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Wireless
Mike, overheads or slides, laser pointer, excellent handout materials
-- these are some of the tools of the speaking trade.
Are
they the most meaningful tools in your toolbox? I think not. Yes, they
matter. They matter a lot, as do other implements. But they're not the
most meaningful tools. The 7 most meaningful tools of our trade, tools
that help you get more bookings at higher fees, are these...
1.
Your empathy:
Your
empathy for the concerns of the decision-maker who hired you, for the
interests of the organization paying your fee, for the needs and wants,
hungers, longings and fears of your audience members.
2.
Your attitude:
Are
you there to make a dollar or to make a difference? Are you delivering
your standard program much like what you delivered yesterday somewhere
else? Or do you go the extra mile researching this organization, this
industry, the trends affecting this field now, and so forth? Do you
interview outside industry experts and key executives within this
organization -- and, most important, some of the lower echelon folks
who are to be present? Do you ask deep questions about the core issues
interesting each of these constituencies? Then, do you probe further
for emotional issues that may affect the whole direction of your
program?
3.
Your program design:
Do
you weave your insights and findings into a tapestry of wisdom and
hope, of ideas and guidelines, of recommended actions? Do you share new
information, AHAs born during your research for this event? Are you a
conceptual artist -- like Michelangelo painting the Sistine Chapel
ceiling -- i.e. do you interlace and clarify what others find hazy
until the moment you speak? (Do you make the ephemeral visible?) Do you
articulate palpable words and images so those present better understand
-- and know how to deal with -- the goings-on in their world now?
4.
Your passion:
Are
your ideas throbbing with aliveness? Does your body language match your
words? Do you gaze deeply into the eyes of different audience members,
connecting one-on-one with each if only for a few seconds? Do you
radiate an emotional intimacy with your words -- and do you express
that intimacy by the look on your face? Do you use the power of the
pause, the eloquence of silence, to let your ideas sink in?
5.
Your state of being:
This
is your primary message. It's what your audience members see and feel
first. They get it subliminally. They get it instantly. They see it in
your stance. They sense it in your glance. And they persist in getting
it every second of your program. Are you up? Your audience knows. Are
you here now, are you present? Your audience knows. Are you emotionally
attuned to your topic? They know.
6.
Your mental acuity:
Can
you turn your talk on a dime if the audience mood so indicates? Do you
respond brilliantly to spontaneous questions...saying enough to
satisfy, landing on your feet and staying on your track? Are you
sensitive to the various cultures present in the room -- to their
perceptions, their expectations and entitlements, their differences and
similarities? Are you careful not to offend?
7.
Your physical energy:
Do
you arrive fully rested, on your toes, eager for this opportunity to
speak? Do your eyes sparkle with aliveness as you move through your
presentation? Are you light on your feet as you move about? Do you
think tall as you stand before your audience? Here's an easy way to do
this: Picture a silken thread at the crown of your head gently pulling
you up-up-up. This visualization aligns your bones and muscles into
perfect order. It often makes you look taller, more in command. It
helps you tingle with energy.
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There's
much more where this came from. For your FREE copy of How To
Orchestrate Your Room Environment, E-mail me at burt@dubinspeak.com It's yours
with my compliments. Include your snail mail address because I send
this by regular mail. Outside of USA, include a US Dollar bill to cover
just the postage.
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