Rory Vaden is a Self-Discipline Strategist who relates profound truths coupled with humorous anecdotes empowering professionals to conquer their fears and take immediate action in their businesses and their lives. Consulting with organizations, companies and individuals on leveraging self-discipline to create extraordinary performance, he has shared the stage with John Maxwell and conducted special programs for both Dave Ramsey and Zig Ziglar’s companies.

His insights on overcoming procrastination, creative avoidance and personal setbacks have been shared on shows such as Oprah radio with Dr. Oz and featured in print media such as SUCCESS™ Magazine. As the Co-Founder of the multi-million dollar public training company, Southwestern Consulting®, his pragmatic advice has been field tested by thousands of professionals from all different industries and he has personally coached clients such as Chad Goldwasser, the former #1 Keller Williams Real Estate Agent Worldwide.

In 2007, Rory became the World Champion of Public Speaking first runner-up for Toastmasters International out of 25,000 entries worldwide. He is the author of the book No Laughs Know Laughs How to Be Funny to Make More Money, and the audio series entitled, “The Audience is NOT in their Underwear: How to Craft Truly Compelling Presentations and Deliver them Like a Champ”. His groundbreaking book “Take The Stairs – Success Means Doing Things You Don’t Want to Do” is set for tentative release in within a year.

Today in addition to being an author, speaker, and entrepreneur, Rory is leading a rapidly growing international social movement called the Take The Stairs World Tour in which he is raising money for charity by climbing the 10 tallest buildings in the world. Combining a hilarious and compelling delivery with unprecedented expertise, Rory energizes audiences into action with his signature program: Take the Stairs – Success Means Doing Things You Don’t Want To Do.

Selling with Social Media

Rory’s presentation at the 2010 NSA Convention was titled Selling with Social Media – Nine Techniques for Using Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to Get Coaching Clients, Book Deals and Keynotes.

Now that the social media craze and rush to popularity is here, the question remains, how do you actually make any cash from all this hoopla? Rory shares practical advice, pragmatic techniques and straightforward methods for maximizing your time online. He shows clients how to get referral business on LinkedIn and how to use Facebook to turn fans into coaching clients.

In this podcast interview I asked Rory where he sees social media going over the next year or two, what it means to generation X/Y and, finally, why anyone in their right mind would want to climb the 10 tallest buildings in the world. To find out why, click on the podcast icon below.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 7:56 — 1.8MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

The annual National Speakers Association Convention was held July 17 -20, 2010 at the Orlando World Center Marriott.

Over 1,500 professional speakers met for the four days and attended a series of main stage keynotes, break out sessions and informal workshops

Attendees generated over 4,300 tweets under the hashtag #nsa10. 3,100 of these were posted by 526 contributors during the week of the conference.

Twitter is ephemeral. It only maintains 10-14 days of content, so this information will soon disappear. However, here’s a useful permanent archive all of the tweets. It’s with deep gratitude to all the attendees who posted their messages that this content has been made available worldwide on Twitter. Thanks!

Building on an idea of listing of “top tweets” I’ve experimented with at other conferences, I’ve curated a list of 206 tweets I found most content-rich and interesting; adding links where appropriate for easy reference; consolidating others. Removing the re-tweets (RT’s) alone reduced the number of total tweets by 35%. The list below is in alphabetical order – no judgment is implied by being #1, #10 or #110.

I feel that this summary listing demonstrates the power of social media to capture elements of an event that would otherwise have been missed.

Please share your own experiences of the event in the blog comments (or on Twitter!). I apologize in advance if I omitted your favorite tweet – feel free to add it to the comments below.

(Oh, and a personal note of thanks to @marshaegan for #56.)

Enjoy!

