You can certainly sit and wait, silently, in the dark, and hope to be discovered for your public speaking brilliance.....
Then again, you may want to take a slightly more proactive approach.
Here's three actions completely under your control that you can take today, as in now, to increase your odds of being invited onto stage.
1. Look over the list of events you attended and loved in the last year. Chances are, the same ones are going to happen next year, too.
Contact the organizers today. Boom.
You just increased your chances from zero.
You may not close the first one, or the second one, or perhaps even the third but eventually, you will.
A client set herself the goal of speaking more at conferences.
She applies. She gets booked. There's an almost uncanny connection between the two. 👻
If you decide for the organizers, "They'll never book me so there's no point in applying," you're saving yourself the pain of a potential rejection... and the challenge of a potential acceptance.
In fact, writing this reminded me of somewhere I want to apply to speak next year. I hope it does the same for you.
2. Bring more than one topic to the table:
The challenge of being a One Trick Pony is that you have one trick (and you're also a pony 🐎.)
If you have three or more talks available it demonstrates your prowess as a speaker. And that makes you more bookable.
How do you get there?
Perhaps this way of thinking about content will help you flesh out your ideas.
1. Develop your signature talk - This is the one that reflects your core brand. The one you're known for.
2. The business application of your signature talk - This is often a practical, interactive workshop
3. The thought leadership piece - This is often presented as a Ted style talk mixing anecdotes and data - where you develop your thinking over time
4. The deep dive talk - This can be the most technical, values-driven or niche of your signature talk.
Each type of talk offers unique opportunities to connect with listeners, share valuable knowledge and insights, and make a meaningful impact.
Look at what you already have and think about how you could adapt it to an additional framework.
3. Right now, I'd say the hottest topic is, What the (*^&T%%^**$#@)!@^~) is happening? What might I expect for my industry going forward with AI now on the table?
Where to from here talks are always popular. Right now, they are The Big Thing.
Think how you can adapt your content to speak about the massive changes that are seeing across industries right now. You always need to be current. Now, you need to be future oriented.
Obviously, when you get booked and do stand up to speak, make sure you're polished, clear and ready. Word of mouth recommendations depend upon it.
Bottom line, remember this:
Events want speakers. Events really want speakers who are great on stage and relate to what's going on right now.
Someone is going to speak at the next conference you attend.
You can impact the chances of it being you.
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