By the time the career question comes up I have already asked them about theirs, shared with them what I know about it, and "thought out loud" about what I think is most difficult/interesting/new about their industry, that they think I am a peer or an insider.

We all know something about every industry and every line of work, or at least have the interest to inquire about it (if not for anything else, because we're completely ignorant of it.)

Share what you know, show interest, and shut up.

Allow people to see you under their own favorite lights. If you can hold a conversation with a scientist just fine, no need to tell him you're an entrepreneur. And if a business man likes your management acumen and eye for the market, no need to call yourself a code-monkey. You're all of the above, but keep the conversation at their pace, ask questions from most general to more specific, and let them categorize you through the course of a mutually comforting conversation.

This is why you don't jump into an elevator pitch with everyone you meet, just because you got an idea and a GoDaddy domain.