There is a page-turner in my rich shelf of self-help books titled Speak and Grow Rich. The putative co-authors ― Dottie and Lilly Walters — dedicated a certain chapter to what they christened as The Nine Skills for Professional Speakers. They contend: One, be a passionate speaker. Two, be a compassionate speaker. Three, be a speaker with targets. Four, be creative and innovative. Five, be a careful creator of marketing tools. Six, be a smart salesperson. Seven, be a smart service provider. Eight, be a bold businessperson. Nine, just be a great speaker.
- Be a Passionate Speaker
As a speaker, you should be passionate about what you do. Try to cite a giant list of topics you can address with a lot of ease without a scintilla of struggle. Approach it with plenty of enthusiasm. Be an expert. For people are always ready to pay to hear experts. Passion can drive you to become that expert. It can also give you real zeal and trenchant zest. Passion is the spark for your fuse. No wonder, Henry Fredrick Amiel sagely said, “Without passion, man is a mere latent force and a possibility, like the flint that awaits the shock of the iron before it can give forth its spark.”
Passion drives you when you adhere to the wise words enshrined in Ecclesiastes 9:10: “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.” When you are driven by passionate conviction, you can do anything you want in your life. Mike Murdock averred, “What generates passion and zeal in you is a clue to revealing your destiny. What you love is a clue to something you contain.” Napoleon Hill concluded:
Feeble desires bring feeble results. just as a small amount of fire makes a small amount of heat. Desire is like planting a seed. It causes something to begin to grow. John Mason assessed that the trouble with many educated people is that learning goes to their heads, but fails to enter into their hearts. Which begs the question: Can you say that the path you have taken captures your heart? For you have been sent into this wide world to do something into which you can pour your heart. Think of Tim Redmond’s observation, “There are many things that will catch my eye, but there are only very few that will catch my heart… It is those I consider to pursue.”
- Be a Compassionate Speaker
As a speaker, be compassionate towards the audience. In Matthew 9:36, we see Jesus of Nazareth as a powerful preacher because when He saw crowds, He was compassionate. Compassion compels speakers to show love towards the audience. If possible, try to speak to several members of the audience before the presentation. It will help you to hold a conversation with them, not just a talk.
- Be a Speaker with Targets
It behooves you to target specific markets. Based on topics you are passionate about. It is important to point-out subjects you can commit to learn more about. It is imperative to cut an imperishable niche. Find appropriate and specific market. Potential clients hunt for speakers who can offer practical solutions to specific problems.
- Be creative and Innovative
Actually, you should be able to customise the topic to a particular audience within the market. You can achieve this only if you are in a position to conduct copious research of a specific audience. You can hold personal interviews with former and current attendees before the actual presentation.
- Be a Creator of Marketing Tools
Then, you have to be a creator of marvellous marketing tools. The tricks of this terrific trade requires the speaker to create presentable folders, demo types (audio and video), posters, write-ups, business cards, letter heads, et cetera. A professional speaker must have these tremendous tools. Or else, there will be no bookings.
- Be a Sales Salesperson
Ideally, you must sell yourself and products to the potential clients. Why? Because nothing happens until somebody sells something. Visibility enhances credibility. In case you wait for someone to sell you, no one may buy you whatsoever. They say, doing business without marketing is like blinking to a beautiful girl or winsome woman in the dark. As an interested party, you know what you are doing, but the belle does not know what is going on.
- Be a Smart Service Provider
Cultivate a ‘you’ not ‘me’ attitude. Make everything you churn out serve your clients. For it to work, it has to be client-centred. Make everything you produce serve your clients’ needs. Make it easy for them to buy you. Sales skills gets them the first time, but service brings them back. The market is very competitive. There are thousands of professionals out there working to attract the same buyers as you do. Never forget, the victor is simply the one who offers ease and pleasure in the purchase.
- Be a Bold Business Person
Follow up all the booking leads and sales immediately, with a business-like acumen — in a concerned, friendly and consistent manner. Let professionalism surround everything concerned with you, for there is nothing that turns a buyer off faster than not being able to reach the speaker. Time is of great essence. Prompt response is paramount.
- Be a Great Speaker
Practise, for practice makes perfect. Strive to be better and smarter. Leg up your delivery style, content and confidence. Speak with a sincere, eloquent speaking éclat. Focus on audibility and clarity. Maintain meaningful eye contact with the audience. Make it a conversation. Tape yourself speaking, and listen to yourself carefully. So that you weed out goofs in the next speech. Pope ll sagely said, “A mighty thing is eloquence. Nothing so much rules the world.” Benjamin Disraeli on the other hand put it aptly, “Eloquence is the child of knowledge.”
The writer rolls out Upskilling Programmes in Public Speaking.
vochieng.90@gmail.com. 0704420232
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