There are a lot of resources for aspiring professional speakers! Here are a few of my favorites:
(mostly Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN area):
2. SpeakerBiz
Highly recommended. I recently graduated from the SpeakerBiz Program
Testimonials Video (yep, I’m in it):
Favorite Web Resources:
1. Craig Valentine’s Blog (he also has weekly 52SpeakingTips –audio with a pdf transcript.). These focus on speaking skills.
2. Darrin LaCroix’s 52GetPaidtoSpeakTips. These tips focus on building a speaking business.
3. Six Minutes: Public Speaking and Presenting. I can’t say enough about how helpful this resource is. From tips to analysis to examples, it has it all!
Favorite Book
I’ve looked at several books and there is one that I keep coming back to:
Craig Valentine’sWorld Class Speaking: The Ultimate Guide to Presenting, Marketing and Profiting Like a Champion
I read an ad in my church buietlln in March of 2000. It was ad for an eight-week public speaking class sponsored by Toastmasters. I had never heard of Toastmasters but the ad promised that the course would help me improve my communication and listening skills. I knew that I needed the class because I was starting a business and my speaking skills were so poor that I could hardly even explain my business idea. I took the class which was a Toastmasters workshop called Speechcraft. I made great progress and met some wonderful people so I decided to join the Toastmaster organization. Before long I noticed that I was more comfortable leaving voice mail messages, something that I had previously avoided, and I found that the vision for my business was becoming clearer. I actually changed my business name after being in Toastmasters for a few months because I could finally see and explain my business idea to others. This year I am celebrating ten years in business and ten years in Toastmasters. Karen Sprinkle Fountain City Toastmasters Club
Congratulations, Karen! I love to hear how Toastmasters has changed someone’s life!