Wednesday, May 13, 2015

What Makes a GREAT Speaker

Blog Hop
Welcome to our May Blog Hop!

This month we are so excited to help you in your business and life. You’ll find fabulous articles, how-to’s and resources for you today that have helped each consultant, blogger, and business owner on the hop in their own lives and businesses. Get ready to be inspired for a wonderful month ahead of you as you move along through the blog hop.

You may just be starting the blog hop or may have come from #1 Natalie Bradley Consulting, on Natalie Bradley’s Blog Hop. If you get off track at any time, the full lineup below will help you move along from blog to blog so you make sure to see and learn from all of the articles featured here today.

Today I am going to talk about what makes a GREAT Speaker.

Have you ever heard a great speaker and thought to yourself “Wow, I wish I could speak like them but I’ll never be able to do what they’re doing!” Well, I want you to know it is possible. No one is born a natural speaker. They learned the skills and strategies to becoming a GREAT speaker. And, so can you!

I remember seeing Suze Orman, the financial guru, speak at a conference. As soon as she walked on stage, she connected with us. She was down-to-earth, funny, and knowledgeable. She shared her own personal story of growing up in Chicago, working as a waitress for several years making only $400 a month. Although she has achieved great success and fame, she had her ups and downs just like you and me. Because she shared authentically from her heart, she had us all sitting on the edge of our seats listening to every word she said.

Here’s 10 valuable tips to draw the audience to you from the beginning to end of your talk.
  1. Know who’s in your audience before you speak. Call the event or program planner to find out the profile of the people attending.
  2. Arrive early before you speak and walk around introducing yourself to some of the people. This helps to relax you and get you related to them.
  3. If you’re speaking for a half-hour to an hour, your talk should cover only 3-4 points. The audience can only retain a limited amount of information in a short period of time.
  4. Let the audience know at the beginning what you’ll be talking about and how long you’ll be speaking.
  5. Speak to only one person at a time for about 4-5 seconds. Don’t look over their heads. Speak to them. This helps to reduce nervousness, increase confidence, and connect with the audience.
  6. Create a compelling memorable story. People are interested in “you.” By sharing a memorable story, you’re connecting with the audience at a more personal level. They now will feel more related to you and what you have to say.
  7. Engage the audience throughout your presentation and make it interactive. Check in with them by asking questions. It’s much more fun when you include them.
  8. Throughout your talk, share other stories about people who you helped and the results. People love to hear real-life stories of triumph and success.
  9. End your talk with a “call to action.” What do you want as an outcome for your talk? Do you want the audience to take an action step? Do you want them to buy your product or service?
  10. Capture your audience. If you want to keep in touch with them, offer to send them notes from your talk or give a gift if they give you their business cards.
The next stop is my good friend, #3 M. Shannon Hernandez on Natalie Bradley’s Blog Hop! Thanks for visiting and I hope to see you again next month!
  1. Natalie Bradley at Natalie Bradley Consulting
  2. Rochelle Togo-Figa at RTF Coaching <<– you are here!
  3. M. Shannon Hernandez at The Writing Whisperer
  4. Jill Russo Foster at JillRussoFoster.com
  5. Deb Brown at Touch Your Client’s Heart
  6. Vicki Heise at Vicki Heise ~ Live Your Healthy Life
  7. Kim McDaniels at iBiz Design Duchess
  8. Robin Hardy at Integrity Virtual Services
  9. Heidi Kleine at Worth it Woman
  10. Ronda Neufeld at Ronda Neufeld Relationship & Life Coach
Here’s to your breakthroughs…
Rochelle Togo-Figa

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    Wednesday, March 11, 2015

    You Gotta Grab Their Attention From The Start

    Blog Hop 
    Welcome to our March Blog Hop!

    This month we want to help you experience success in your business and life, featuring articles, how-to’s and resources for you today that have helped each consultant, blogger and business owner on the hop in their own lives and businesses. Get ready to be inspired for a fabulous year ahead of you as you move along through the blog hop.

    You may just be starting the blog hop or may have come from #4 Vicki Heise at Live Your Healthy Life, on Natalie Bradley’s Blog Hop. If you get off track at any time, the full lineup below will help you move along from blog to blog so you make sure to see and learn from all of the articles featured here today.

    Today I am going to talk to you about how to grab your audiences attention from the start.

