13
23 SPEAKING TIPS TODAY’S TOP SPEAKERS FROM MICHAEL PORT PAMELA SLIM CHRIS BROGAN SCOTT STRATTEN DAN MILLER CRYSTAL PAINE JOHN JANTSCH PAT FLYNN DORIE CLARK JON ACUFF

SPEAKING TIPS - Home - Grant Baldwingrantbaldwin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/23-Speaker... · 2016-08-22 · The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really

  • Upload
    others

  • View
    0

  • Download
    0

Embed Size (px)

Citation preview

Page 1: SPEAKING TIPS - Home - Grant Baldwingrantbaldwin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/23-Speaker... · 2016-08-22 · The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really

23SPEAKING TIPSTODAY’S TOP SPEAKERS

F ROM

MICHAEL PORT

PAMELA SLIM

CHRIS BROGAN

SCOTT STRATTEN

DAN MILLER

CRYSTAL PAINE

JOHN JANTSCH

PAT FLYNN

DORIE CLARK

JON ACUFF

Page 2: SPEAKING TIPS - Home - Grant Baldwingrantbaldwin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/23-Speaker... · 2016-08-22 · The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really

In this short guide, I’m going to walk you through the best speaking tips and tricks from today’s top speakers. Whether you’re brand new to speaking or you’ve been doing this for years, this guide will give you practical steps to help improve your speaking skills.

You’ll learn from expert speakers who aren’t just sharing random thoughts or theories. These are men and women who speak regularly on some of the biggest and most influential stages all around the world and in all different markets and industries.

I’d love to hear how one (or more) of these strategies helped or impacted your speaking business. Email me at [email protected] and let me know what actions you took and how it helped!

You’re awesome, Grant Baldwin

I N TRODUCT ION

Page 3: SPEAKING TIPS - Home - Grant Baldwingrantbaldwin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/23-Speaker... · 2016-08-22 · The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really

Start with the deliverables.

Something that will get the audience in the mind of where I want them to

be. Sometimes that might be a question. It could be a statement. It could

be a story. Something to get everyone on the same page. Also, if you

must use slides (which I try not to), use Google slides so as not to depend

on someone else’s handling of the slides.

CHRIS BROGAN | chrisbrogan.com

Think about your audience.

Remember, it is called “giving a speech”, which means your presentation

is a gift to your audience. Be thoughtful in how you prepare your talk to

ensure that the message is about the people listening more than about

yourself. While some of your material is great, it may be more self-serving

than audience focused. Know the difference and be clear why you

include certain stories, statistics, ideas, etc.

THOM SINGER | thomsinger.com

TOP I C

01.

02.

P R E P A R A T I O N

Page 4: SPEAKING TIPS - Home - Grant Baldwingrantbaldwin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/23-Speaker... · 2016-08-22 · The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really

Define outcomes.

Know where you want to take the audience. As Steven Covey says in

7 Habits of Highly Effective People, “Begin with the end in mind.” How do

you want to impact the audience, and what would you like them to DO as

a result of your speech?

JENNY BLAKE | jennyblake.me

Add variety to each talk.

I used to work as a presidential campaign spokesperson, and during

primary season, I noticed something interesting that my candidate —

and all his competitors — did during their speeches. They wouldn’t give

the exact same speech every time; that would be boring for them, and

for any audience member who had seen them speak before. But they

also couldn’t afford to deviate too wildly from the script, because they

didn’t have time to learn a lot of new material, and any slip-ups would be

pilloried by the press.

Instead, each candidate had a series of “modules,” which they would

reshuffle and deploy based on the audience — essentially, a story about

a working mother, or a story about how they came to understand the

risks to the environment, or a story about a veteran returning home. They

wouldn’t necessarily memorize the story word-for-word, but they’d know

it well enough that they could rely on a slip of paper with a few key words

to trigger a series of anecdotes, which coalesced into a great speech.

That’s the practice I’ve been following with my own speaking ever since.

