USING EXAMPLES IN PUBLIC SPEAKING
by Lura Lisa Wall for Dr. Gary Arnold
As Gary says, "Life doesn’t have to be hard. Through transformative thought we can turn life’s challenges into opportunities."
Have you ever tried to think of an example to illustrate a point and then found your own life experience is the example. This recently happened without me realizing it until I paid attention.
A trusted friend, Gary Arnold, whose spiritual and business acumen I really admire invited me to join him in helping a wide audience with public speaking skills. Professionally somewhat of a skeptic but spiritually a believer that I receive messages from the Unseen through those I speak and listen to, I agreed to at least write this article. The topic was chosen blindly when Gary closed his eyes, flipped to a random page on an eighteen page table of contents and put his finger on a topic: Using Examples in Public Speaking.
The idea of actually participating grew on me when Gary told me he’d remunerate me and I thought the whole endeavor might help me prepare for a speaking engagement on my calendar. Gary recommended the book Storms of Perfection by Andy Andrews which I quickly ordered to review prior to my talk. Although the book did not come in before the event, I do believe the synchronistic energy created with Gary was felt in the days before the speech and enhanced my passion in its delivery. I was dismayed, however, that I got no applause after the speech.
Afterward, I noticed the book had been delivered to my front stoop. I brought it in but did not get a chance to read it until a week later. It was Sunday morning and I was soon to be on my way to church but stopped to read a story or three in Storms of Perfection which is a collection of stories of rejection endured by successful people from all walks of life before they became famous. The one that most spoke to me was the letter written to the author by Joan Rivers. After reading how much rejection she overcame while sticking to her show business dream, I thought of how, even today, she could share Rodney Dangerfield’s lament “I get no respect”, yet I dare say every American adult knows the name and persona of Joan Rivers.
On arriving at church, I was surprised to hear the visiting minister take her lesson from the exact same Bible verse I had spoken on (passionately) the previous Sunday. She had a slightly different message from the taken out of Mark 9:24: “Lord I believe, help me mine unbelief.” However, in many respects the message was the same, as was our style. Neither of us used notes, we both used props but she got the applause I was hoping for. The perfection was that the Storms stories were so fresh in my mind that I was able to draw on them to turn this challenge into an opportunity. It was so perfect that I read the Storm stories that day rather than in the weeks leading up to my talk.
Two additional lessons I learned, actually by forgetting a part of my talk, which I berated myself for omitting. First, I realized I’ve seen wonderful speakers refer (almost imperceptibly) to notes before leaving a podium to make sure they’ve left out nothing important. Through this experience, I’ve decided to make this part of my routine in speaking. There are no mistakes only lessons. Second, things turn out for the best if I see it that way. In thanking the visiting minister for her talk after the service, she shared with me that the English interpretation I was going to quote from the Aramaic language of New Testament times was highly suspected to be an incorrect interpretation and could have been controversial, even offensive to some in my audience. My husband, who also has occasion to speak publicly, observed that we usually greatly exaggerate the importance of the point we forgot. This is a human tendency we can more quickly turn around once we learn to look at challenges as the opportunities we create for ourselves as to live and learn from.
I might add here that after my talk 3 things came to mind. First, I did get complements from the audience. Second, I believe knowing and relating to my particular audience on a personal level was very helpful. And 3rd, I am in New Orleans and we had just won the Super Bowl when I told my story. So of course I added a little about the New Orleans Saints. I got a very warm reception and round of applause for my talk.
Dr. Gary Arnold, CEO of Windhorse Corp., is the author of 13 books, over 100 audio books and 12 DVD movies. He is an international coach for the Speaking Elite with over 25 years of coaching experience working with the top 1% of speakers in the nation. Dr. Gary Arnold is an expert at helping professional speakers monetize their speaking career using his cutting edge on-line and off-line marketing tactics. Gary has sold over 10 million dollars on-line in the last 4 years. He uses his 25 years of Professional Speaking and Marketing experience to show speakers how to drive highly targeted traffic to their websites. (Gary has traveled the world the equivalent of 22 times delivering over 1200 paid public talks). He has personally taught several thousand speakers his cutting edge marketing methods and techniques. Gary is available to professional speakers on a limited basis for private strategy coaching. (To read more about Dr. Gary Arnold and how to become a 6 Figure Speaker, check out his blog post – http://InspiringSpeakers.blogspot.com )
To get more tips you can use immediately to improve monetizing your presentation skills, sign up for Dr. Gary Arnold’s monthly e-newsletter by visiting www.6figureSpeakers.com and entering your email address. To join Dr. Gary Arnold’s weekly 6 Figure Speaker Teleconference go to: www.21daysorless.us Copyright (c) 2011 |
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