When someone asks me what I do and I answer: I teach people to speak in public, the responses are as varied as they are interesting. Some tell me "My dream has always been to give a TED Talk", some take me as a therapist explaining that they have always been afraid to speak in front of others, and there are also those who think that public speaking is easy, and that teaching it is easy. The latter couldn't be more wrong, I explain below.
There are two ways to view teaching public speaking.
The first is as a series of tips or non-verbal communication techniques. "Stand up straight", "Plant your feet on the stage", "Recite", "Use your arms in such or such a way"...
The second is as a series of persuasion or manipulation strategies. "Establish rapport", "Hypnotize them with your words",...
Personally, neither of the two convinces me, I believe that Public Speaking is the art of leadership, and that giving a good presentation doesn't depend on whether you wore a tie or not, or whether you do neuro-linguistic programming or not. For me, public speaking has to always be an exercise of honesty, transparency, vulnerability and empathy, and I firmly believe that when it's done that way is when it can give you extraordinary results in your life.
This applies to anyone, but today I specifically want to share with you 7 personal learnings I've had after coaching +500 entrepreneurs to improve their public presentations.
1.- The best way to clarify your competitive advantage is by articulating it in a presentation
At first glance it's not noticeable, but one thing is to think about a competitive advantage, and quite another is to say it out loud. The life of an entrepreneur can (and often is) lonely, you surround yourself with so many people but no one really sees what you see the way you see it. That's why many entrepreneurs turn inward and get caught up unknowingly in their own thoughts.
Has it happened to you that you think something but when you say it out loud it doesn't sound exactly like what you had in mind? Well, the same thing happens when articulating a competitive advantage.
If you're an entrepreneur and you have a business idea, what I first recommend is that you write it down and articulate it as a simple and coherent phrase, and immediately after that start communicating it with anyone who wants to listen. You'll notice that each time you do it, your message changes a bit, as if through a certain type of evolution or natural selection it gets refined, until a moment comes when everyone understands it perfectly, and that's going to be the moment when you have it much clearer.
2.- Your personal brand
Regardless of the business you're trying to build, before creating a brand, you're creating a personal brand. Get used to the idea and make sure you start doing it right.
Your personal brand is equal to your reputation, that is, what others say about you when you're not present, and the best way to build a personal brand is through your message.
What you want is for people to identify you not so much by what you do, but by who you are. Your values, your principles, your stories, your priorities. You. And this image of yours, this identity, is what you need to make sure to communicate through your presentations.
Ask yourself:
How do I make sure that in this presentation, in addition to people understanding what I'm trying to tell them, they understand that I'm a real person of flesh and blood?
How do I make them see the range of my worldview?
In what way can I texture my words so that they not only reflect objective and concrete meanings but through subtext they see and experience what I am and what matters to me?
When you can answer these questions you will have understood what it really means to have a personal brand.
3.- Speaking = Thinking.
Often the most intelligent people are people who use language well, and I believe this goes both ways, stimulating your language can be a way of stimulating your intelligence. Reading frequently and recurrently on a wide variety of topics (and if possible in a variety of languages) can be one of the best ways to stimulate your language, the problem is that very often a person who is trying to put a business just doesn't find the time to read as much as possible.
One of the best alternatives can be to complement your reading habit with other types of media, including:
Reading books. I'm referring to physical books.
There was a time when I stopped reading physical books to read only electronic books. Grave mistake. There's nothing like the physical experience of picking up a book, browsing through it, feeling it, having it next to you, carrying it in your bag, underlining it, marking it up, lending it, using it and re-reading it. Reading physical books for me should be on the number one priority of any entrepreneur, and I'm not just talking about business, marketing or sales books. I'm talking about books of all kinds, including fiction, biographies, classical and modern philosophy books, self-help books, books in English and Spanish. All of them.
Reading electronic books.
As I said, it's not one or the other, it's both, because they are different experiences. A physical book will help you touch the ideas of others. An electronic book lets you have them available all the time and at all times. I'm going to recommend that you get yourself (if you don't have one) an e-book reader. Don't see it as an expense but as an investment, and when you have it make sure to take advantage of it, take it everywhere, take it on trips, to the office, to the gym, to the doctor, everywhere, and whenever you have a few minutes of calm pull out your e-book reader and use it. I'm going to recommend that you change 90% of your social media consumption for this other type of content consumption, the difference is notable.
Listen to audiobooks
Just like with e-books, it's not one or the other, it's both, or all three better said. Read physical books. Also read e-books and make sure to have an Audible membership that has a very reasonable cost, and will allow you to always have something new to listen to. And take advantage of your downtime. For example, when I take my dogs for a walk I don't do it without first plugging into an audiobook. Sometimes I go for long bike rides and take the opportunity to listen to a complete book. Making the habit of complementing your reading with audiobooks will change your life.
Read blogs (of good quality)
I'm not talking about surfing the internet to see what you find. I mean that you identify who the living people are whose ideas interest you, who are your opinion leaders, whose words you value. Find these people and follow them across the web. If they write in a particular medium, make sure you have a subscription to that medium. If they write a blog, subscribe and don't lose sight of them.
Read newsletters
Instead of using your email to receive advertising and garbage from things that don't really give you that much, fill your inbox with subscriptions from people with real content. Search for these daily, weekly or monthly newsletters and when you receive a delivery, commit to reading it and getting value from it.
Listen to podcasts
Of good quality. For example, I love Wondery podcasts. Find your preference and subscribe on Spotify. Invest in good headphones that allow you to listen comfortably for extended periods, because one of the best sources of inspiration can be a good podcast.
Building a repertoire of media can not only help you stimulate and expand your language and vocabulary, but also give you a level of culture that every entrepreneur needs.
4.- It's important to study about other things, not just sales entrepreneurship marketing or business
As an entrepreneur your priority is your business, but don't ignore your brain, which also needs other types of content. Study other things, not just business. If you're interested in art, literature, film, science or whatever, dedicate time to studying these topics. This will ensure you have a wide range of interesting things for your public presentations: examples, trends, stories, tools and more you will find if you look where others aren't looking.
5.- Consistency is important
Something that makes you an entrepreneur is your desire to innovate and find new ways to solve problems, but when it comes to communicating your message you have to resist the impulse to change and stay with the same message. Your message has to be the same always.
6.- Repetition is important
A bit along the same lines, but it's not just consistency, it's also repetition. Make sure that your customers, prospects, employees and more hear your message on a recurring basis. Public speaking is the best way to achieve this.
7.- public speaking is the most important skill
It's no use dedicating time to cultivate yourself, to strengthen your personal brand or to create a business that no one is going to find out about. because if you don't get used to communicating your message with investors, customers, your work team, external stakeholders like government and media, you might as well not waste your time imagining things that will serve no one because no one will find out what you do.
That's why for entrepreneurs, public speaking is not a desirable optional add-on, but rather an indispensable and exclusive requirement for success.
My work teaching people to speak in public has given me uncountable unexpected benefits, one of them is to learn from extraordinary entrepreneurs and businesspeople. This list sums up a bit of what has been valuable for me.
Thank you for reading this post. Since you're here I want to invite you to our December Masterclass: How to Build a Career as a Professional Speaker. You can complete the pre-registration here.