1. @mpaynknoper: $30 billion eTraining Market. What an opportunity – @ginaschreck.
2. @Ginaschreck: 1,000’s of Pro Spkrs make air even HOTTER in ORLANDO in July!
3. @thomsinger: 17 countries are represented at the NSA convention (18 when you include Texas).
4. @stephenshapiro: 24% of people on LinkedIn have a portfolio value over $250k – @rory_vaden.
5. @Ginaschreck: 63% of marketing professionals said they’re more likely to attend conferences online than in person in 2010 (source: On24).
6. @Ginaschreck: 83% of meeting planners see the need to add virtual elements to their meetings and events (source: Virtual Edge).
7. @allankarl: A great keynote must have a strong thesis and strong structure – Peggy O’Neill.
8. @TJatCAMPUSPEAK: A mime is opening the morning’s general session of the National Speakers Association. Ponder the irony.
9. @bigkid: A movie is like life with all the dull parts left out – Alfred Hitchcock
10. @PamGilchrist: A thousand followers does not make you a guru.
11. @1000cranes: ABC Virus: 1) Attention 2) Blaming 3) Claiming / ABC Spirit: 1) Attraction 2) Believing 3) Commitment – Robert Benniga.
12. @GetResults: Ain’t it the truth – “Professional speaking is a tough way to make an easy living.” – Scott Friedman (@FunnyScott)
13. @bigkid: Airport bookstores primarily buy business books, regional, bestsellers, and children’s.
14. @gsflive: Always add twitter hashtag to all marketing material of events you’re organizing! ex: http://bit.ly/c2Lnkt
15. @soarwitheagles: Analyze competition’s strengths & vulnerabilities. Identify all critical elements for success – Pete Johnson.
16. @goldasich: APPLIED knowledge is power – @Joachimdeposada.
17. @SkullJuggler: Are you practicing to rehearse… or improve bad habits? – @PFripp.
18. @hduckworth: Are you the spice or the core dish? Your fee will be influenced by this. You want to be the core dish – @RobertBradford
19. @meredyth25: As a non-religious person, having a hard time with religious tones of general sessions at #nsa10. Feeling frustrated rather than inspired.
20. @neenjames: As speakers we need to be the butlers for our meeting planners – Ruby Newell-Legner: @7StarService
21. @GaryKushner: At speeches people are looking for help and ideas – @gitomer
22. @Ginaschreck: Attendees need to learn to use twitter to share nuggets not just “great session” comments – @alisonrbcm.
23. @sallyhogshead: Audiences will let you go over the line… if your content is good – @gitomer.
24. @bigkid: Audio programs are bought by 70/30 M/F, 35-55, lives on a coast, commute, college, upwardly mobile, learning new skills.
25. @Ginaschreck: Be a little weird & different to stand out. Don’t copy other people – @RobertBradford.
26. @SellingChange: Be your publicist’s favorite client by giving them lots of video blogs – @tjwalker.
27. @BeyondtheBrink: Being right is Insufficient for being effective – Steve Lishansky.
28. @socialmedia_DDS: Branding tip: When networking, instead of sharing “What you do” share the 1) problems you solve & 2) benefits of working with you.
29. @SkullJuggler: Bundle your teleseminar products into bigger packages of related things – @RebeccaMorgan.
30. @soarwitheagles: Comment from a hotel guest in the elevator: The Nat’l Speakers Assoc are the best-dressed people in the hotel.
31. @ThomAbbott: Conference Networking Tip: BlackBerry or iPhone is NOT your friend. Don’t bury your nose in technology during breaks!
32. @thomsinger: Conference Networking Tip: do not memorize an elevator pitch about you. Memorize 3-5 questions to ask others. Get them talking.
33. @thomsinger: Conference Networking Tip: sit with strangers at meals. Do not always be attached at the hip to those you already know.
34. @thomsinger: Conference Networking Tip: top reason to attend conventions is “networking opportunities”, but many suck at it. Reach out to people.
35. @dougdevitre: CraigsList job ad for you to use http://budurl.com/delegatethehow
36. @tracykennard: Create natural attraction in social media through interest. Be authentic – @Rory_Vaden.
37. @PamGilchrist: Define your editorial boundaries before you Tweet.
38. @Ginaschreck: Do more of what you ROCK at & less of what you SUCK at – @RobertBradford. Hmmm sounds like recipe for success!
39. @CoachJennie: Do you know about BlastFollow? I just followed all of the peeps talking about #nsa10 – sweet!
40. @1000cranes: Don’t be too overwhelmed by what you’ve learned at NSA2010 – Eat Your Elephant one bite at a time – Rick Jakle (@RadioRick).
41. @1000cranes: Don’t dilute your market with mixed content. Keep your content separate with separate blogs -Per NSA Bloggers.
42. @SkullJuggler: Don’t put anything that does not reflect who you are really about. A bad video won’t hurt you if you are always genuine – @tjwalker.
43. @dnewman: Each time you sell speaking or training, also sell coaching and followup svcs to ensure results – Steve Lishansky.
44. @1000cranes: England generated some of the best users of the English language: W. Shakespeare, W. Churchill and Simon Cowell… – @MediaCoach.
45. @SellingChange: Everyone is learning social media–beware of “experts”- Chris Brogan.
46. @SkullJuggler: Find a quick, easy way to add contact info in the video: graphics, backdrop with the website in the background, etc – @tjwalker.
47. @Style_Matters: Finish your speech by giving the audience something to do or think about, and tie it back to your intro.
48. @TJatCAMPUSPEAK: For too many, social media is recycling others’ thoughts. Tons of broadcasting, but too little conversation/original output.
49. @bigkid: Fripp: you were so good today that I could DANCE to your talk…Speak in rhythm – @PFripp.
50. @Ginaschreck: Get rid of the commas – you are NOT an expert on 5 different things – @RobertBradford.
51. @hduckworth: Give help, hope, money, and answers – @gitomer.
52. @BeyondtheBrink: Give your best lines to the other characters of your speech – @PFripp.
