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- The Career Hook
Throughout my career, I’ve had plenty of situations where I needed to make a memorable intro. I remember one moment in particular: my boss took me into a room packed with CEOs and managers from large companies. Everyone was at least 20 years older than me, and as we went around introducing ourselves, I nervously stood up and delivered a pretty lacklustre introduction.
“Well, Ajay is actually the technical brains behind our projects," my boss cut in as I sat down awkwardly. "He’s built three or four different tech solutions and currently leads our builds for TradeFlow. He just launched a platform for Bank X to automate their bank guarantees.” This got a round of approving nods from the group, and suddenly, I was “the technical guy” at the table—a claim to fame in a room full of non-technical people.
Afterwards, my boss gave me a bit of advice. “When you’re handed the stage like that, don’t shoot yourself in the foot. It’s not humility—it’s just blowing it.”
If you’re anything like I used to be, you might be losing people’s attention before you even start.
That moment stuck with me. Your self-pitch—and more importantly, your “career hook”—is crucial.
What is a Career Hook?
It’s the first sentence or two you say when someone asks, “So, what do you do?” Answering with “I’m a product manager at so-and-so” can be pretty unremarkable. Here are a few examples of hooks I’ve used in the past:
Role / Company | The Hook |
|---|---|
Research Assistant at Tomra | I shoot X-rays into rocks to test what’s inside them for mining companies. |
Head of Product at Draper Startup House | I work for Tim Draper, an eccentric billionaire, who partially owns a chain of hostels geared towards entrepreneurs. I run the product and education services there. |
CEO at EntryLevel | I run a company that offers bootcamp-style tech courses, but instead of charging $10,000 for 50 people, we charge $50 for 10,000 people at a time. (Prices have changed, but that was our pitch for a long time!) |
Notice how each hook is catchy and sparks curiosity. Here’s what I’ve found makes a great career hook:
Simple/Brief: One sentence is ideal—two if you really need it.
Invokes Curiosity: Does it make the other person say, “Woah, what does that involve?” You want to hook them and prompt follow-up questions, driven by genuine curiosity.
Unique: What’s the most unique part of your role? Try to weave that into your career hook.
I’d love to hear the career hooks you come up with! Email me, and I’ll pick a few to showcase.
Cheers,
Ajay
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