DORIE CLACK | dorieclark.com

TOP I C

03.

04.

P R E P A R A T I O N

Page 5: SPEAKING TIPS - Home - Grant Baldwingrantbaldwin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/23-Speaker... · 2016-08-22 · The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really

Practice exactly how you’ll do it live.

Practice your presentations standing up exactly as you plan to deliver them, including using your slide presentation and any props, at least 3 full times before you ever deliver a talk on stage. If possible, ask a few family members or friends to watch these practices and give their feedback.

CRYSTAL PAINE | moneysavingmom.com

Try it, tweak it, cut it if you need to.

Whatever you’re doing, do it a dozen times, then a dozen times more, always in front of a live audience. If it doesn’t work, tweak it until it does. If you still can’t make it work, drop it. Keep the parts that land and discard the parts that fall flat. Then iterate and reiterate and further reiterate until you find your sweet spot. Suck once, suck twice and succeed the third time. But keep doing it. It gets easier. And you get better.

MATTHEW KIMBERLY | matthewkimberly.com

Rehearse having fun.

Here’s the deal: the audience is there to be entertained. Most speakers worry more about their words than how the speech feels to the audience. That’s a mistake. The audience will mimic whatever emotions you’re showing. If you’re nervous, they’ll be nervous. If you’re sad, they’ll be sad. Most importantly, if you seem excited by your topic, they probably will be, too. So, rehearse yourself doing things like smiling, laughing and having energy. Most people would never

bother rehearsing such things. If you do, you’ll stand out.

MIKE PACCHIONE | duarte.com

TOP I C

05.

06.

07.

P R A C T I C E

Page 6: SPEAKING TIPS - Home - Grant Baldwingrantbaldwin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/23-Speaker... · 2016-08-22 · The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really

Rehearse with your own audio track.

Here’s a simple rehearsal trick for new talks or material. Before you rehearse live with other people, script out your talk in a simple Word or GoogleDoc, without slides. Then, read your presentation aloud into your computer or even just your phone. Try to match the energy, pauses and contrast you want to project on stage.

Then, load that audio file onto your phone and listen to it over and over. Listen on a walk. In your car. When you wake up in the morning. While you work out. There will be parts you love and parts you want to improve. Go back and fix the parts you don’t like and re-record it. Repeat until you’re happy with it and then listen to it over and over. Once you’re happy with it, then listen for places where a big visual image would enhance the point. Then, and only then, build the slides. You’ll end up with fewer, better slides and a stronger presentation.

CLAY HEBERT | clayhebert.com

Practice, practice, practice.

The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really deliver your talk dozens of times alone in your room or office until you have that thing down. It’s awkward but the only way you get great. So if you want to stand out, do what most people don’t do and give your talk like you would deliver it for an audience: out loud, all the way through, with pauses, gestures, and movements.

Bonus points for doing it in front of a mirror or for a friend or family member so you can see how you’re actually coming across. Every talk I give first gets practiced in front of a mirror multiple times.

JEFF GOINS | goinswriter.com

TOP I C

08.

09.

P R A C T I C E

Page 7: SPEAKING TIPS - Home - Grant Baldwingrantbaldwin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/23-Speaker... · 2016-08-22 · The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really

Stand and land.

Let your punch lines, point lines, and purpose lines land. That means you don’t move while you’re delivering them. You remain physically rooted to the spot so that your body reinforces the gravity of your words. Of course, you can move and talk at the same time. People do it all the time in real life. Just don’t sway,

and don’t move when you’re landing your most important points; stand and land.

MICHAEL PORT | michaelport.com

Be yourself.

I used to pretend to be someone else while on stage. I would mock other speakers and put on an act to try to do things that more well-known veterans did. At some point in my speaking career that didn’t feel right and I just started being myself.

I used my own brand of humor. I didn’t worry about hiding any of my flaws or things that made me different. Not only did I start to feel more confident after every speaking event, but I started getting an exponentially higher amount of speaking requests immediately after an event. I learned that embracing my differences was the thing that would always set me a part when event organizers were looking for speakers.

