLOW SPACE NERD. 
          THAT'S FUNNY. 
          BUT YEAH, I MEAN AT THE END OF THE DAY, YOU, YOU DO JUST KIND OF HAVE TO MAKE IT AS SIMPLE, OKAY, YOU'RE PITCHING TO FIVE YEAR OLDS, THAT'S KIND OF, YOU KNOW, LIKE HOW WOULD YOU EXPLAIN TO A 5-YEAR-OLD THIS TECHNICAL THING, RIGHT? HOW CAN YOU MAKE IT SIMPLIFY IT SO THAT WE UNDERSTAND IT? LIKE, AND AND THAT GOES BACK TO KNOWING YOUR AUDIENCE, RIGHT? YEAH. 
          WHEN YOU'RE PITCHING IN FRONT OF THE, IN FRONT OF AN ASTRONAUT, YOU'RE GONNA USE ALL THE TECHNICAL TERMS. BUT WHEN YOU'RE PITCHING IN FRONT OF A BANKER, THEY JUST WANNA KNOW, OKAY, WHAT EXACTLY IS THIS AND HOW ARE WE MAKING MONEY OFF OF IT? WELL, I THINK IT TAKES A REALLY INTELLIGENT PERSON TO BE ABLE TO EXPLAIN SOMETHING IN LAY TERMS. I REMEMBER THIS IS NOT THE SAME THING AS YOU, BUT WHEN I WAS IN GRAD SCHOOL, WE WORKED ON A GRANT TO DESIGN THE FOOD SERVICE SYSTEM FOR THE SPACE STATION BEFORE IT WENT UP. 
          THIS WAS AWAY A WHILE AGO. 
          AND SO WE HAD, WE HAD TO BE ABLE TO TALK ABOUT THE FOOD SERVICE SYSTEM FOR THE SPACE STATION TO THE NASA PEOPLE AND TO THE REYNOLDS ALUMINUM PEOPLE AND THE, AND THE AMANA AND ALL THAT KIND OF STUFF. 
          AND THEY COULD TALK ABOUT IT A BUT IN A DIFFERENT WAY THAN WHEN YOU TALKED ABOUT IT, 
          [01:35:01]
YOU KNOW, TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC OR WHEN YOU WENT ON A NEWS STATION TO TALK ABOUT IT. 
          YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? SO YOU REALLY HAVE TO PRACTICE HOW TO SAY IT IN A SIMPLE SORT OF WAY. 
          YOU COULD SAY THAT TERM AND THEN SAY THAT WHAT THAT TERM MEANS IS BLAH. 
          AND THEN EVERYBODY GOES, OH YEAH, I GET THAT. 
          AND, AND BECAUSE IT REALLY, IT DOES TAKE A REALLY SMART PERSON TO, TO SAY WHAT A TERM MEANS IN, IN, IN REGULAR PEOPLE JUST CALL IT LAYPEOPLE TERMS, BECAUSE YOU WANT THE BANKER, YOU WANT THE ENTREPRENEUR WHO REALLY OPENED SOMETHING ELSE, AND YOU WANT THE RESOURCE PARTNER WHO'S A JUDGE ALL TO FEEL SMART BECAUSE THEY UNDERSTOOD WHAT YOU WERE SAYING. 
          SO THEY GO ON THE JOURNEY WITH YOU RATHER THAN SAYING, WELL, THEY DIDN'T EXPLAIN THAT VERY WELL, YOU KNOW? YEAH. 
          IT'S, IT, IT'S YOUR TASK. 
          YOU, YOU CAN DO IT, YOU CAN DO IT. 
          IT'S EXCITING. 
          SPACE IS EXCITING, . 
          IT'S FUN STUFF. 
          BUT YEAH, I, I'LL, I'M GONNA KEEP WORKING ON IT. 
          I DIDN'T GET THERE WITH THIS PITCH, I DON'T THINK. 
          . 
          WELL, THAT'S OKAY. 
          WE ONLY HAD A MINUTE. 
          YEAH, I WAS LIKE, IT WAS JUST TO START, SO IT'S OKAY. 
          AWESOME. 
          AND THEN WE HAVE, UM, WE HAD ONE HAND UP, SO WE'LL GO AHEAD AND DO, UH, DR. FIELDS AND THEN WE'RE GONNA AHEAD AND CLOSE IT UP. 
          I DO WANNA REMIND EVERYBODY THAT LINDSAY WILL BE AT OUR OCTOBER 5TH WORKSHOP. 
          SO ANY QUESTIONS FOR HER, YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SEE HER AGAIN. 
          OKAY. 
          UH, LINDSAY, THIS IS MY QUESTION. 
          THIS IS, UM, I'M, WHAT I'M INTERESTED IN IS PROVIDING A SERVICE. 