53. @soarwitheagles: Go from selling to positioning. Why should I do biz with you? When I think of what you sell, do I think if you? – Nido Quibein.
54. @paulwandrew: Go through the pain of discipline now, or later in life you will suffer the pain of regret – @Joachimdeposada.
55. @SkullJuggler: Go to Google and type your keyword. Then go to YouTube and type your keyword. YouTube has LESS COMPETITION – @tjwalker
56. @marshaegan: Great meet the Pros session w/Ian Griffin – Use LinkedIn polls in advance of speech to pre-engage audience, get stats.
57. @mpaynknoper: Great men are measured by how they treat small men – says du Plessis from African wisdom. Important message for many at #nsa10 to remember.
58. @SellingChange: Great video about Speaker’s Corner at #nsa10 – Watch the video, then stand on the soap box next week at the conference!
59. @richdigirolamo: Have you actually read the twitter terms of use? Facebook? LinkedIn? You should – @FrancineWard.
60. @SkullJuggler: Homework: go home, do one video, and post it! Use the news and give an opinion – @tjwalker.
61. @bigkid: HootSuite connected to 22 accounts that led to 6,600 impression with one status update, downloading now!
62. @alisonrbcm: Hope the blogggers at the bloggers breakfast will blog their learning and insight from #nsa10 – @BethMRamsay.
63. @SkullJuggler: How can I offer something different that isn’t already free on the web? – @RebeccaMorgan.
64. @TJatCAMPUSPEAK: How many minutes do you listen to a relationships speaker before you start noticing that he/she is completely hetero-centric?
65. @doncooper: How Tweetable are your slides? – @gitomer.
66. @soarwitheagles: How you change is how you achieve. Two ways to success in biz: dominate the market or create a niche – Nido Quibein.
67. @Ginaschreck: Husband: Test to see who loves you more … wife or dog. Lock both in trunk for 2 hours open & see who’s happier to see you.
68. @delwilliams: I like the speaker at #nsa10 who said you are not an expert at five things, so focus on what you are an expert in.
69. @soarwitheagles: I miss Dale Irvin’s recaps at #nsa10 meetings. Know he’s edgy but he’s OMG funny. Bring him back next year?
70. @sallyhogshead: If you *suck* in real life, you will *suck* online – @Rory_Vaden.
71. @rory_vaden: I’m always amazed at how people at #nsa10 who are so much more successful than me take time to help me.
72. @bigkid: I’m grateful for my hands today, what are you grateful for that you’ve taken for granted? – @chadhymas.
73. @PamGilchrist: Is Twitter the biggest bird on the table; no it’s part of a great buffet of tools that work together to grow your business.
74. @Style_Matters: It usually takes more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech – Mark Twain.
75. @doncooper: It’s what speakers do OFF the platform that makes them great – @chadhymas.
76. @allankarl: Judge effectiveness of a speaker by how many times you look at your watch when he/she is speaking.
77. @Ginaschreck: Keep fluffy non tangible stuff out of your marketing material – @RobertBradford.
78. @CindyWMorrison: Keep Tweets clean and bright with TidyTweet.
79. @stephenshapiro: Key to successful business: don’t trust other people, verify.
80. @dnewman: LinkedIn: Cruise thru one prospects or clients network to find more prospects in their industry or sphere – @Rory_Vaden.
81. @dnewman: Linkedin: Find common people and mention THEIR connections as 10 second phone call opener – @Rory_Vaden.
82. @SkullJuggler: Look at news for the day, find something that relates to your area, do a quick video with your opinion, then send it out – @tjwalker.
83. @1000cranes: Make sure you represent yourself truthfully. If you didn’t earn a certification/degree, you shouldn’t claim it (i.e. MBA, PhD, etc.)
84. @TheBulletman: Marketing is great. Sales activity is important. But getting good on stage will get u booked more often than the others – @Ginaschreck.
85. @soarwitheagles: Maybe it’s what speakers do OFF the platform that gives them the greatest presence ON the platform – @chadhymas.
86. @WellConnectLead: Million dollar speakers focus on repeatability, scalability and flexibility of their biz.
87. @soarwitheagles: NSA President Phillip Van Hooser just recognized the huge # of 1st-time attendees. Serious about the biz? This is the org to join.
88. @sallyhogshead: Offer online training to your customers. You can speak to a 100 people, or, you can train a million – @gitomer.
89. @SkullJuggler: Open with second best song and end with the best song – grab the audience with the first one and lead them to the next thing.
90. @CindyWMorrison: Our non-verbal signals not only liberate us … they liberate others – Michael Grinder. Wow!
91. @doncooper: People are looking for THEIR answers not YOUR answers – @gitomer.
92. @feistywoman: People don’t want information. They want epiphanies – Sam Horn.
93. @SkullJuggler: Photos are great to help slides – emotion, humor, story, and lessons – @gitomer.
94. @neenjames: Place laptop on a box (shoe box)if you are using video – more flattering (no chins!) and you look up at it – @Ginaschreck.
95. @alisonrbcm: Please encourage more speakers to tell audience their Twitter name at start to maximise opps for those not there to find out more.
96. @SkullJuggler: Populate your stories with flesh and blood characters that the audience can relate to.
97. @soarwitheagles: Pete Johnson: To compete w/ free industry speakers, pro spkrs have to deliver better content, platform skills, higher quality extras.
98. @sallyhogshead: PowerPoint is a presentation tool, not a presentation maker – @gitomer.
99. @LiveYourBrand: Presentation tip: The longer the time you speak to people, the slower you should speak – Michael Grinder.
100. @CoachJennie: Pro speakers have nervous butterflies before speaking…they just fly in formation – Gary Rifkin.
101. @allankarl: Proactive communication is key to preventing problems when working with speaking bureaus.
