Fear of Failing Keeping You from Becoming a Speaker?

Does 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 4 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 endangered, you now know you’re in charge and can take action.
4. Action 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!

Create a Blueprint Plan for Your Event

Once you have created a vision for your event and have made the commitment, now it’s time to create the blueprint plan. A blueprint plan is the #1 key to planning an event that’s successful.

Your blueprint plan includes the following and much more…

• Where the event will be held.
• How many people you want to attend.
• Hours of the event.
• What the attendees will walk away with.
• What bonuses you will offer.
• How you will market it and to whom you will market it to.

There are many parts to creating an event. By creating a blueprint plan, it keeps you organized as you have all the details on paper.

Mistakes to Avoid When Planning Your Event

Planning your first event can be very exciting and overwhelming at the same time. There are many facets to planning a successful event. You don’t want to rush into it without a clear plan in place.
Here are four mistakes to avoid when planning your event:

1. Not planning far enough in advance. If you’re planning for 25-40 to attend, give yourself about 60 days to plan. For larger events, give yourself 3-4 months to plan.
2. Doing it all yourself. It’s impossible to do it yourself, especially a live event. Write down everything that needs to be done and hire people to do some of the tasks.
3. Ineffective social media. The key to success is to make sure you are marketing and promoting on the right social medial platforms. Don’t promote just to promote.
4. Not creating a sense of urgency in your marketing. It’s not enough to ask people to register. You have to entice them to do so. The best way to do this is to offer discounted registration prices, also known as Early Bird Specials.

Terrified of Speaking?

Studies have shown that one of the top fears people have is speaking to groups. For some people, when it comes to speaking, they'd rather be the one being eulogized than the person giving the eulogy!

Even well-known celebrities have admitted fears of speaking in public. Barbra Streisand stopped singing for 20 years due to her anxiety about performing in front of an audience.

How many times have you watched a speaker and thought, "I can do that!" And then that little inner critic in your head starts making noise and tells you, "Who am I kidding! I'm not a speaker... I can't do this." The more you think these thoughts, the more you believe it's true. The truth is none of us was born a natural speaker.

When the little inner critic starts making noise, what you should be saying to that voice is, "Thanks for sharing!" Don't let your inner critic sway you from staying in action.

There's nothing wrong with being a little nervous before you speak. In fact, a little bit of adrenalin is good because it keeps you alert, focused, and energized as you speak.

Make The Call to Action

Many speakers end their talk with just, "Thank you for coming." This is a big mistake. Besides giving lots of value in your talk, the most important part is letting the audience know what "the next steps" are. We call those next steps the "call to action." If you’ve delivered value to your audience, they’re interested in what your offerings are. At the end of your talk is a huge opportunity to present other offerings such as a program or product. Be sure you let the audience know what the “call to action” is before your talk ends.

Don’t Just Read

Once you’re up on stage, if all you do is read from your notes, you’ll quickly lose your audience. It’s common for new speakers to attach themselves to their notes because it feels safe; however, people have come to hear what you have to say and they want to see you looking at them when you speak. They want to connect with you, so give them every opportunity to do that.

Your notes are there to guide you through your presentation. Remember to stay out there with the audience and not buried in your notes.

Don’t Overwhelm

No matter how long your presentation is, be sure not to overwhelm your audience with too much information, however valuable. When they feel overwhelmed, they’ll tune out. As you design your 30-60 minute talk, cover no more than (3) or (4) points. At the start of your presentation let the audience know what the agenda is and how long you’ll be speaking. By doing this, you’re respecting the audience’s time and you’ll then have their full attention for the entire presentation.

More Common Speaking Mistakes and Tips on How to Avoid Them

  
In a previous video, I shared the “5 Common Mistakes Speakers Make.” I received such positive feedback that I decided to share four more tips. These tips will be especially helpful if you’re new to speaking or having difficulty harnessing the “jitters” we’ve all experienced. Identifying these mistakes, and how to overcome them, are sure-fire ways to catapult your success as a speaker. I truly hope you find these four tips helpful and they make a difference for you as a speaker!

 Click here to view the video.