JASON ZOOK | jasondoesstuff.com

Own your words, don’t just speak them.

When you own your words, you inject feeling, energy, and FIRE that is felt by all attendees. Own silence as well, there’s no better way to recapture attention.

JOHN LEE DUMAS | eofire.com

TOP I C

10.

11.

12.

C O N F I D E N C E

Page 8: SPEAKING TIPS - Home - Grant Baldwingrantbaldwin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/23-Speaker... · 2016-08-22 · The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really

Make eye contact.

The old strategy of imagining the audience with no clothes on to calm your nerves

as a speaker is tired and worn out. Instead, look around at the audience. Making eye

contact and imagine dropping value bombs directly on top of their heads — changing

their mindsets, making a difference and providing solutions to their problems. Your

nerves will be gone and you’ll be as excited as hell to get in front of them!

CHRIS DUCKER | chrisducker.com

Nerves are good, but learn to control them.

Even the most experienced speakers get anxious in the hours before they go on

stage. Nervousness is not all bad — it is energy that can fuel a dynamic talk. But if

you let your nerves get you, your thoughts can quickly turn from “I am a little nervous

about this talk” to “I don’t know if this talk is going to land!” to “What in the world

was I thinking when I agreed to do this talk? They are going to HATE me!” If you find

yourself in this spiral, take a deep breath, close your eyes, and visualize a member of

the audience.

If you did your pre-event research, you will know the profiles of people who are in

the room. Maybe they are executives who are stressed out about managing their

organization. Maybe they are salespeople who feel the pressure of making their

monthly quotas. Maybe they are small business owners who desperately want to grow

their business. With this audience member profile firmly in your mind, imagine what his

or her life is like. What do they want? How do they want to feel? How can the content

of your speech help them? Deliver your talk to that person. When you get on stage,

look for a friendly face, give a smile, and start your talk.

Your talk is never about you. It is about your ideas helping the audience members

solve their problems. Shifting your focus from obsessing about yourself to obsessing

about solving their problems will ground you and connect you with them emotionally.

Your voice may still waver when you get rolling, but your passion and care will shine

brightly on stage.

PAMELA SLIM | pamelaslim.com

TOP I C

13.

14.

C O N F I D E N C E

Page 9: SPEAKING TIPS - Home - Grant Baldwingrantbaldwin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/23-Speaker... · 2016-08-22 · The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really

Recognize the power of storytelling.

Weave the principles that you’re trying to convey into stories rather than just telling the facts. That’s what people will remember.

DAN MILLER | 48days.com

Tell stories in present tense.

Tell stories in the present tense, as if they are unfolding in realtime. It created a stronger sense of immersion and urgency, as if you are all living the story together and increases attentiveness because, well, we all need to see how it turns out.

JONATHAN FIELDS | jonathanfields.com

Use names and real stories.

Names are incredibly important. I cite academic research and use science to back up my arguments in my presentations. This is a good idea, but the audience doesn’t really remember “Cohort A did this and Cohort B did that.” Plus, listening to how a bunch of academic studies were conducted can sound boring.

The studies are great for adding credibility and making sure you actually share truth rather than opinion, but people remember stories and names. Find examples of real people with stories that can act as an example of the research findings in the real world. Tell their story as an intro to the academic stuff and people will 1) believe your points and 2) remember the real people in the stories you tell.

JAMES CLEAR | jamesclear.com

TOP I C

15.

16.

17.

S T O R I E S

Page 10: SPEAKING TIPS - Home - Grant Baldwingrantbaldwin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/23-Speaker... · 2016-08-22 · The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really

Let people move.

There’s an old line in the speaking profession “the brain can only absorb

what the butt can endure” — you need to let people move. During my

speech, I plan for some kind of activity about every 10 to 12 minutes.

Follow that formula and you’re presentation will stand out at any event.