102. @neenjames: Productivity tip: bring your Flip and collect video testimonials of your session or survey speakers for comments.
103. @bigkid: Publishing is finally changing after 580 years of Gutenberg style printing, also sell your Kindle, buy an iPad! – @clintgreenleaf.
104. @SellingChange: Put Social Media icons on your WordPress site with http://www.wibiya.com – @dougdevitre.
105. @SkullJuggler: Put the words you care about the most in your title, keywords, description, and in the video – @tjwalker.
106. @allankarl: Rehearsal is the work. Performance is the relaxation – Michael Caine.
107. @hduckworth: Secret to stories 1. Live life 2. Pay attention 3. Take good notes – Jean Gatz.
108. @stephenshapiro: Seven-figure business owners are implementers,innovative, passionate, focused, risk takers, persistent and resilient – Bill Bachrach.
109. @cheshirelad: So why *should* speakers care about Social Media? Watch this video and find out why.
110. @hduckworth: Social media is the new cold call – @gitomer
111. @soarwitheagles: Some speakers at #nsa10 attend in character or wear their branded apparel. Seen Will Rogers, Forrest Gump, Ben Franklin, & Doctor Finance.
112. @bigkid: Speak to be remembered and repeated – @PFripp (Maybe tweeting is good practice for speaking.)
113. @allankarl: Speakers shouldn’t be speaking about stuff they should still be in therapy for – Stef du Plessi.
114. @MediaJess: Speaking is not what you do. It is the delivery mechanism @gitomer for what you think – Scott Ginsburg.
115. @rory_vaden: Speaking tip: I invest an hour to edit 8 words to 5 – Seinfeld.
116. @HansRuinemans: Stef du Plessis: “There are no neutral choices, you leave a trail.” – How true.
117. @SkullJuggler: Structure is the skeleton under the flesh of your words. This is how you tidy up the creative mess.
118. @sallyhogshead: Success is never owned. It is only rented. And the rent is due every day – @Rory_Vaden.
119. @doncooper: Surprise your customers w/quality – price doesn’t matter.
120. @SkullJuggler: Talk to interpreter before your talk to get your humor right to international audiences – @gitomer.
121. @larrychiang: Text messaging changes Q&A. You don’t need social media to do a better job with Q&A. Its no longer at the end. Its during.
122. @hashalbum: The 50th photo was just added to the #nsa10 hash album! http://hashalbum.com/nsa10
123. @SkullJuggler: The average YouTube video has 3 views total – @tjwalker.
124. @SkullJuggler: The first 30 seconds and last 30 seconds are the most important in a speech.
125. @DrTinz: The lighting for the stage in the grand ballroom is lousy.
126. @BrianOMalleyCSP: The measure of a great man is not how he tweets great men, but how he tweets small men.
127. @doncooper: The more directly what you sell relates to sex, happiness or money, the higher your fees can be – @RobertBradford.
128. @goldasich: The more ego you bring into the room, the less your audience will take away – Stef du Plessis.
129. @doncooper: The most important element of success is the ability to delay gratification – @Joachimdeposada.
130. @Style_Matters: The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn’t being said – Anon.
131. @SkullJuggler: The most important thing we all must learn to do is EDIT.
132. @bigkid: The opening chapter sells this book, the closing chapter sells the next book – @PFripp
133. @SkullJuggler: The point is to repeat the central theme/key phrases in speeches.
134. @SkullJuggler: The secret: tagging frequently and creating good content – @RebeccaMorgan.
135. @LiveYourBrand: The weirder your uniqueness, the more money you can make as an expert and speaker – @RobertBradford.
136. @preciseselling: There is too much focus on social media among pro speakers. Does this tweet make me a hypocrite?!
137. @SkullJuggler: Think about how you can speak to the camera as if speaking to a reporter; speak for 60 – 120 seconds – @tjwalker.
138. @PamGilchrist: Think of Twitter as a small part of a larger conversation.
139. @BethMRamsay: This conference is like a pillow fight gone out of control – there’s feathers everywhere! – Forrest Gump.
140. @TJatCAMPUSPEAK: Tip for #nsa10 veterans. Every time you drop a name at the mic, you widen the division between you and the newer attendee.
141. @MOSTraining: Tip: preschedule tweets of high points of your presentation and have them stream out during your presentation.
142. @Ginaschreck: To find great story ideas simply live your life, pay attention & take good notes – Jean Gatz.
143. @Ginaschreck: Toughest crowds to speak to: Jr High School students & professional speakers!
144. @bigkid: Tracy Williams got a speaking gig at the White House by leaving phone # and website at end of audio program!
145. @SkullJuggler: Transcribe your speeches and go through them critically. Circle unnecessary words and get rid of them.
146. @Ginaschreck: Trend right now is smaller meetings. If your market is one that is shrinking its time to shift! – @RobertBradford.
147. @Rickun: Try replacing conference calls with Skype video. It’s faster, more intimate, and more likely to result in success.
148. @TheSalesHunter: Turn blog content into a book – @RebeccaMorgan.
149. @delwilliams: Tweeting at a conference isn’t rude its reporting – @bethemedia.
150. @PamGilchrist: Tweets should focus on your thought leadership, not your cat’s hairball.
151. @PamGilchrist: Twitter can help you extend the life of your speech. Use pre- and post-Tweets.
152. @PamGilchrist: Twitter combined with Google natural search instantly raises your profile.
153. @stephenshapiro: Twitter is like teenage sex. Everyone wants to do it but no one knows how – @Rory_Vaden (quoting someone else).
154. @bigkid: Use http://rhymer.com/ to create phrases with alliteration – @PFripp
155. @marshaegan: Use http://whostalkin.com to monitor your brand on Social Media – Dr. Maurice Ramirez (@renaissancedoc).
156. @BeyondtheBrink: Use lists in Social Media to reduce the noise to improve ur listening – @Rory_Vaden.