          I HEARD YOU SAY THAT A, A PRODUCT, LIKE A PHYSICAL PRODUCT. 
          SO I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT WOULD BE THE PITCH IF I'M TRYING TO PROVIDE A SERVICE IN VERY EMBRYONIC STAGE, AND I REALLY DON'T HAVE A PRODUCT TO MAKE A STRONG PITCH FOR IT. 
          SO HOW WOULD I, WHAT, HOW WOULD I, UH, DEVELOP A PITCH FOR SOMETHING THAT'S LIKE, WANNA BE AN EDUCATIONAL CONSULTANT OR WRITING A BOOK? UM, WELL, YOU'RE GONNA FOCUS ON LIKE, HOW IS IT THAT YOU'RE CONSULTING SERVICE OR WHATEVER SERVICE IT IS, HOW IS THAT BRINGING VALUE TO THE CUSTOMER, RIGHT? LIKE, WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND WHAT'S DIFFERENT ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE DOING AND HOW THAT'S GOING TO HELP YOUR CUSTOMER. 
          SO WHAT'S THE VALUE IN WHAT YOU'RE TRYING TO PITCH? AND THEN ALSO WHAT'S THE POTENTIAL MARKET? YOU KNOW, SO HOW ARE YOU HELPING PEOPLE OR WHAT, HOW IS YOUR SERVICE IMPROVING SOMEONE OR SHOWING VALUE? AND THEN STATISTICALLY, IS THERE ANYBODY ELSE OUT THERE LIKE THIS? SO, YOU KNOW, THOSE ARE THE KIND OF THING, YOU DON'T HAVE TO, I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY WE HAVE INNOVATION, WE'VE GOT PRODUCTS, WE'VE GOT SERVICES. 
          UM, SO HOW, HOW IS THAT SERVICE HELPING THE NEXT PERSON? LIKE WHY WOULD I WANNA INVEST IN YOUR SERVICE? OKAY. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          MM-HMM . 
          ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. 
          I KNOW WE WENT A LITTLE BIT OVER. 
          SO SANDRA AND LINDSAY, I REALLY APPRECIATE, UM, YOUR TIME. 
          AND SO EVERYBODY, UH, KENNETH HAS SENT THE LINK IN THE CHAT, UM, FOR YOUR CHECKOUT. 
          AND THEN THE CODE IS SPEECH, S-P-E-E-C-H. 
          UM, BE SURE TO SUBMIT THAT INTO THE LIFTOFF HOUSTON PORTAL BY SEPTEMBER 27TH AT 7:30 PM SO THAT IT'S 48 HOURS FROM RIGHT NOW. 
          AND AGAIN, WE WILL BE HAVING A BUSINESS PLAN WORKSHOP ON MONDAY AND THEN A BUSINESS PLAN PITCH WORKSHOP, UM, ON THURSDAY OF NEXT WEEK. 
          BOTH OF THOSE WILL TAKE PLACE AT, UM, YOUNG NEIGHBORHOOD LIBRARY. 
          ALL OF THAT YOU CAN FIND ON THE LIFT OFF HOUSTON CALENDAR THAT IS LOCATED WITHIN THE RESOURCES PAGE. 
          UM, HIS NAME WAS JONATHAN HUFFMAN, . 
          JONATHAN, THERE'S SOMEONE IN THE CHAT LOOKING FOR YOU. 
          . 
          HEY COA, I ALREADY GOT YOU ON LINKEDIN. 
          OH HEY, UH, HECK YEAH. 
          I BASED . 
          PERFECT. 
          OKAY, WELL I'M GLAD YOU GUYS GOT CONNECTED. 
          ALRIGHT, SO THANK YOU. 
          EVERYBODY PUT TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES EARLIER, THAT'S WHY WE WENT A LITTLE BIT LONGER. 
          THANK YOU GUYS FOR YOUR PATIENCE. 
          YES, THANK YOU EVERYBODY. 
          AND I DO WANNA CONGRATULATE ALL OF YOU FOR MAKING IT TO THIS STEP. 
          THIS IS OUR FINAL REQUIRED WORKSHOP. 
          NOW YOU JUST HAVE TO FINISH OUT WITH YOUR, UM, YOUR MENTOR APPOINTMENTS AND SUBMIT YOUR BUSINESS PLAN. 
          SO WE'RE AT THE END EVERYBODY. 
          CONGRATULATIONS. 
          BEST WISHES, EVERYONE. 
          YES, GOOD LUCK. 
          THIS IS THE FINAL REQUIRED WORKSHOP. 
          GOOD LUCK AND I WILL SEE YOU. 
          SOME OF YOU GUYS ON THE FIFTH.
* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.