Everybody is familiar with the classic Hollywood scene of an aspiring speaker getting up before a large crowd, riling them up with his or her inspiring rhetoric, and leading them into a brighter future. Just about all of us have dreamt at one point or another of giving a fantastically popular speech to uproarious applause. Nonetheless, many people insist they don’t have what it takes to be a motivational speaker and throw away their dreams of one day inspiring others to shoot for the stars.
Here’s why it’s more than possible for anyone to become a savvy motivational speaker if they follow the right steps, and what you need to know in order to start your quest of inspiring others to achieve greater feats.
Begin by studying the greats
You can’t become an expert in anything overnight, despite how much you may try. It’s just a simple matter of fact that practice makes perfect, and that you’ll need to hone a myriad of skills before you can claim the mantle of being a stellar motivational speaker. It’s thus worth your while to begin by studying the greats who have come and gone before you, as their life stories can help inspire you while simultaneously teaching you what to avoid along the pathway towards success.
Some of the best motivational speakers in history and their respective great speeches and iconic moments can be easily found online. While you should definitely be trying to master a modern communication style, it’s worthwhile to take a deep dive into history to study those whose words had a larger impact than any other. You may be surprised to find some villains on the list of great motivational speakers, but it’s a simple matter of fact that effective persuasive skills are often unmoored from ethics in the history books.
After you find a few great examples that you’re really interested in, take a deep dive into their speeches to analyze what kind of language they make use of. Many motivational speakers re-use the same phrases and words over and over again when they’ve discovered that such quips have a great impact on their audience. You should follow this advice and keep track of which idioms generate a buzz and which jokes fall flat when you’re practicing speeches in your daily life.
Others argue that while they love history they simply lack public speaking skills. This is a silly excuse, largely because few people are natural born speakers – it’s a skill that’s learned, not one that’s inherited. If you’re worried about stuttering, forgetting your lines, or shaking in front of a crowd then explore some common sense solutions to the frequent hurdles that public speakers grapple with when staring a huge crowd in the face.
Mastering your unique style
If you really want to become a motivational speaker who can knock it out of the park every time they’re up to bat, then you’ll need to start developing your own unique style of speech that helps you stand apart from the competition. When people remember motivational speakers, even if it’s just an employment lawyer, they often do so on the basis that they outperformed everyone else who gave a speech around them. Relying on your regional dialect or accent is a neat tactic that many speakers rely upon, but you should be willing to spotlight any positive facet of your personality that will help you get your message across.
Finally, you’ll need to extensively pour over the means of effective communication if you don’t want your message of inspiration to get lost amidst the noise of everyday life. Many people simply tune out when they’re listening to a public speaker, for instance, which means you have to snatch the attention of a lazy audience and hold them rapt while you say your piece. Effective communicators know what classic mistakes to avoid, have a game plan to reach their specific audience, and avoid distracting mannerisms that take attention away from your aspiring message.
Being a professional communicator takes more than just knowing what to avoid, however. You also need to be able to personally connect with your audience – after all, if they can’t relate to the experiences you’re trying to convey, then your message is simply going to fall flat. You need to draw a specific connection between your story and the people you’re speaking to if you want them to pay attention while you’re running your mouth. After all, people get distracted easily and look for any reason to stop paying attention to speakers. After some practice, you’ll have ironed out a unique speaking style that brings your personality to the surface with ease. As long as you focus on honing your charismatic characteristics and avoiding common gaffes that make most motivational speakers crash and burn, you’ll become an excellent communicator in no time.