157. @SkullJuggler: Use slides to help your presentation, not make it – @gitomer.
158. @jeffkorhan: Use social media to be a fly in the wall – @mauriceramirez.
159. @BeyondtheBrink: Use the advanced search function in LinkedIn for prospects – @rory_vaden.
160. @PamGilchrist: Use the back channel to converse and collaborate with tools like http://www.tweetscan.com
161. @LiveYourBrand: Using Gestures – Use two handed gesture when your point is twice as important – Michael Grinder.
162. @mpaynknoper: Virtual events allow delivery of training at best times for attendees, delivery of tools they need in customized way. Add component.
163. @HansRuinemans: Wanna know a secret to speak better? Go to Resources at http://www.stefduplessis.com and use the codeword ‘africanwisdom’.
164. @CindyWMorrison: Want to assume position of authority.. Put weight on both feet. Want to be approachable? Weight to one foot – Michael Grinder.
165. @sallyhogshead: Want to be a professional speaker? Start for free: Rotary Club, Kiwanis, civic clubs. And, write every week – @gitomer.
166. @LiveYourBrand: Want to get your content and information distributed around the world? iTunes University learn anything.
167. @BertVerdonck: We hired your for the fun, but paid your for the content – Mike McKinley.
168. @smaxbrown: We just had a prayer with @chadhyams back stage. He is truly inspiring…and here we go.
169. @stephenshapiro: We like captain crunch over oat bran. Flavor over fuel. Feedback is fuel. It just doesn’t always taste great – Shari Harley.
170. @mpaynknoper: Webinars now like conference calls. Need to be really, really good or make it interactive through immersive environment – @ginaschreck.
171. @SkullJuggler: Webinars: corporate gets it, keep engaged, raise hands. Con: MUST have Internet and device – @RebeccaMorgan.
172. @allankarl: What are the five memorable moments of your speech? All successful speeches have them. Does yours?
173. @paulwandrew: What if your Career & your Cause were two Clydesdale horses? Harness them together & they’ll pull 5 times what either one could alone.
174. @neenjames: When a woman is stressed out she has to talk about it or her brain will explode – @markgungor.
175. @Style_Matters: When delivering a speech, begin at center stage. Moving around livens up your delivery but don’t leave any part of the room out.
176. @LiveYourBrand: When presenting, do not move any part of your body while pausing. Don’t move until you start talking again – Michael Grinder.
177. @LiveYourBrand: When speaking professionally, hand gestures help us make a good first impression or can be a distraction – Michael Grinder.
178. @DonCooper: When you ask for feedback, be willing to hear the answers – Shari Harley.
179. @SkullJuggler: When you focus on your audience, you must have transformed your speech to muscle memory.
180. @SkullJuggler: When you post to your blog regularly, your rankings will go higher because you always have fresh content – @RebeccaMorgan.
181. @1000cranes: When you’re blogging, keep them short. Don’t have a “”toilet paper page”” have a “”read more…”” link instead.
182. @Ginaschreck: Wisdom from @Schrecklet “”The hardest part of Nat’l Spkrs Convention is having to be SUPER enthusiastic all the time!”” SO TRUE.
183. @WorldRider: Women: if you want something from man ask for it–more than once & the right way – http://ow.ly/i/2GJn – @markgungor.
184. @allankarl: Words I heard most at #nsa10 “What can do for you? How can I help you?” For this 1st timer, I’m blown away. Thank you!
185. @Ginaschreck: Words mean diff things to men & women. “5 minutes” means 5 min to men. It means less than an hour to women – @markgungor.
186. @TaraDiversi: Work for yourself, not by yourself. #nsa10 community.
187. @SkullJuggler: Would people stand in the rain to see your speech?
188. @allankarl: Wow! I had no idea. But Robert Fripp, the virtuoso guitarist of King Crimson fame, is @PFripp‘s brother.
189. @SellingChange: You are the curator for your audience -> Sort of sad. “You don’t have to be creator of great content; you have to be the *conduit*” – @Rory_Vaden.
190. @amandajohnsSWC: You don’t have to create a great message to be a conduit of a great message – @Rory_Vaden.
191. @MediaJess: You don’t need permission from anybody to be great – Brad Barton.
192. @SkullJuggler: You don’t need the best speech coach in the world, but someone who knows more than you.
193. @bigkid: You give your best lines to OTHER characters. Give them credit – @PFripp.
194. @allankarl: You have to get messy before you get tidy – @PFripp on speech prep creative process.
195. @SkullJuggler: You must have different versions of our speech in case circumstances outside of your control change your timing.
196. @GetResults: You offer your brand to the world, the world decides, refines, allowing your brand to takes on its true identity.
197. @SkullJuggler: Your audience will remember what they “see” the pictures you paint for them in your speech.
198. @doncooper: Your audience won’t remember your PowerPoint bullets, but they will remember your stories – Jean Gatz.
199. @bigkid: Your best marketing is your speech, so work on your speech, not on your marketing!
200. @tracykennard: Your blog is your central hub. Everything should feed it – @Rory_Vaden.
201. @TheSalesHunter: Your competition is not others it’s others not knowing you – @visibilitycoach.
202. @SkullJuggler: Your fee is in your head. Double your fee and raise it every year – @gitomer.
203. @WorldRider: Your life is not your material – Stef du Plessi.
204. @bigkid: You’re better off taking money and playing craps than hitting it big in book publishing – @clintgreenleaf.
205. @SkullJuggler: You’re not having a bad day, you’re having a bad slide. Wrong pics on the Internet are a risk and make you a fool – @gitomer.
206. @SkullJuggler: YouTube as your base. Most people go there for video 60-80% videos viewed there – @tjwalker.

