How can you develop a public speaking career in the current market?

If you are an unknown, the hard way is to build your own personal brand. The easy way is to build the brand of the dragon you are going to slay in your talk. Sell the accident and the ambulance sells itself! Write a series of LinkedIn posts on a popular topic that you want to "go to war with". Having a counter-narrative makes you interesting. For example, if you just want to do a talk on purpose, or finding your "why", well then you're just like Sinek-Light. However if you talk about why personal purpose is the wrong lens, well then people will take notice. Once you have those posts, use them as the basis for your talk and offer to do it ten times for FREE. Get the reps in and the reviews out. Build your cred. Oh and niches get riches :)

Before carving a career for yourself as a public speaker, first and foremost is to establish your niche…that means the area in which you are proficient. If you start talking about everything thing, you will recognised only as a speaker, not a public speaker….in today’s competitive world, ‘one should be jack of all trades as well as master of one.’

This is the fun part, because you're working on establishing your brand and developing your audience by picking out a topic that will allow you to showcase your expertise. You want to be known as the go-to person on a particular topic that sets you apart from everyone else. It's about how you develop your flow of thought, display your style, your purpose, and your passion.

Yes yes yes, it's important to niche down if you want to develop a public speaking career but before that, be sure to explore various areas of public speaking so you can make an informed decision. For me I tried event hosting, speaking and other areas before choosing public speaking coaching as my major strength. I still host events and speak but I majorly train children, young talents and professionals to be confident speakers. How did I decide even though I struggled with the fear of public speaking for 5 years? I made a decision to be better, I sought knowledge, guidance and I started exploring till I made an informed decision.

Identify your niche- 1. Self-Reflection:Identify your passions, expertise, and unique perspective. Consider what topics genuinely interest you and align with your knowledge. 2. Market Research: Investigate current trends and demands in the public speaking industry. Identify gaps where your expertise can offer value. Analyze your target audience to tailor your message effectively. 3. Networking: Engage with industry professionals, attend events, and build connections. Seek feedback on your speaking style and topics. Establishing relationships within your niche can open doors to speaking opportunities and collaborations.

Establishing your brand is important! This is the opportunity to showcase what you represent and your personality. This can be done through written text or videos. The goal is not to be stagnant in one approach. Ongoing creativity is a must! Personally, I find videos more engaging and likely to garner active engagement. Let's not kid ourselves, people will listen, follow and take action from people that they like and respect!

1. Craft a Compelling Signature Speech: Develop a powerful and unique presentation that encapsulates your key message. Tailor it to resonate with your target audience. 2. Build an Online Presence: Create a professional website that includes a well-crafted speaker bio, testimonials, and a portfolio of your work. Leverage social media platforms to share valuable content, engage with your audience. 3. Collect and Showcase Testimonials: Request feedback from those who have witnessed your speaking engagements. Positive testimonials build credibility and trust. Feature these endorsements prominently on your website and marketing materials to validate your expertise and impact as a public speaker.

Always wear your brand. By this I mean, promote your brand, skills etc in a gathering so that people get to know about your skills. One who is recognised by a crowd gets connections and this is how a brand is created. eg: I have my own newsletter on LinkedIn THE FINANCE GAZETTE. I don't fail to share this with people when I met professionally because this is MY BRAND. The magic is this works and I gain over 600 subscribers in just 2 months. Try it out and share if it worked for you!

Start early - That is not the same as start young. Start early simply means once you decide to do something don’t spend years doing training and courses - yes get some basic fundamental understanding then start delivering Make mistakes and learn - It is much better to Start early and make your own mistakes and learn from them and improve a skill on the go - rather than seeing endless videos about it or reading a 1000books about it. Be honest - Don’t try to copy someone’s style - we listen to someone because they are funny, we listen to someone because of the depth of their content, yet another for just disagreeing with their views - so your style will have its audience too

These days, corporations and political figures are all looking to outsource their public relations to someone else, continuing a high-level trend first initiated by Edward Bernays’ work building off of his uncle’s field of modern psychology. In order to market one’s services there must be a preset client-list of speeches delivered, as well as a good client-educator relationship. After all, nobody wants their expertise to be co-opted by a cause that is quite the opposite of their passions or moral beliefs.

One of the best ways to grow your skills is to create and post a series of videos on social media where you can hone your skills. This will help you become more comfortable speaking, as well as allow you to see the areas you should improve on. It will also help you establish a following of people who will subscribe to your channel or page. Because they've indicated they're interested in more content from you, this will keep the wheels turning in your mind to keep your content fresh, relevant, engaging, and concise.

Always be learning. Remember you can learn something from anyone and failures are a great learning opportunity. With speaking especially, learn by doing. Most of us instinctively avoid public speaking out of fear of sounding awkward or dumb. A lot of good ideas go to waste because of this so raise your hand in that meeting. It’s good practice. At Columbia Law School professors did call on me at random, made me stand up and grilled me on esoteric topics with no right answers but many wrong ones. Yes it was frustrating and uncomfortable. It also got me extremely used to being put on the spot.

It is very important to update yourself with the correct skills because ONLY THE FITTEST CAN SURVIVE THIS RACE. If you want to be in the market you need to learn everyday from people, places, things etc. eg: People say AI is the job taker. NO AI is just the replacement of people who don't know how to use it. So update yourself with that. AI WON'T TAKE AWAY YOUR JOB BUT A PERSON WHO HAS THE SKILLS WOULD!

If you want to speak professionally, your #1 priority is to join the professional speakers association (PSA) in your country or region. A professional speakers association will not only help you to hone your craft, but also run a successful speaking business. An added bonus is the support of the professional speaking community worldwide. There is no better investment in your professional speaking career.

To start with, you should first be sure that Public speaking as a career is the most appropriate trajectory for you. After you’ve ascertained this, next is to give yourself to rigorous practice, fearlessly. Jump at every opportunity to speak in the public, volunteer yourself for speaking engagements, competitions etc because this skill is better learnt and perfected by doing it.

1. If possible walk on stage while you present. 2. Focus on your expressions. Always keep a smile. 3. If asked a tough qns, you can pass it on by saying "GOOD QUESTION. Who would like to volunteer for this qns?" 4. Sound confident even if you ain't. 5. Don't keep your hands in the pocket while you speak. 6. Don't show your back to the audience. 7. Don't brag about your achievements for long. Act modest. 8. Instead of reading out from a long speech, use METACARDS that have a jist of your speech. 9. Don't read out your speech. 10. Stress on VOICE MODULATIONS. 11. Keep a maintained difference from the MIKE. 12. Be open to questions even if you're not sure. 13. Engage with the crowd by asking RHETORICAL QUESTIONS

Be honest and be you! People value honesty now more than ever. It is important to be confident in who you are and what you say in order to excel at public speaking. The next step is identifying your strengths and talking about it. Start by making your frienimies your audience and take their criticism positively, rectify your mistakes, modify yourself, and keep going! If you’re scared of the crowd, try looking at a blank spot far behind the audience and keep changing direction now and again till you gain the confidence to make actual eye contact.