A Note from Your President

Costumes & Presentations: Taking Away = More Clarity and Value

I grew up an only child, with a highly creative and frugal mother. This often meant Halloween was less about spending big money on costumes, and more about pulling together interesting ensembles from existing materials. These dress-up combinations were generally more humorous than scary, and the kookier the better! This often resulted in the question “What are you supposed to be?”, which can be fun in its own way. Because of these early experiences, I still prefer bringing uniqueness and mystery to the costume equation.

Recently I was invited to a Halloween party. Due to travel commitments, I needed to quickly cobble together a costume, just like the old days. From Hawaiian leis, stick-on tattoos, and sombreros — to wigs, fake guns, medallions, and funky clothing, I’ve got ingredients for some unusual costuming. And this time I put together a smorgasbord medley! Imagine something close to a washed-up 80’s rock singer, now doing maintenance work in Maui, wearing a shiny bow-tie, a huge sombrero, and toting multiple guns. It seemed like a good idea at the time!

However, in costumes and our speaking presentations, too much of a good thing can create confusion and difficulty for others to appreciate the value of what we are “presenting”.

I now realize that the costume I arranged was jarring, with many discordant elements. It made some people confused, and even borderline disturbed – at a party, no less! Initially, I thought it was fun “stirring up the pot”. I told myself their reactions were their responsibility, and not mine. But I realized that while being provocative can be a good strategy (in costumes and presentations), being confusingly provocative rarely is. Sometimes we put material in our talks just because we want to make a splash, without realizing that too many good things can confuse and even spoil an otherwise great presentation.

As the party went on, and I pondered my personal responsibility in this interesting situation, I decided to test my insight. I began to peel away a few of the most superfluous costume items not central to the core theme. Are you saying that not every costume needs a sombrero??

The result was fascinating. Although the costume character that emerged through this “taking away” process was not necessarily what I was originally aiming for, people responded very positively – with a higher appreciation of the “value” in direct relation to their increased ability to “make sense of” and categorize my “presentation”. By “taking away” elements and simplifying, I ended up with one of the bigger costume hits of the party.

In order to have a meaningful impact with our audiences, making it easy is Job #1. We can’t blame our audiences if they aren’t “getting” the full value of our presentations. We know we can’t be everything to every audience. Too much content confuses and ruins a well-intentioned speech. “Taking away” is about being clear on our central focus and removing those things that don’t contribute clearly to the purpose.

What do YOU need to “take away” from your presentations to help them land more effectively with your audiences? What do you need to take away, to have Your Best Year Yet?

October Meeting Shout-Outs

Special Guest Neen James, CSP (@NeenJames) provided an Ah-Mazing Aussie experience on leveraging our Idea Leadership, and getting clear on our unique contribution to the world. I hope you took advantage of her gracious 5-day offer to review one of your key ideas for clarity and uniqueness!

If you haven’t already, send her a quick testimonial video in appreciation for the value you received, like this great one from Past-President Michael Hoffman, CSP (@Hoffman_Mike)- Click HERE for Video. And, consider buying her Folding Time book as a holiday gift for those you love! Find it HERE on Amazon.

Quick Appreciation – It takes a village. There are so many wonderful people contributing to the great momentum of the NSA North Texas Chapter. Here is one.

Doug Petersen (@Doug1508) – In his 2nd Year as our Director of Technology, this NSA Professional Member continues to help us pioneer forward in how we connect as a Chapter with our Members, Candidates and the world around us. Doug’s expertise, energy, and passion for our Chapter is a real Inspiration (see what I did there?)! And I just want him to know how appreciated he is.

ARE YOU READY to Shine and Get Feedback?

Back by popular demand! The Speaker Marketing Showcase returns to NSA North Texas on Saturday December 12th. We will have an expert industry panel, along with FIVE Speaker Feedback Showcases.

Would you like to grab the opportunity to present a Showcase, and receive valuable feedback in the moment? Apply if you:

• Are an NSA Professional Member
• Have a speaker-focused website, and a brief speaker promotional video
• Have a solid 8-minute Showcase presentation to share on stage with the Chapter
• Are ready to Shine and Get Feedback!

Showcase Investment is $97 for All-Access Pass Pro Members, and $137 for Pro Members.

Click HERE to complete your application for one of the five slots. DEADLINE is Thursday, 19-November. Submissions after that date will not be considered for this year. If you have additional questions, please contact Programming Director Andrew Szabo (@MarketingChef). Thanks and Good Luck!