In a few short days I’m off to Orlando for my 6th National Speakers Association Convention. This one is being held at the Orlando World Center Marriott Hotel next to the Magic Kingdom.

Six years after my first convention I’ve learned that advanced planning is a necessity. So, in addition to following some great tips on attending conferences and lining up informal meetings with business partners and friends, I have planned my personal agenda. I’ve chosen from among the dozens of different break-out sessions that are on offer on the full agenda.

In addition to the main tent sessions at the start and end of each day, here’s where I’ll be spending my time. If you’ll be at the convention be sure to get in touch and say Hi.

Social Media Focus

This is clearly the year Social Media arrived at the NSA. The convention features ten break out sessions on different aspects of the topic. Since I’ve been speaking on Social Media I’ll be checking out many of these workshops to find out how some of the best speakers are addressing the issues.

Sunday July 18

10:00 – 11:15 am

Design Your Million-Dollar Speaking Engine, Robert Bradford, CSP, MBA

Challenge your business model to get more gigs at higher fees. You will realistically re-think your program, marketing, search engine optimization and audience—and act to improve all of them! Robert will demonstrate his ideas with hot-seat sessions for lucky attendees! After one of Robert’s previous presentations, an attendee used insights from the program to book $1 million dollars in business! By attending this session, you will learn to identify your islands of profit * Identify things you can stop wasting time on to make more money * Be able to tell prospective clients exactly why you should be hired over your competitors.

(Even though I’ll be focusing on social media, I’m willing to skip two sessions on that topic scheduled for this time to catch Robert. I heard great things about his 2009 session and at the end of day it’s all about finding gigs at higher fees.)

2:15 – 3:30 pm

How Social Media Can Help You Successfully Co-Produce a Major Public Event, Myra Corrello, PhD; Michelle Cullison and Jennifer Ledet

Ever thought about joining with your NSA colleagues to host a major public conference? Five members of the New Orleans chapter took on the challenge and lived to share it! In this panel, you’ll hear how they successfully used social media and technology tools to organize and plan the event, secure strategic partners and sponsors, generate product, gain long-term publicity and attract over 300 attendees and keep them all day. By attending this session, you will recognize and understand how these virtually free communication tools can help you coordinate, collaborate, promote, connect, publicize, recognize and, ultimately, monetize your time and investment * Understand how social media can be instrumental in attracting major sponsors for public events * Evaluate the rewards and risks of a public seminar by learning what worked, what didn’t, and what you should know before taking on a similar challenge with your colleagues.

(This promises the be one of key talks of the weekend for me. I believe that the speaking industry will be revolutionized by social media, helping magnify the impact of a speech before, during and after the event.)

4:00 – 5:15 pm

Selling with Social Media – Nine Techniques for Using Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to Get Coaching Clients, Book Deals and Keynotes, Rory Vaden, MBA

You’ve figured out that social media helps you get a few extra readers for your blog—great! But how do you actually make any cash from all this hoopla? Rory Vaden shares practical advice, pragmatic techniques and straightforward methods for maximizing your time online. He shows you how to get referral business on LinkedIn, how to use Facebook to turn fans into coaching clients, and how he landed an A-list literary agent using Twitter. By attending this session, you will learn how to use Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter to generate referral business, repeat business and third-party testimonials * Use social media more effectively for better marketing, platform building and effective follow up * Create a powerfully efficient 45-minute to-do list to maximize your daily social media use.

(Another key talk.)

Monday July 19

1:45 – 3:15 pm

Social Media: From Conversation to Participation Sponsored by the Business Coaching PEG – Open to all attendees, David Mathison

David will show you how to leverage social media to move fans from conversation to engagement—to help you sell more products, earn more revenues and get more gigs—without professional PR. Learn how fans helped Mathison pre-sell 5,000 books in 11 days, got him featured in The New York Times, placed his book in universities and set up speaking engagements at the U.S. Embassy, the University of Missouri, Columbia University and the United Nations. By attending this session, you will learn how to engage fans to book you for more speaking opportunities and events—because they want to * Sell more products, services, consulting and training by enlisting fans as affiliates, resellers and distributors (in other words, the work that publicists, managers, agents, bookers and employees used to do.) * Have fans create content for you, and link to and virally spread your ideas, messages and products at no cost to you.

(This looks like a straight-on “make money with social media” talk. I’ll be interested to hear where the audience is on this and how directly they want to engage with money making social activities.)

3:45 – 5:15 pm

The Power to Inspire: The Non-Verbals of Dramatic Presentations, Michael Grinder

The average presenter informs. The good presenter persuades. The great presenter inspires. Michael Grinder’s discoveries will shatter some of your beliefs and replace them with practical tools to move your career to the next level. You will learn the effect of your gestures, pauses, how to mark off the stage and how to increase your intelligence and credibility. Bring a big bag to carry away your increased non-verbal intelligence from the “people whisperer.” The format will be one-third presentation, one-third demonstration and one-third rehearsal for reality. By attending this session, you will experience six least recommended ways to present material and one recommended way * Experience the flat, business-like voice pattern of credibility and the rolling, rhythmic voice pattern of approachability * Discover how people follow our eyes, not our hand. So where we look is where we want to gesture.

(I can’t make the WHOLE event about social media. Voice is a crucial way by which a speaker establishes credibility and communicates clearly. I’ll be interested to hear how Michael’s approach compliments what I’m learning from reading Kate Peters’ blog.)

