Can you imagine being so afraid to speak in front of others that you would be willing to fail English for the entire year in High School or not taking a Promotion at your job because it involved speaking?
This is not something I have to imagine. I did both because I was the world’s biggest chicken when it came to speaking in front of others.
I had to Learn to speak Naked!
The ability to communicate in a compelling way that connects to others without the use of props or a binky!
A friend invited me to a group called Toastmasters. They are a non-profit organization that helps people become better speakers, listeners, and leaders.
I learned more in one meeting about speaking, my strengths, and my weaknesses than I had learned in the last 10 years of selling and speaking!
The evaluator of my first speech in Toastmasters told me that my greatest strength had become my biggest weakness, and it was a blind spot – I did not know I was doing it, and it was turning off half the audience!
We ALL have blind spots when we are speaking, and like driving, they can be very dangerous.
One of the business owners in our community had passed, and I was asked to do one of the readings.
Prior to Toastmasters, I would have said no because I feared speaking more than I feared losing a friendship or reputation.
Two hours before the Celebration of Life, they called and said there was an emergency.
The person who was supposed to conduct the ceremony could not come and they “Asked” if I could do it.
How do you say no to a widow? I told them I had never done anything like this before and did not have time to prepare.
This did not matter since they did not have anyone else, and hundreds of people were already on their way.
The following 2 hours were excruciatingly painful. I do not have words to tell you how afraid I was!
Something magical happened after I did the introductions and invited the first of many speakers to the lectern.
I was standing behind the stage, waiting for the first speaker to finish so I could go back and continue the ceremony, when I had an Epiphany.
For the first time in my life, I believed I could do this, and I could not wait to get back on stage speaking to the crowd!
Toastmaster training had laid a great foundation, and I was seeing the fruit of that work.
I had Learned to Speak Naked and was loving it!
If you had told me prior to this that I would someday love to speak in public, I would have told you that you were delusional.
Learning to Speak Naked will help with your relationships, finances, mental health, reputation, brand and will open doors of opportunity.
The world is afraid to Speak, and most will avoid it like the plague.
This leaves a lot of room at the top with little competition to get there!
If you must speak to any group numbering one or more, you need Toastmasters.
Find Your Passion…Find Your Life!