Speaking Career Jobs

With the dismal job reports and the decline in our economy many U.S. employees are looking at alternatives. Some are considering a speaking career in the public speaking industry. Some have attended keynote speeches and thought to themselves "if that speaker can have a speaking career...then maybe I can do that too". Well don't underestimate the time and energy it takes to prepare a keynote speech. Learn from Winston Churchill. One day, while Prime Minister Churchill was splashing in his bathtub, his valet overheard him loudly talking. Believing he needed assistance, the valet entered and inquired, “Did you call, Sir?” “No,” Churchill replied. “I was just giving a speech to The House of Commons.”
At the small risk of leaving myself open to a charge of splitting hairs rather than implanting new growths, I’ve decided to separate practice out from underneath the umbrella of preparation. Practicing, or rehearsing, stands alone in effectively extinguishing fear. That said, let’s explore the value of vigorous rehearsal. You’d never have caught Sir Winston standing before Parliament and winging it. In fact, according to James vanFleet, in his book, Hidden Power, Churchill never made a speech of major importance without first rehearsing it in front of a mirror. Imagine the man voted the greatest speaker of the twentieth century, standing up there after the Battle of Britain, holding a page of hastily written notes in his hand, totally unrehearsed, coming up with: Never, in the course of human suffering, have so many owed so much to so few. Wouldn’t have happened. Maybe instead… Well done, lads. We all owe you a bloody lot, we do. Would you want some of the other professionals you deal with to wing it? Would you want your surgeon telling you, “You know, I’ve never done one of these before, but there has to be a first; so I’m excited about opening you up, and we’ll just take it from here. We can share this experience together.” How about the contractor building your house or the person piloting the next plane you’re scheduled to fly? You wouldn’t want them just winging it would you? So, why would the expectations be any different for those condidering a speaking career?
I want to follow up a little on this notion that rehearsing serves to create a stiff and stilted performance. It’s honestly quite the opposite. Far from forcing your presentation into a rigid form, a good rehearsal process gives you exciting new ways of looking at your material, your
audience, and yourself. Don't give in to the lazy minded idea that you can just stand and speak what you feel instead be like Winston Churchill. Rehearse, Rehearse Rehearse.