Tuesday July 20

10:00 – 11:15 am

Meet the Pros: Speechwriting and Social Media, Ian Griffin

Social media add exciting new options to the traditional speechwriting toolkit. From researching audience interests to developing speech content, tools such as Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter and blogs can save you time and make your speeches more compelling—if you know how to use them. Speechwriters can now leverage social media to greatly improve the value of their services in the planning, preparation and scripting of a speech. Then, once the speech is written, social media can magnify its impact beyond the confines of the auditorium.

(Well, I don’t have a choice on this one! The first time I’ve taken an active role in presenting at a NSA Conference – even if it is to a maximum of 18 people. Full details including a preview video and outline of the content are on my presentation home page for the event.)

My recent post on representing large numbers in a speech coincided with preparing to publish the second part of Denna Jones’ guest posting on why she’s switching from PowerPoint to Prezi. Denna, an architect and speaker, references the 1977 film, Powers of Ten, by Charles and Ray Eames. The film

… has the capacity to expand the way we think and view our world. Over ten million people have seen the film, and it continues to be shown in classrooms, business meetings, festivals and retreats around the world. Starting with a sleeping man at a picnic, the film takes the viewer on a journey out to the edge of space and then back into a carbon atom in the hand of the man at the picnic, all in a single shot. It is an unforgettable experience.

This illustrates how, at the scale of the very large and the scale of the very small, all is light. As Adi Da Samraj has said:

All manifest things and beings appear within a universal cosmic theater of the physics of light.

Today’s newspapers carried the most recent image of the Planck telescope’s image of the ‘known universe’:

Better than any words or abstract mathematical formula, these pictures and the 9-minute Eames film brings home to viewers the scale of the universe we inhabit; consider how images such as this could be used in your next talk.

By Angela DeFinis, DeFinis Communications

After working with a number of executives during the past few months, I’ve noticed some common pitfalls that diminish the quality of an executive’s presentation. These public speaking mistakes affect executives across the board, regardless of industry or profession.

Like everyone else who speaks to groups, executives must spend time preparing their message and practicing their delivery. However, many executives have formal speechwriters. Their content is often written for them and then passed around to other senior leaders in the company. As a result, the Marketing VP wants his spin included, the Engineering VP has certain requirements to be added, and the HR manager has a point of view that also needs to come through. The message goes through many rounds and edits until the final draft is perfected.

That’s a lot of time devoted to content creation. My only wish is that the executives would give the same amount of time and attention to actually practicing and rehearsing the delivery. Because they don’t, here are the common blunders that occur:

• Appearing unprepared to deliver the speech. You can have the most finely crafted message in the world, but if you’re not prepared to deliver it, your message can fail. The fact is that poor delivery can overshadow great content. Therefore, spend the same amount of time practicing your delivery as you do creating your content. And if you didn’t craft the content yourself, then find out how long others spent preparing it and practice at least an hour longer.
• Not focusing on the listeners’ needs. Many executives spend too much time talking about what’s important to them and don’t focus on the needs of the audience. This is the classic case of not knowing the audience. Unfortunately, audiences often interpret it as “this speaker doesn’t care about us.” Get clear on what’s important to your listeners and spend the majority of your time covering those topics. If there’s something you feel is important and that you need to say, then go ahead and say it. But don’t forget about or gloss over the audience’s needs.
• Foregoing conventional etiquette. Foul language, “good old boy” style, off color jokes, slang…these are things you should never use in your business presentations. If you’re speaking to a global audience, any of these things will be a turn off. And if even one audience member is offended by your language, style, or demeanor, then your credibility just went down a notch. When you follow conventional etiquette standards, you smooth the conversational pathway so you can reach understanding and build relationships. And isn’t that one of your main goals when presenting?
• Not using a “speaker’s tone.” Speaking in a “conversational” tone is fine for small group communication; however, when you’re giving a formal presentation, you need to use a more projected “speaker’s tone.” Remember that public speaking requires using the skills of the speaking trade. And one of those is maintaining an emphasis on vocal skills. Often, executives think that their personal style is enough and that they do not have to use professional speaking skills. But if you want to position yourself as the leading authority on any topic, you must use good vocal skills.

What’s the best way to overcome these mistakes? In a word: Practice! Yes, practice really does make perfect. By focusing on your delivery and approach as much as you focus on creating your speech, you’ll avoid these mistakes and give an executive level presentation that hits the mark, enhances your reputation and sets a high standard for presentation delivery throughout your company.

How does someone prepare for a Toastmasters International Speech Contest?

In the second part of my podcast interview with Toastmasters District 57 winner Christine Robinson, we discuss the upcoming 2010 Toastmasters International Convention.

Very few women have ever won the World Championship, and Christine is only two speeches away from that possibility.

Every one of us at Christine’s home club, the Speakers Forum in Concord, CA, is doing all we can to help her prepare and practice a new speech for the final round of the contest.

To hear how she plans to prepare for the event, click on the podcast icon below.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 6:00 — 1.4MB)

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How are winning Toastmasters speeches created?

I asked Christine Robinson, whose speech The Empty Chair won the District 57 Spring Conference May 8, 2010, held at the California Maritime Academy in Vallejo California.

In this podcast interview, Christine discusses the original motivation for the theme of the speech and then shares the mechanics of writing and practicing the speech.

Her speech is rooted in the passion and conviction for the topic: “It had it’s own vitality…it is time, now more than ever, to fill our chairs, to be present for others.”

