Paula Calise - The Art of Hello®: Be Remembered in a Noisy World^TM

Copyright 2021

Paula Calise

Performance Publishing Group McKinney, TX

The Art of Hello is a registered trademark of Calise Reed, LLC.

All Worldwide Rights Reserved.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recorded, photocopied, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review.

ISBN (Paperback): 978-1-946629-82-1
ISBN (eBook): 978-1-946629-89-0

This is the first book in a series

Dedication

This book and every word I speak and teach on The Art of Hello are dedicated to the memory of William C. Reed II, my precious son.

To William - beloved son, brother, nephew, cousin, friend. The kindest person we have ever known. You are missed and will be always in our hearts.

Acknowledgments

In the tradition of it takes a village, this book, The Art of Hello was written. First, for always giving me a wide berth to be and do my own thing, while loving and supporting me, I thank Bill Reed, my dear husband. I thank my accomplished daughter Andrea Reed, who encouraged me and appreciated my work almost as much as I appreciate hers. Andrea was the final copy editor of the book and is the artist of the block print at the end of each chapter. Thank you to my marketing genius friends, Rita Egeland and Tracey Altman. They lent their discerning eyes to the cover and the interior book design. Thank you, Jason Tinelle, my multi-talented nephew, for selecting the cover font for The Art of Hello - such a perfect choice for this book. Thank you, Randy Mayeux, business book reader extraordinaire, and monthly First Friday Book Synopsis event leader. Randys guidance on the story that a Table of Contents tells helped me hone the whole story of the book. Thank you, Toni Point, the block print artist who with the patience of a saint created the prints that open every chapter and close the book. Thank you to Michelle Prince and the editorial and artistic team at Performance Publishing Group. And lastly, but perhaps most importantly, I thank the many thousands of people who have attended The Art of Hello presentations. I have received hundreds of positive reviews and comments about the impact that an Art of Hello introduction can make for professionals at every point in their careers. It was through those comments that I knew I was onto something fresh and something that needed to be shared.

The Art of Hello helps professionals deliver a brand introduction thats memorable and impactful. In her book, Paula Calise gives you a practical framework and enlightening stories to guide you in creating your perfect brand. As an award-winning recruiter, shes an expert on this topic.

Shaunna Black,
President of Shaunna Black and Associates

Introduction

It was a really hot day filled with appointments. My lunch meeting at La Madeleine was with a woman named Karen,* whom I had never met before. I scanned the restaurant and saw someone fitting her description sitting near the window; I headed that way. After introducing myself, I immediately asked, Karen, could you help me out, please? I said, I am not very well prepared for our discussion. I printed out your resume but left it on my desk, and I havent looked at your LinkedIn profile. Id really appreciate it if youd tell me about yourself.

Without hesitation, Karen began detailing her career to that point. She was, at the time, the vice president of marketing for Mary Kay Cosmetics. I have been with the company for 18 years, she said, all of it in the marketing department. Anything to do with marketing, Ive done it.

Then she offered a list of the specific areas of her expertise, Ive done collateral; Ive put on large events and directed successful promotions. She continued, Ive supervised both qualitative and quantitative research.

Her recitation included working in social media, public relations, and crisis communications. And, she said, Ive liaised with product developers on color theory and with designers on packaging and labeling

As Karen droned on and on and on, I was thinking So what? So what? So what?

Its hard to imagine that anyone in this day and age could rise to the position of vice president of marketing in a significant global company without having all of the experience Karen listedand more. Those skills are table stakesthe minimum entry requirementsin her field. Though Im sure it was not her intention, what Karen was telling me was Im ordinary.

No one wants to be thought of as ordinary. But for people to get to know the extraordinary person you are, they must first remember who you are. Thats where The Art of Hello comes in. This distinctive technique cuts the old elevator speech down to a statement so concise that new acquaintances will be able to repeat it after hearing it only once, and people who know you well can pass it on, perfectly.

The Art of Hello = What every professional needs to know about building a personal brand introduction.

Throughout this book, youll meet people whose stories illustrate the power of The Art of Hello. Youll also learn the three simple steps that will help you create your very own Art of Hello introduction.

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* All of the stories told here are true. Some names and minor details have been changed for the sake of privacy.

Chapter One

Well return to Karen later, but first, let me introduce myself. My name is Paula Calise. Im an executive recruiter, and I fill hard to fill positions. In business, that is the most important thing for people to know about me. Im an executive recruiter, and I fill hard to fill positions.

I have a simple-to-remember Art of Hello introduction: Im Paula CaliseI fill hard to fill positions.

Ive been using that succinct brand label for myself since I started my recruiting firm over a decade ago. Having a memorable label, and living up to what it promises, has paid off. Today, 100 percent of my business is repeat clients or referrals from my friends and colleagues, as well as from past and current clients. I consider these people my large, latent salesforce. This network can refer clients to me because they know, absolutely, what I do. They can recite my brand exactly and pass it on easily because I have a simple-to-remember Art of Hello introduction: Im Paula CaliseIfill hard to fill positions.

Thats it. Those six simple words tell people everything they need to know about me. Occasionally, when appropriate, I will follow up by explaining that I fill jobs that have gone unfilled for six weeks or six months. I am often called in when a job cant be filled by someone else. This is how I have introduced myself from the start, and its what I say to the new people I meet every day. When I go to meetings, colleagues walk up to me and say, Hey, Paula, I want you to meet Randy. Randy, this is my friend Paula. Shes an executive recruiter.