The most common misconception about speaking careers is that it is very difficult to get paid satisfactorily. If that's the case, it is either you don't have the adequate speaking skills or you are just not playing it smart.

If you have been speaking for a while now and you think you're really good with your stuff, don't hesitate to give a substantial price tag on your services. One of the biggest blunders in this business is selling oneself short.

Always keep in mind that...

You have to understand that if you are a professional speaker, you are not just in the speaking business. You are in the business of marketing your speaking services.

Your public speaking skills can only take you so far but it is not until you learn to become an excellent marketer that you will reap the awesome financial rewards of public speaking. The key to acquiring engagements is through networking and employing appropriate marketing strategies.

So if you want to get...

Ever notice how a person can speak very well and they own the audience.  It turns out people like to hear other people speak.  Get in the habit of speaking your mind.  It shows a skill of leadership when you speak and people always what to hear what you have to say.  It’s a great thing to think big in life, so why not speak like a big thinker.  Get a boost of self-esteem when you speak your mind.

Letting people know that what you have to say is...

It’s been said that when you open your mouth, you tell the world who you are. Like it or not people formulate opinions about us, based not only on our appearance but also on our communication skills. And while many people go to great lengths to look good, dress professionally and so on, very few people take any sort of action to improve their communication skills.

It’s no surprise that many of the world’s most successful people are also top notch...

As a professional telemarketing speaker, customer service speaker, and negotiation speaker, those that aspire to this profession or that just want to be paid for their platform pyrotechnics, ask me for advice.

Recently, just such a hopeful, residing in a town with a famous prison, said to me she wants to position herself to speak for money. I gave her the standard suggestion for novices.

Start "free," and evolve into "fee." This is to say, offer your...

The year was 2,000. Ed Tate walked out on stage to the sound of several thousand speakers clapping. Was he nervous and fearful? Probably. He was competing against nine other contestants for the World Champion of Public Speaking.

The Power Pause

He planted his feet and looked at the audience. Five seconds went by. Ed said nothing and continued to look at the audience. Another five seconds slipped. The audience was dead silent and with every second the tension...

There’s a very popular addition to the language around at the moment.  It is used by a majority of speakers from TV and radio presenters, public speakers and possibly members of your family.

It is unfortunately taking over all our conversations and threatening to destroy clear and concise communication.  It will double the amount of time that it takes to deliver a simple message and its overuse can affect the ability of our listeners to understand our...

Public speaking ranks as one of the top fears of Americans. Understandably so: all eyes are fixed on you and your every word is scrutinized. This can be a daunting task which sends tremors through the bodies of even seemingly confident people.

No matter how much you hate public speaking, you are going to have to do it at some point. Whether as a student, an employee, or a manager. Even as a relative or friend you may be called upon to bestow some insights or wisdom about a...

As a voice specialist, I have known for many years that a good voice improvement course can be an excellent means of accent reduction.  Yesterday, I received an email from a Taiwanese man studying in Boston.  His 1st language is Mandarin Chinese; and, he has been enrolled in an accent reduction course for the past 4 months.  He noticed, however, that something was still missing:

1. his inability to increase his volume without his accent returning; and,

Progress of Mankind

Man began his life with the changing experience of pain and pleasure. With the ambition of enjoying sensory pleasure more and ambition of enjoying sensory pleasure more and more accordingly everyone had to face pain and miseries. By the practical experiences or by the imaginary expectations of pain and pleasure we developed the mental attitudes of liking or hating something or some actions and persons.

In the primitive ages, when there was no family or...