Instead of boring you with the story I’ll get right down to it. I believe that 3 factors helped me get picked for the show.
1. Having a great custom made T-Shirt. My girlfiend had them made, and they said “Drew…Carey me to the Showcase Showdown!” Bright yellow with green lettering. Cute, catchy, and it showed dedication to really wanting to get picked for the show.
2. Being one of the first 12 people in line. When the producer begins doing the 15-second interviews he has people line up in groups of 12. He then goes down the line, one person at a time, and asks where are you from and what do you do (you aleardy have a name tag on at this point). Since I was in the very first group to get interviewed it showed that I was dedicated to getting on the show by showing up early (we got in line at 1:00am the night before) and I got first crack at impressing him (as opposed to being somewhere in the middle of the pach o 300+ people).
3. I nailed the interview. You pretty much gave 15 seconds to live or die by. You have to show enthusiasm, and come up with something catchy to say about what you do. I am a financial planner, so when he asked me what I do a said “I’m a financial physician!” He asked me what that meant, and with a smile and great enthusiasm I said “I help people retire debt-free and financially independent!” He then said “So you yourself must be debt-free and financially independent!” I said “Not yet—that’s why I’m here!”
There is a young woman who walks behind him with a clipboard and feverishly writes stuff down as the producer is interviewing people-I’d KILL to know what she’s writing! I imagine that the producer has signals that he gives her-either a verbal cue (like saying “It’s great to have you here” vs. “It’s good to have you here.”) or maybe a hand gesture or body movement that tells her something—-it’s all very James Bond-ish if you ask me.
That’s pretty much it. I had no idea that I was going to get called—I just remained enthusiastic the whole time and made sure that everyone knew it! SMILE ALL THE TIME!
I got called as one of the first 4, got up on stage on the third try, won a 2008 Ford Ranger playing 10 Chances (got it on the last try!) and didn’t make the showcase because the very first guy to spin the wheel spun $1.00. My spin was .90 (on any other day that gets you to the showcase) and I sat back down in the audience after my second spin put me over.
Good Luck!!
