“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” Oscar Wilde
I’m breaking this down into the top takeaways so whether you are a speaker, aspiring speaker or just desire some support with your message, you can incorporate this into your business.
1. Create a Common Cause and Don’t be Vanilla
Marianne shared truth without injecting a biased opinion into it, which I have found that when speakers attempt to do what she did, they come across as being too “vanilla” aka boring, just like everyone else, bland, etc.
This also means giving YOUR content. If your presentation is primarily full of famous people’s quotes, then reach deep inside of you and come up with YOUR quote. Quotes from others are great, but use sparingly to illustrate YOUR points.
Some speakers have a point of view that clearly excludes people to the point of creating a division in the audience. You will never please everyone so don’t try. (Again, resist being vanilla.)
While you want to make a clear point that gives people an opportunity to either agree with you (they are your ideal clients) and people who don’t agree with you (they are your non-ideal clients), there is a way to do it that empowers everyone on their next step.
This may mean some people will walk away not liking you, being pissed at you and never coming back. This is great news. You now have more space for the right people in your life.
2. What is Your Wow Factor?
Another speaker was doing some message makeovers on people’s business and he asked “What makes people say WOW about you? What is your WOW factor?”
When people tried to search for features and benefits in their products and programs, they sounded like everyone else who offered something similar. We’ve all done that right?
BUT when the person being asked the question slowed down, went inside and TOLD THEIR OWN STORY of how they overcame something, then the audience clearly saw their WOW.
What is YOUR WOW factor? What makes people say WOW about you?
There was a woman who got on stage who talked about gratitude. There are millions of people who talk about gratitude.
Then she said “I’m grateful I got breast cancer and here is why…” The audience was moved to the edge of their seats to listen to her story. She continued on her story about all of the lessons she has learned and mastered through the journey. She KNOWS gratitude. She lives it. Now others know EXACTLY how she can help them.
3. The Power of Vulnerability
The problem is people think that being vulnerable makes them appear weak. There is a difference between sharing your story as a way to heal your story, and then there is true power of sharing your life’s experiences from the perspective of:
- Here is what I experienced
- Here is what I learned
- This is what you can do in your own life/business/career/relationships/health/happiness.
I have talked to people about my gift for creating live events, including how to fill the room, how to choose speakers, how to prepare your own content, etc. (By the way, watch out in February where I’m pulling back the curtain along with colleague and speaker extraordinaire Kristin Thompson.)
ONLY when I was transparent about how my very first event resulted in a $40,000 LOSS then how the next event created a 6-figure profit did people listen. Why? I told MY STORY. I talked about driving home from that first event sobbing because I knew what was waiting at home for me: More invoices than what I had money in my bank account would cover. Then I shared how I turned it all around.
“YOU are your ultimate product.” ~Marianne Williamson
This means being vulnerable, transparent, authentic and letting go of your ego.
YOU are your ultimate product. Mastering your life on all levels contributes to your bottom line.
Week #4 Soul Vision Exercise:
What is the #1 thing you haven’t wanted to tell people about what you do because you think it has:
a. made you feel bad
b. made you feel like a fraud
c. made you feel like people won’t trust you
d. made you feel like you need more experience
e. made you worry that people won’t like you or it’s “too weird or too much”
f. a combination of these things
Your invitation is to start sharing this information. THIS is the strongest aspect of your marketing. Without it, you blend into the crowd and this results in lost opportunities and lost profits.