Tomorrow, I’ll share Part 2 of the interview, where Christine talks about the upcoming contest in Palm Desert.

To hear Part 1 of the interview, click on the podcast icon below.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 5:59 — 1.4MB)

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Matt Upton’s employment career has taken him from selling cards and lawn care to flipping burgers, folding tacos, selling knives, air conditioners, home insulation, to overseeing housing developments, to leading a sales force in five western states for a food manufacturer, leading various for profit businesses as well as non-profit businesses. The common thread has always involved public speaking.

As a professional speaker, writer, wisdom coach, and trainer Matt has conducted over 3000 presentations both throughout the United States as well internationally. His background in small groups and large group setting presentations has positioned him as an authority the area of business, personal and relationship growth.

He brings to the audience participants his successes and failures with humor and professionalism allowing them to learn while enjoying their invested time.

Matt works through the theme On the Move … FORWARD. This has enabled individuals as well as businesses both small and large advance forward to the next level of success. His work takes him across the United States and internationally.

Pro-Track Profile

Matt is enrolled in the 2010 Pro-Track class sponsored by the Northern California Chapter of the National Speakers Association.

He has experience speaking internationally in Bulgaria, to hear about his adventures there and his impressions of the Pro-Track program, click on the icon podcast below.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 4:58 — 1.1MB)

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Meryl Streep opened her soul to the Barnard College graduating class last Monday. In a compelling commencement speech acknowledging the value of single-sex education, she celebrated both the power of a women’s perspective and the power of empathy to bring real change.

Ethos, Logos, Pathos

Her speech employed the classic Aristotelian elements of persuasive public speaking: ethos, logos and pathos.

She used ethos to establish her bone fides as an Academy Award winner and famous actress (albeit a person suffering a fame that separates her from “friends, from reality, from proportion”).

There was minimal logos in the speech. But she did include data from The Economist about women’s effects on economic growth and, tongue in cheek, on the research she’d conducted in high school on how to attract boys with peroxide hair and brand name clothes from the pages of Seventeen and Vogue – decades before the Devil wore Prada!

Above all, with wit and charm, Streep employed pathos to establish an emotional bond with the audience. She told emotionally appealing stories – of herself as a young girl swaddling her Betsy Wetsy doll; as an undergraduate, unkempt as the Velveteen Rabbit; as a new mother giving a very different commencement speech full of certainty and “earnest full-throated cheerleading”.

Adolescent pretense

Having proclaimed her fame and success, and built common cause with the women in the audience, she invited the graduates to explore the darker side of outward success in life, of what lies behind the inner door:

Cobwebs, black, the light bulbs burned out, the airless dank refrigerator of an insanely over-scheduled, unexamined life that usually just gets take-out.

She invited the audience to identify with her as a woman who had, like them, suffered the pretenses of adolescence, of acting a role to “pretend quite proficiently to be successful … as have many women here, I’m sure.”

For Streep, the pretense reached a zenith in high school. She deliberately set out to become the “generically pretty high school girl” with a child-like cute giggle, lowering her eyes at the right moment to appeal to boys, “at the same time being accepted by the girls, a very tricky negotiation.” So successful was her characterization she later used it in her portrait of Linda in The Deer Hunter, to the delight and fascination of President Clinton.

Celebrating Single-Sex Education

In contrast to her artificial role in high school, attending Vassar when it was still—as Barnard is today—a single-sex school, allowed Streep the room she needed to flourish.

“I didn’t have to pretend, I could be goofy, vehement, aggressive, and slovenly and open and tough and my friends let me.”

Empathy

Streep contrasts her 1978 role as Linda in The Deer Hunter with her 2006 role as Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada. Clinton might have lusted after the submissive Linda but, claims Streep, it’s a measure of how far the world has come that men today tell her they can relate to Miranda – a woman who signifies the thankless position of the misunderstood leader. She finds it a cause for optimism that straight men today have the ability to empathize with a woman protagonist. Women are brought up to identify with male characters. However, it’s rare that men can identify with women characters.

The emotional expression of empathy for strong woman speaks to Streep of a generational shift in attitude:

Men are adapting…They are changing their deepest prejudices to regard as normal the things that their fathers would have found very, very difficult and their grandfathers would have abhorred and the door to this emotional shift is empathy.

Unique Perspective

This newfound emotional capacity for empathy is, for Streep, the transformative light by which consciousness changes. When light shines through the cracks, there is the possibility of a “completely different perspective”. This possibility is heralded by an age when women are awarded more medical and law degrees than men; when “around the world, poor women now own property who used to be property”; when the employment of women has contributed more to global GDP growth than new technology and the rise of India and China.

Streep challenges the graduating class to apply the unique perspective their single-sex education has given them in the world. They can “speed progress” solving the crucial global problems of human rights and gender inequality.

Off-hand delivery

Her self-depreciating speech was delivered in a deliberately off-hand way; speaking to her audience in the manner of shared dorm-room confidences; offering them a glimpse of her own uncertainty and doubt behind the façade of fame; free of conventional oratory in the way that only someone with a couple of Oscars could.

Here’s a video of Streep delivering her speech.

Edited highlights from the 1-hour presentation I gave at the Ragan Corporate Communicators Conference, held May 4-7 at the General Motors HQ, Renaissance Center, Detroit, MI.

The speech outline, slides and resources I refer to are available on the presentation home page.