Proper Preparation Is The Key To A Successful Speech
Proper Preparation Is The Key To A Successful Speech
By Peter “The Humorator” Fogel
Whether I am giving a motivational keynote speech on humor or presenting a corporate comedy show for a client, I want to go the extra mile.
You see, when my services are engaged one of my main objectives is to make the person who hired me thrilled with the results, because they are being evaluated based on their decision to hire me. Their reputation is on line.
That's why it's important for you to always give 110% in preparation for your speech.
Why Are You Giving The Speech To Begin With?
Remember: when giving a speech, you are there for a very important reason. Yes, you're speaking to hopefully acquire clients and sell products or services. Yes, it's a very cool way to earn a living with attendees coming up and handing you their VISA or business card. Yes, you can make a lot of money.
All that will come when you really stand-out in your audience's hearts and minds and solve their problems.
When I am doing a keynote speech on humor to a specific group I use this technique, and you can do the same - to really show them that you did your homework. It takes some time on your part, but it will be worth it.
Talk to the person who hired you, to management, as well as the rank and file folks at the firm. Find out what their daily challenges are then discover a solution for it.
You see, once you're armed with this info then it's your job to 'find the humor' in their predicament. Humor disarms stress and problems of all shapes and sizes.
Discover the common theme that every one is talking about...find out what keeps these folks up at night. Once you hear the same thing over and over again--then you know you can mine 'some gold' out of the predicament.
You see, right then and there you've customized your speech for your audience. It's all theirs now. You are speaking about their problems, having fun with it, and giving them techniques to over come their challenges.
How To Personalize A Story
'Hey, folks I would've been here earlier but I was stuck talking to (Insert name of problem person) in the hallway. Hey (Insert)’s a great guy...but what's the deal with (Insert problem)? He seems to be really into this...let's figure what this is all about.
See how this is done? You are personalizing your speech. Do your homework on a consistent basis and you will have higher evaluation forms. Higher evaluation forms mean more money for you down the road.
How will it make you more money? You can now tell perspective clients that you can deliver a customized speech for their organization--that is why your fee is higher than your competitors. Try the above techniques. They work. In the future, I will show you how to construct humor out of pain so you can deliver strong content that will give you an even more powerful presentation to your group.
Peter Fogel is the creator of Peter “The Humorator” Fogel’s Guide To Effective Public Speaking. For more information on it and to sign up for his FREE 7 Days To Effective Public Speaking E-course go to www.fortune500comedy.com/PublicSpeakingEBook/index.html
Peter J. Fogel is a copywriter/speaker and the author of the book, “If Not Now… then When? Stories and Strategies of People Over 40 Who Have Successfully Reinvented Themselves.” As a comedian he's appeared on “CBS Morning Program”, “Evening at The Improv”, “Caroline’s Comedy Hour”, “Comedy Central”, and has worked on such sitcoms as “Married With Children” and “Hope and Faith.”
