A fate worse than death, that’s how the majority of people feel about public speaking. According to the pollsters, public speaking is America’s greatest fear. But, despite the fact that more people would rather die than talk to a group of people, the truth is, knowing how to do it well could mean a boost in business.
Learning how to prepare a speech, complete with a clear topic, bullet points, and a take-away thought for your audience, is a valuable set of skills. If you own a business or if you sell a product or service, the ability to be persuasive is important. So is practicing the art of being concise and relevant.
When you take the time to outline the points of a speech, prepare a slide deck or other visual aids, and mustering up the courage to stand in front of room, you gain a tremendous amount of confidence. You know that you know what you’re talking about.
Plus, the best part of all, the part that helps your business, is when you are a presenter, your audience automatically assumes you are an expert on that topic (whether you consider yourself an expert or not!)
Because most of the people you speak to won’t have the courage to get up and address a crowd, the fact that you do elevates your status to a whole new level. And that is definitely good for business.
Maybe this all sounds great, but you have no idea how to go about it. What should you do?
There are several ways to get experience as a public speaker before actually taking the stage. Networking groups often offer opportunities to address the other members. Your local Chamber of Commerce is likely to have networking events with potential opportunities to present.
BNI (Business Networking International) is an organization where business owners get together to pass leads to each other, and most chapters offer the opportunity to speak to the group about what you do.
Toastmasters is dedicated to developing excellent public speaking skills. Whether you have experience or not, you can improve by getting specific instruction and feedback from fellow members. Leadership is another component of Toastmasters that can impact your business.
Even if you never stand on a stage or speak to an audience, you do talk to customers or clients on a daily basis. Investing the time to learn these valuable skills will most definitely pay off, whether you choose public speaking or just presenting to a single client.
Regardless of how you use the knowledge, gaining a set of public speaking skills is something you won’t regret.
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