Public speaking and presentation skills are skills that we all need at some point in our lives. Many people have a deep fear of public speaking and fear it more than even death.
“According to most studies, people’s number one fear is public speaking. Number two is death. Death is number two. Sound good? This means that for the average person, if you go to a funeral, you’d be better off in the casket than doing the eulogy.
jerry seinfield
While you can’t cheat death, anyone can learn public speaking and presentations. Surely it would be better to master these skills than to tremble in mortal fear every time you are asked to make a presentation. Wouldn’t it be great to see such requests as a great opportunity to sell yourself, your products and/or services?
Now, selling is one of the most hated professions, but everyone is in the sales business, believe it or not. Nothing happens without a sale. Robert Louis Stevenson said “Everyone lives by selling something” and one of the greatest orators in the world said:
“Half my life I have made a living selling words, and I wait for thoughts.”
Sir Winston Churchill
Fundamentally, when you’re in public speaking or giving a presentation, you’re selling words, but it’s your ability to organize and deliver words coherently, congruently, and convincingly that counts. In order to sell effectively you must have great communication skills.
Topher Morrison, a master NLP trainer and speaker, said that a friend of his wanted to buy a Rolex watch. They visited a local store in Tampa, Florida, but because the salesperson didn’t have good presentation skills, his friend left without making a purchase. When you’re about to spend thousands of dollars, you want to be served in a particular way. In fact, his friend took a trip to the Bahamas just to buy his Rolex watch and justified the trip by saying that the savings he made buying the watch duty-free paid for the trip.
How much money are you losing every day because you lack public speaking and presentation skills?
John Childers, described as the “millionaire maker” and who teaches one of the most expensive public speaking training courses in the world, describes public speaking as “the most profitable skill in the world”. He has trained some of the biggest names in the public speaking field, people like Alex Mandossian, Armand Morin, Mark Victor Hansen, Mike Filsaime, Debra Johnson and the list goes on and on. Everyone knows the value of public speaking to grow their business. Regardless of the different products and services they offer, they all use their public speaking skills to promote their products and services as well as those of others.
By speaking in public and making presentations, you increase your visibility and the visibility of your company or organization. You can’t be successful if no one knows about you. Public speaking is one of the best ways to gain visibility and build your business. Arvee Robinson, who describes herself as a “persuasive speech coach,” says that every time she speaks, she gets new clients.
How much is a new customer worth to you?
Don’t think that these skills are limited to standing on a stage in front of tens or even hundreds of people. Don’t think that a presentation has to last for hours. It can be mere minutes. Christine Comaford-Lynch, author of “Rogue Rules,” said she once camped out in a company reception area for six hours for a chance to meet with her CEO. She wanted him to join the board of directors of one of her companies. If she was successful in her mission, she would have added enormous value to the perceived financial value of her business. Literally millions of dollars were at stake. After waiting hours for the opportunity to speak with this CEO, she had minutes to persuade her to come on board. Can you see how critical presentation skills would be in a situation like this?
When you introduce yourself, you use these abilities. Do you want to have an immediate impact? Do you want to be a person that people gravitate towards and want to meet? Or do you want to be the person that no one remembers? An introduction can last a few seconds and yet leave a lasting impression. You want that impression to be favorable.
Some people are natural speakers, but even they have to practice. The best professional public speakers spend years honoring their craft. Dave Lakhani, speaker and author of “Persuasion: The Art of Getting What You Want” says:
“Speaking is a business and a process, and processes are built on the foundation of education.”
By mastering public speaking and presentation skills, you can build a career that will serve you a lifetime and earn you income anywhere in the world. Even if he doesn’t want to become a professional speaker by mastering his public speaking and presentation skills, he can greatly improve his business profit margins and improve his quality of life.