Being a professional speaker is an actual business and should be treated as such. There are a lot of things that you should consider when trying out this kind of business. This involves workshops, practice, trainings and a great amount of money to do it right.
The deceptive part here is that there are a successful people who maybe did few, if any, of the above suggestion. Maybe they just got discovered on the corner of the street. But what would make the difference is that they worked hard to get where they are now.
If you’re aspiring to become like them, you can kickstart your motivational speaking career by following these steps.
- Know your audience. Find valuable topics that you think will not just pique the interest of people but also change their lives. Once you’ve identified your topic, write a humorous, substantive, award winning one hour speech about it.
- Your speech should not only be better, but also unique. Being prepared is the key. Do not present when you are not yet ready. Quality is supreme over quantity.
- Ask opinions from strangers rather than your friends, they are more straightforward than your friends. Try to present it to the professionals in meetings so you would know what they think when they criticize you and what delivery style would work on you.
- Keep on trying. Experience is what you need to know what works well and what does not. When you think it is good enough, deliver it to small groups for a low fee, or even for free.
- Get professional help when shooting sessions. A good videographer would not just become your employee but your friend. Hire a professional editor to edit scenes for you. Upload your videos as proof that you can deliver a great message.
- Get someone who could maintain your website. You should appear at the top of search engines when people search for ‘motivational speaker’.
- Find out how to attract audience to yourself. Market yourself right. Try to meet other people who could recommend you to their friends.
- Going to conferences is a must. Try out the meetings of the National Speakers Association. Aside from learning from the speakers, you meet a lot of people who can share their experiences with you.
- Find professionals in the field who inspire you. Use them as your guide on what you do. Use them to be an inspiration and a model for what you think would also work for you.
- Be committed in what you do. Plan on how you want to achieve your goal to be awesome in the business.
- Do it more for the values that you will impart rather than the money that you will earn.