Here’s how: journaling — asking your audience to write is a great way to

get everyone involved and wake up kinaesthetic learners (people that

learn by doing). For example, ask them to write down three challenges

they face in their business, or one goal they have for the year. turn to

your partner — a fail-safe exercise is to ask the audience to share a

challenge or insight with the person next to them. To avoid anyone being

left out, invite them to form a group of three, if they need to, stand and

find a new partner — people tend to sit with friends.

Encourage new perspectives by asking the audience to stand, find a

new partner and share what they’ve learned. Any excuse to get your

audience to move will increase their attention and retention, and make

you look like a rock star.

HUGH CULVER | hughculver.com

TOP I C

18.

I N T E R A C T I O N

Page 11: SPEAKING TIPS - Home - Grant Baldwingrantbaldwin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/23-Speaker... · 2016-08-22 · The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really

Interact with the crowd before your talk.

Whenever possible I try to interact with some portion of the crowd ahead

of my talk. I do this in a couple ways. When I work with a group in the

planning phase I’ll ask if I can interview three or four attendees prior to

the event. This gives me some great information and specifics for my talk,

plus I now have at least three friends.

On site at a small event, I make an effort to say hello to as many people

as possible and at a large event I might just pull up a chair at a table and

chat. Sometimes they know I’m the speaker, sometimes they don’t but

either way I get to ask a few relevant questions about their challenges

and later during my talk I get to say, “I was talking with Judy from XYZ

corp” and she mentioned “something really interesting.” I know some

speakers like to prep behind the curtain, but I actually find one of the

most calming things I can do pre-talk is connect with audience members.

JOHN JANTSCH | johnjantsch.com

People love to laugh.

The wisest piece of speaking advice I ever received came from my

grandfather — a man who, now in his 90s, still speaks publicly every

week. Over the years, I have found his advice to be as simple as it is

profound: Always remember, people love to laugh. Be sure to give them

opportunity to do so.

JOSHUA BECKER | becomingminimalist.com

TOP I C

19.

20.

I N T E R A C T I O N

Page 12: SPEAKING TIPS - Home - Grant Baldwingrantbaldwin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/23-Speaker... · 2016-08-22 · The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really

Know your time limit.

This tip is going to seem incredibly small, but if you don’t do this, your whole speech could be ruined. Here’s my tip: Ask everyone associated with the event how much time you have to speak. Ask the sound guy. Ask the speaker host. Ask the event planner. Ask everyone. Make sure you do this right before you speak because times change during events as other speakers take too long or go too short. The last thing you want is to find out mid speech that you’re out of time.

JON ACUFF | acuff.me

Be discreet to check the time.

Never go over your given time slot but never let the audience see you check your watch. I reach for a bottle of water and glance at mine when there is no clock handy.

SCOTT STRATTEN | scottstratten.com

Get to know the tech team.

Get to know the person or people who will be handling the tech in your room beforehand. Shake their hands, ask if there’s anything you can do to help (or perhaps offer a coffee), and just make sure they have what they need from you prior to your time on stage to reduce the risk that something is missing or could go wrong. That little connection with the tech person can mean a whole lot when they take a little extra care for you to make sure all systems are go.

PAT FLYNN | smartpassiveincome.com

TOP I C

21.

22.

23.

W O R K I N G W I T H T H E C L I E N T

Page 13: SPEAKING TIPS - Home - Grant Baldwingrantbaldwin.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/23-Speaker... · 2016-08-22 · The thing that most speakers don’t do is practice. I mean, really

Learn more about becoming a speaker atwww.TheSpeakerLab.com

PODCAST

The Speaker Labwww.thespeakerlab.com/podcast

Go to the ‘Ask Grant’ page to have your question answered on an upcoming episode of the show!

FREE FACEBOOK GROUP FOR SPEAKERS

www.TheSpeakerLabGroup.com

FREE EMAIL COURSE

Get Started As A Speakerwww.BookedAndPaidToSpeak.com

P LU S