The best way to jumpstart a speaking career

I often consult with people who want to begin or jumpstart a speaking career. I have one key piece of advice and let’s start with a little piece of data I’ve been using in my classes for a while:

Look carefully at the top five ways that speakers are found by meeting professionals: they are seen and recommended by someone else.

The key action here is … you MUST BE SEEN.

Jumpstart a speaking career

When new speakers ask me for advice, I always tell them the same thing: Don’t worry about the money. Just get out there and SPEAK.

The more you speak, the more you’ll speak because you’ll be seen and recommended.

Be humble. Take anything and learn, learn, learn. The momentum will begin to roll.

Of course, you need a great speech — something that is new, interesting, and appeals broadly to audiences. But when you’re ready, get out there any way you can.

And don’t wait for an invitation. Get out there and make something happen yourself. Take control of your career.

The beginning

I have about 25 different revenue streams, but speaking is my most important.

I didn’t plan to be a professional speaker. But as my personal brand began to grow, I started to get invitations. You ARE working on your personal brand, aren’t you??

Here is how my speaking career began.

I live in Knoxville, TN, a wonderful city, but not a hotbed for budding marketing speakers. When I started my speaking career around 2009, I developed a speech titled “Five Things You Need to Know About Social Media Now.”  Social media was a red-hot topic back then, and I had immersed myself in studying the topic.

Then I went out to the chamber of commerce, community service groups, marketing clubs, and anyone who would be interested in hearing me speak. I landed 10 or 12 talks (all free) and kept getting better and better.

Then, somebody from Nashville saw me at one of these talks and asked me to speak at their marketing event. That is a three-hour drive from Knoxville. I asked if they could find $500 to cover my travel expenses, and they agreed.

Now I was speaking in a major city and a bigger venue. At the Nashville talk, somebody saw me who was representing a professional association. They were impressed and asked me to speak at their annual conference in Nashville in a couple of months. I asked them if they could cover my travel and pay me $1,000. They agreed, and I was officially a professional speaker.

At that event, somebody from a big trucking association saw me and asked if I could speak at their event in New Orleans. I said sure … could you pay me $2,000? Yup.

And I was on my way. The momentum was building.

Speak to speak

This is how the world works. The more you speak, the more you speak!

The hardest part is swallowing your pride in those early days and starting at the bottom. My first talk was for the Farragut, Tennessee Lions Club! The AV didn’t work. The chicken lunch was dismal. Two fellows fell asleep. But that’s OK. I was learning. I was moving forward.

When nobody would hire me to speak, I even started my own event called Social Slam. 450 people attended in the first year, and I got some great photos and videos for my website.

That’s how it works. If you want to jumpstart a speaking career, get out there and take control of your own destiny.

Be humble, don’t wait for an invitation, keep working it, and the momentum will build.

Need an inspiring keynote speaker? Mark Schaefer is the most trusted voice in marketing. Your conference guests will buzz about his insights long after your event! Mark is the author of some of the world’s bestselling marketing books, a college educator, and an advisor to many of the world’s largest brands. Contact Mark to have him bring a fun, meaningful, and memorable presentation to your company event or conference.

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