Professionals who are effective public speakers have a cheat code for commercial success.

Remember when we were kids playing video games, when a level got too hard we could enter a cheat code to give ourselves an unfair advantage? Getting good at public speaking is exactly like that. It’s a hack that completely changes the game. What was once a tough slog can become effortless, even easy. The task of securing client work, raising your profile and becoming more and more integral to the success of your firm is made vastly easier when you combine competent communication skills with a little strategic nous.

Purchasing decisions are built on trust, respect, confidence

I’ve worked with many partners and executives in professional services, and when I encounter resistance to the idea of leveraging public speaking to enable commercial success, it usually sounds like one of the following:

“…but I don’t have enough time”

I must be honest, this makes me bristle.

It makes me bristle because I’ve seen so many professionals save themselves not just hours but literally weeks or months of work by delivering a single phenomenal speech.

Almost all professional services organisations are first and foremost for-profit, and thus the idea that there is work more important than securing the financial future of the firm is deeply misguided. If you can become even moderately effective at driving the commercial goals of the organisation, you might soon discover that there are very few ways you can spend your time more effectively than exercising the skill of public speaking.

If you’re responsible for revenue, thinking you don’t have time to prepare for a speech is like a carpenter thinking they don’t have time to buy themselves a hammer.

There are very few ways to expand your client network or secure future work that are more potent (or that more effectively leverage your time) than speaking.

I get it, it doesn’t feel like you have enough time, but that’s just because you haven’t received the return on investment yet.

“…but I’m not a naturally gifted speaker”

The truth is that not everyone is destined to be Brené Brown or Barack Obama. Fortunately, what’s also true is that you don’t need to make mastery of public speaking your goal. Your goal is simply to generate a surplus of commercial opportunities for yourself and your firm. That’s it!

You don’t need to change people’s lives. You don’t need to change the world. All you have to do is change their perspective enough to create an interest. For most of us, all we need to do with a presentation is generate a few conversations in the lobby, a few clarifying emails, a few follow-up phone calls to discuss how your ideas might impact their business.

If you have the ability to talk and the willingness to do the work, you have all the tools required to deliver an incredibly effective commercial presentation.

“…but I get too nervous before speaking”

Of the three objections I hear most often, this is the one I have the most compassion for.

Public speaking creates a visceral reaction in almost everyone. The nervousness in anticipation of an upcoming speech can be torturous!

That nervousness—whilst generally unwelcome and often unuseful—is a sign from your subconscious that you really should do the work to prepare a deliver a great speech. You don’t get anxious when you sit down to analyse yet another spreadsheet because your nervous system knows that it’s not that important. You don’t get dry-mouth when you open yet another email because your nervous system knows that it’s not that important.

When you’re preparing for a speech however, you might get butterflies, cotton-mouth, even shaky legs… to do something which is literally as easy as just talking!

Why?

Because your nervous system knows that this is important. This moment matters. Very few situations induce the kind of reaction that an important speech can induce, and that’s because very few situations matter as much as a few moments on stage in the company of an audience full of commercial possibility.

The truth is, if you don’t get at least a little nervous before speaking, you’re not treating the situation with the gravity it deserves. But the good news is, with some strategic preparation, whilst you might still get butterflies before a speech, you can teach them to fly in formation. You can learn to direct the nervous energy into useful places.

Be more entertaining, more likeable, and more profitable.

A well executed presentation is almost certainly the highest leverage moment of a knowledge worker's year. There's not another 30 minute stretch of time that can influence one's fortunes as profoundly as a well-designed and well-delivered speech.

If you or your organisation needs help reaching your commercial goals, I would love to help. Whether you’ve:

• got a date booked in and you need help getting prepared, or

• you’ve organised a conference and have a whole team of speakers to prepare, or

• you want to get on the front foot and develop you/your team’s speaking skills

…I would be happy to help. Whether through blended training/coaching experiences to help your whole group, or 1:1 coaching for specific partners or executives in your team, if you want to grow the revenue of your organisation through powerful presentations, I’m here to help.

You're invited. Take the stage, to set the stage for massive success.