E108 : Pitch Your Potential - Winning Competitive Opportunities with Vicki Johnson

In this episode of 10x Growth Strategies, host Preethy Padmanabhan speaks with Vicki Johnson — founder of ProFellow and author of Pitch Your Potential. Vicki shares her proven Match Me formula, a powerful framework for winning competitive jobs, fellowships, awards, and elite opportunities. She opens up about her personal journey, from breaking into top schools to securing globally competitive fellowships, and reveals how anyone can leverage storytelling, clarity of mission, and future-focused narratives to stand out. The conversation covers overcoming mindset challenges, avoiding common mistakes, mastering memorable pitches, and using networks effectively. Vicki also provides insights into her upcoming book, exclusive preorder bonuses, and why pitching your future potential is more powerful than your past accomplishments. This episode is packed with actionable advice for students, professionals, entrepreneurs, and anyone looking to win in highly competitive environments. ⸻

Chapters

00:00 Introduction & Guest Welcome

00:46 Meet Vicki Johnson & ProFellow

01:32 Hidden Opportunities & Human-Centered Strategies

03:13 Early Life & Breaking into Top Schools

04:20 Storytelling to Win Cornell & Fellowships

05:44 Why Future Potential Matters More Than the Past

06:01 The Match Me Formula Explained (7 Elements)

08:35 Matching Mission & Defining Your Goals

09:14 Mindset Challenges: Fear, Comparison & Gatekeepers

13:28 Overcoming Negativity & Finding Supportive Voices

14:20 Defining Goals & Personal Mission for Social Impact

16:07 Midlife Crisis & Reinventing Career Paths

18:03 Common Mistakes in Applications & Researching Missions

20:11 Importance of Future-Focused Applications

21:18 Crafting Memorable Pitches & Elevator Stories

22:30 Networking, Referrals & The Power of LinkedIn

24:22 Storytelling with Anecdotes & Emotional Connection

26:21 Structuring Your Application Story (Past, Future & Selectors)

29:42 Building Confidence Through Future Vision

31:12 Success Story: From Shark Tank to Y Combinator

33:28 Book Release, Preorder Bonuses & ProFellow Platform

35:23 Final Advice: Be a Storyteller of the Future

36:06 Closing Remarks