    I'm sure you'd agree we are inundated with many e-mails inviting us to sign up for a teleclass, webinar, or workshop. We don't have the time to read all the way through the description. Unless the title grabs our attention in the first few moments, we hit the delete button. The same happens when you give a talk. The audience makes a decision as to whether they're interested in what you have to say within the first three minutes of your talk, so it's important to keep in mind you only have a few moments to grab their attention.
    Here are four steps to grab the audience's attention easily and quickly right from the start:
    1. Create a catchy title that addresses their pain. With all the information we receive, people may not read further than your title, so make the title of your talk quickly grab their attention. As you think about what to say in your title, think about what matters most to your audience. What's their pain? What will they gain from your talk? Be clear and descriptive in your title. Instead of "Learn How to Become a Speaker," a more exciting title would be "The 9 Best-Kept Secrets to Exploding Your Business as a Speaker."
    2. Tell your personal story. Begin your talk by telling your personal story of how you got to be who you are today. The fastest way to draw the audience to you is being authentic. When you share something personal about yourself, the audience feels more connected to you. They can relate to you more through your story and that will draw them to you. The speakers who leave the strongest impression on you are the ones who share something personal about themselves. We quickly get engaged when a person shares their humanity as we can all relate to that.
    3. Describe your story vividly and specifically. As you tell your story, speak in the present tense. Share your story as if it's happening right now and describe it with excitement and energy. I remember seeing Suze Orman, the financial expert, speak at a conference. As soon as she walked on stage, she connected with everyone in the audience. She was down to earth, funny, and knowledgeable. She shared how she had grown up on the poor side of Chicago, working as a waitress, making only a few hundred dollars a month. She had her ups and downs just like us but because she shared authentically from her heart, she had us all sitting on the edge of our seats listening to every word she said.
    4. Other ways to start off your talk. The point is you're engaging the audience right from the start. Some other ways to quickly grab the audience's attention is by sharing a story about a client, or asking a question to engage the audience, or sharing some current news story, or some startling statistic that relates to your talk. I've started off a talk about speaking by saying, "Did you know most people would rather be the person being eulogized than the person giving the eulogy?" I always hear a few chuckles and people nodding their heads in agreement. These short factual statements quickly grab the audience's attention.
    The next stop is my good friend, #6 Robin Hardy on Natalie Bradley’s Blog Hop! Thanks for visiting and I hope to see you again next month!
    1. Natalie Bradley a Natalie Bradley Consulting
    2. Debra Burdick at The Brain Lady
    3. Deb Brown at Touch Your Client’s Heart
    4. Vicki Heise at Live Your Healthy Life 
    5. Rochelle Togo-Figa at Speaking Breakthrough Strategist <<– you are here!
    6. Robin Hardy at Integrity Virtual Services
    7. Chérie Ronning at Chérie Ronning, Consultant-Mentor-Speaker
    8. Kim McDaniels at iBiz Design Duchess
    Here’s to your breakthroughs…
    Rochelle Togo-Figa

    Sign Up to Receive Free
    Video Speaking Series
    Immediate Access to 3 Successful Speaker Strategies
    Complete the form to get immediate access.

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      Wednesday, January 14, 2015

      Does the Thought of Failing Keep You From Pursuing Your Dream of Becoming a Speaker?

      Blog Hop
      You may just be starting the blog hop or may have come from #5 Vicki Heise at Live Your Healthy Life, on Natalie Bradley’s Blog Hop. If you get off track at any time, the full lineup below will help you move along from blog to blog so you make sure to see and learn from all of the articles featured here today.

      Today I am going to talk to you about getting past your fear of becoming a speaker.

      Nervous WomanDoes the thought of failing keep you from pursuing your dream of becoming a speaker? If the answer is “yes,” you’re not alone. When we hear the word “fail,” we connect it to something negative and bad. For many people, the thought of failing brings up strong feelings and emotions. The feelings are so strong, it’s feels safer not to take on new things.
      If you’ve read the bios of most successful people, you’ll see they’ve all failed many times over before they achieved success.
      Here are four key steps to help you move through the fear and be willing to take that risk.
      1. Identify the fear: Write out specifically what the fear is, including all the details. To move through the fear; you first have to clarify exactly what the fear is.
      2. Emotions and feelings: Write the feelings you’re experiencing as you think about your fear. Do you feel scared, nervous, frustrated, anxious, angry, or hopeless? The clearer you are about the feelings connected to the fear, the easier it will be to move through it.
      3. Identify the fear: Ask yourself, “Is this a real or self-imposed fear? A real fear would be if you were about to be pushed out of an airplane. A self-imposed fear is a fear you’re experiencing that hasn’t happened. Once you identify that it’s a self-imposed fear and your life is not in danger, you now know you’re in charge and can take action.
      4. Woman ExcitedAction steps: A powerful way to move through the fear is taking action. Once you take that first step, you’ll feel freedom and confidence because you’re taking charge of your life and the next steps become easier to take.
      They say in life you’re either growing or contracting. The only way to grow is to be willing to not let fear stop you. I invite you to be willing to move the fear and become the speaker you’ve always wanted to be!
      The next stop is my good friend, #7 Lisa Ivaldi at InsightClarityGrowth.com on Natalie Bradley’s Blog Hop! Thanks for visiting and I hope to see you again next month!
      1. Natalie Bradley at Natalie Bradley Consulting
      2. Cari Vollmer at PassionIntoProfit.com
      3. Debra Burdick at The Brain Lady
      4. Janet Slack at Solopreneur.Biz
      5. Vicki Heise at Live Your Healthy Life 
      6. Rochelle Togo-Figa at Speaking Breakthrough Strategist 
      7. Lisa Ivaldi at InsightClarityGrowth.com
      8. Robin Hardy at Integrity Virtual Services
      9. Sandra Gardner at Tall Red Poppy // Marketing, Magic, & Design Sanctuary
      10. Deb Brown at Touch Your Client’s Heart
      11. Jill Russo Foster at JillRussoFoster.com
      12. Kim McDaniels at iBiz Design Duchess 
      13. Sharon Lewis at Questiam Leadership Development
      14. Chérie Ronning at Chérie Ronning, Consultant-Mentor-Speaker
      Here’s to your breakthroughs…
      Rochelle Togo-Figa

      Sign Up to Receive Free
      Video Speaking Series
      Immediate Access to 3 Successful Speaker Strategies
      Complete the form to get immediate access.

         *