Because so many people fear public speaking, great benefits are accorded to those who dare to get up in front of an audience and speak. Audiences tend to believe that those who speak publicly about their industry are more knowledgeable than those who don’t speak publicly are. Speakers command more respect. The audience is more likely to want to do business with the speaker than nearly anyone else that they know in the same industry is.
So, if you’re willing to speak about your profession, what you know and what inspires you, you’ll move farther ahead of your peers in terms of gaining notoriety and being highly regarded.
The only way to break the fear of public speaking is to do it. Like learning to ride a bicycle, before you get competent, you’ll probably fall a lot. You may even fall a time or two after you become an expert, but you learn to make it work for you. You’ll develop your instincts for knowing when you’re moving toward your purpose and when you’re off-course. Once you learn the skill of speaking, you can take it into any arena.
It won’t take long for the joy of speaking to break through the sense of fear. The first time you experience this joy, you may be surprised at how incredibly empowering it is to be able to command your audience’s attention and inspire them to take action based on your recommendations. They’ll seek your advice and want to acquire your business savvy.
The process of public speaking is the fastest method of gaining effective professional acceptance that I am aware. For example, based on the national sales averages, you’ll convert one of 20 potential prospects into a client. If you speak in front of a group of 40 prospects, the odds are that you’d net two to four new clients.
The process of speaking to these 40 people might take you two to three hours, including setting up the talk, speaking, getting there and back again. How long would it take you to dial 40 new prospects, play phone tag a few times, and then actually talk with them?