And, FINALLY, I’m looking forward to a GREAT November with David Newman, CSP (@DNewman)! Go ahead now and follow him on Twitter — and show some NSA North Texas LOVE!

To your continued Success and Happiness,

 

 

Chris Price (@ChrisPriceCDP)
President 2015-16
NSA North Texas (@NSANorthTexas)

Our Next Seminar November 14, 2015

David Newman, CSP

Two Morning Sessions

PART ONE

“Marketing and Sales Accelerator for Thought-Leading Professionals”

You could be the best speaker in the world, but if no one knows who you are, then you’ll spend your days speaking to no one but yourself!
In this program, you will get actionable tools, templates, and strategies to launch – or relaunch – your speaking career toward its next level of success by following the marketing mantra, “Professional Speaker is a skill set, not a job description.”

As a Result of this seminar, you will be able to:

• Re-ignite your speaking, consulting, coaching or solo professional practice by building your “Thought Leadership Platform”
• Repackage, reposition, and repurpose existing assets into newly marketable services, products, and programs
• Unlock a steady stream of new prospects, clients, buyers, and audiences who are already seeking solutions to the pains, problems, heartaches, and headaches that you’re brilliant at solving

“David’s presentation on marketing hit it out of the park and gave me some wonderful ideas on how to enhance the way I position my business.”
– Ron Culberson, MSW, CSP, National Speakers Association President 2012-13

PART TWO

“Teleseminar Domination Deep Dive:Maximize your Impact and Income with Group Coaching”

What’s the difference between a speaker, consultant, or solo professional who charges $300 per hour vs. $3,000 per hour while OFF the podium?
One has mastered the 1-to-many business model. And the other one has not.
The easiest, fastest, and most profitable way to get started on YOUR very own 1-many business model, service model, and revenue model is simple: it’s group coaching and training. Over the last 5 years, David has added over $518,000 in revenue to his business using the power of virtual group training programs.

David will show you how to:

• Create highly leveraged group programs
• Finally break free from the “hours for dollars” trap
• Package your services into a “signature” virtual program that stands out amongst your competitors and positions you as the ultimate authority in your field
• Raise your fees by 500% – 1,000% while having your clients Thank YOU for it
• Generate an additional $5k 0 $20k per month and get a lot more personal time off

David will take you behind the scenes and show you how to use group coaching programs to grow your thought leadership, dramatically increase your reach and generate six figures of extra revenue – year after year after year.

About the Speaker

David Newman, CSP is a marketing expert and founder of Do It! Marketing, a marketing strategy and training firm dedicated to helping speakers, consultants, and authors maximize their influence, impact, and income. Free resources including David’s 96-page Strategic Marketing eBook are available online at www.doitmarketing.com. David has worked with over 300 speakers ranging from the brand-new speaker just starting out all the way up to 25-year speaking veterans and half a dozen members of the National Speakers Association CPAE Speaker Hall of Fame. After working with David, speakers and experts at every level generate MORE leads, BETTER prospects, and BIGGER sales.

Website

Mark your calendar and make your reservation now!

Saturday, November 12,  8:00 am – 12:30 pm
Hilton Garden Inn Dallas / Richardson

you, the speaker – What’s your digital IQ score?

by Dave Lieber, CSP

Take this quick digital skills test and see how well prepared you, the speaker, are to serve your audience as a digitally-centric speaker (which we must be) in the 21st century.

Ready to begin? Give yourself two points for every YES answer.

1. Do you have your own website?
2. Do you control it, meaning, can you post on it and update it without a webmaster helping you?
3. Can you add art and photos to your website?
4. Do you use subheads on stories you post?
5. Can you insert hyperlinks?
6. Can you insert documents (using Scribd or other document clouds)?
7. Do you know how to embed video in a blog post
8. Can you write short SEO-friendly headlines?
9. Do you know how to write summaries of your stories for aggregation in the required number of characters?
10. Can you post on a smart phone or tablet?
11. Can you use Google Analytics or another site to show you how many visitors you get and what keywords your audience is using to find you?
12. Have you posted a video of any kind about what you do in the past year on social media?

Perfect score is 24 points.

If you scored 20 or higher you’re in amazing shape.

If you scored between 10-18, you’re on the right track but need to go through the list and see what you need to know.

If you scored 8 or less, you probably don’t give a darn about any of this and I’m kinda surprised you got this far. Good luck and enjoy your coming retirement.

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Since 2008 @DaveLieber, CSP, has been writing a monthly column about all things NSA-North Texas. He’s The Watchdog investigative columnist for The Dallas Morning News. DaveLieber.org