Public Speaking for Your Business
It is said that most people fear the idea of public speaking more than they fear their own impending death. I can speak from personal experience and tell you this was most definitely true in my case. Even though I had been a classroom teacher for twenty years before coming online, the very thought of speaking to a group of adults struck fear in my heart and mind.
Because of this I told myself a story (it was not at all true) that I did not want to become a public speaker. I attended two Toastmasters meetings before throwing in the towel, and when I spoke to a small group (fewer than a dozen) real estate agents on a topic I knew extremely well my mouth became as dry as the Sahara. People kept telling me that doors of opportunity would open up as soon as I started speaking, but I continued to tell myself that I did not want to pursue that path along my journey to entrepreneurship.
What changed my mind? Actually, it was a series of events that occurred during 2006, my first year online. The first of these was joining my local Rotary Club. They would regularly thrust the microphone into my hands so I could tell our members about our upcoming projects. After I would speak and pass the microphone to the next person I couldn’t hear anything for the next few minutes. My face and ears were hot, I was thirsty, and I thought everyone was staring at me. But afterwards people would come up to me and thank me for the information and I enjoyed that feedback. I made the conscious decision to keep on speaking even though it was physically painful each time.
Right around this time I was asked to make a presentation on topics related to online marketing to a local group of small business owners. I believed they already knew more than I did and didn’t want to speak to them at that event. The man putting on the workshop asked me personally to share what I was learning about blogging, SEO, and social media and I decided not to let him down.
This event went much better than my Rotary speaking experiences, most likely because I had a bit more experience under my belt. The business owners were not familiar with the information I shared and again the feedback was very positive.
Within a year I was giving live presentations to Rotary’s District Conferences with audiences of several hundred people, as well as being asked to speak at a marketing conference in Atlanta the following spring. Each time I was nervous leading up to my public speaking, but once I got started the nerves subsided and I was able to deliver helpful information.
I can even remember the time I was speaking at a marketing event in Minneapolis the following summer and I began to have fun with the audience. At that moment I told myself to remember this forever, because it was exactly the feeling I had been reaching for during the previous couple of years.
If you have any interest at all in public speaking to enhance your life and business, step forward and accept all invitations. I’ve now spoken on three continents, as well as on hundreds of webinars and teleseminars and I will tell you that my opportunities continue to grow and doors to open because I was willing to share my knowledge and experiences with others.
I’m Connie Ragen Green, online marketing strategist, bestselling author, and international speaker on the topics of entrepreneurship and inner game mind shifts. Let’s connect to see how I may best serve you in the near future.
