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How to Read Your
Way
to Speaking Success
by Mike Moore
The most
important
thing a speaker can do to enhance a career is to become an authority in
their
specific subject area. You want to reach a point where people
automatically
think of you when they are looking for information on your topic or are
looking
for a speaker for their event.
To do this you must read extensively in your field. I believe that
speakers
are leaders and leaders are readers. If you don't read then listen to
tapes
or lectures. You have to learn all you can and more about your subject.
When you read extensively you give yourself a distinct advantage over
those
who don't. And there are huge numbers of people who don't read.
Statistics show that the average person reads less than one book a year
after
graduating highschool.
- 58 percent never finish the book they
begin.
- 90 percent of book buyers never read
beyond
chapter one of the book they begin.
- 20 percent of the population purchase
80
percent of all books purchased.
Many people who do read do so to be able to
function
adequately at work. Few read to excel in a specific area of knowledge
and
huge numbers don't read at all. Looking at these statistics you can see
that
if you are a voracious reader you have a winning edge over others.
When you stand in front of an audience to deliver a speech there is a
lot
of presumption present. The audience presumes that you know what you
are talking
about and have something meaningful and beneficial to give them. On
your
part you must presume that you are an authority on the topic and that
you
have expertise and knowledge far beyond that of your audience. The only
way
you can be confident in this presumption is by reading and studying
your
subject thoroughly.
I suggest that you set aside at least one half hour of study per day.
One
hour is better but you might just want to begin with a half an hour
until
the habit is formed. Make it something sacred and don't neglect it for
anything
but the most serious of reasons. You will soon reach a point where you
know
a great deal more than you need to know when giving a speech. This
increases
your self confidence and really helps you when someone from the
audience asks
you a question that you have to answer extemporaneously. Your comfort
with
answering questions will impress and leave people believing that the
presumption
they had about you being an expert was correct. Your reputation as an
knowledgeable
speaker begins to grow and so does your career.
You are invited to take a look at my speaking schedule at http://motivationalplus.com/cgi/a/t.cgi?schedule
How to Earn Fantastic Fees Using
your Expertise
and Your Speaking Ability
by Mike Moore
Last month I sat beside a successful
insurance
sales person at a wedding reception. He told me he was very successful
in
sales and that he had a formula for success that allowed him to achieve
a
high level income and corresponding lifestyle. He also said that he
would
be retiring in a couple of years and was concerned that he would become
restless
after the initial excitement of retirement faded. I asked him if he
ever thought
of writing a manual outlining his success formula and giving
presentations
to other sales people on how to apply it to their professional lives.
He said
he hadn't but was definitely interested in finding out more about it.
Of
course I gave him direction to my www.speakforprofit.com website.
Here is what I told him:
- There are literally thousands of
professionals
and other skilled people out there in the business world and in the
professions
with a wealth of accumulated knowledge and information at their
fingertips.
- There are thousands who are hungry to
hear
what you have learned over your career.
- There is huge money in sharing your
knowledge
and expertise.
- If you have given " Knock 'Em Dead"
presentations
in the past why not continue doing it on your own time for very
impressive
fees?
- You begin by taking a problem that
you know
exists and needs solving within your industry and then offering
solutions
to that problem. You write the solutions out in a manual or special
report
and then offer your information product for sale within your profession
using
professional publications to advertise in. At the same time you make it
known
within your profession and in your manual that you are available to
conduct
seminars and workshops on the topic. Accept every invitation to speak
that
comes your way. As the word spreads about your " Knock 'Em Dead" style
and
the effectiveness of your message in solving a specific problem you
soon become
known as an expert in the field and requests for you to speak start
pouring
in.
- Stay within the industry you know
well.
If your manual applies to other related industries you can venture into
newer
pastures after you are established in the one you know best. It is
better
to be a big fish in a smaller pond so to speak.
Note:
You can take a look at how I employed this process in my own
professional
speaking career and have extended it to people in many professions
throughout
the world. Visit http://www.speakforprofit.com
and http://www.motivationalplus.com
Who can benefit from improving their public
speaking
skills and offering them to the marketplace?
- health care workers ( nurses,
chiropractors,
doctors, alternative health care providers)
- teachers ( They have an advantage
over those
who aren't trained in the art of presentation)
- human resource consultants
- financial planners
- business managers / office managers/
supervisors
- writers
- consultants
- auto mechanics
- trades people
- social workers
The list is endless. Anyone who relates
well to
people and has a certain expertise can earn fantastic fees giving
speeches.
If you would like to take a look at my
speaking
schedule you can do so by visiting
http://motivationalplus.com/cgi/a/t.cgi?schedule
The Art of Storytelling in Public Speaking
by Mike Moore
It is
important
for speakers to remember that human beings have an insatiable appetite
for
stories. From the time we were children when we constantly asked our
parents
to, " Tell me a story" until the present time nothing has changed. We
love
to listen to and tell stories.
Life is filled with experiences and when we share these experiences we
are
telling stories. When we listen to the experiences of others we are
sharing
their stories. Can you imagine life without stories? What would we talk
about?
To validate this human hunger for stories all you have to do is observe
what
happens when you meet an old friend you haven't seen for some time. The
first
thing you want to do is find out what they've been up to. This is a
request
to be told stories.
At a party all ears perk up when someone says, " Did you hear what
happened
to Judy?"
In Church a boring sermon suddenly comes alive when the preacher begins
to
tell a story.
You come home from work after an exciting or frustrating day at the
office
and the first thing you say is " You'll never guess what happened to me
today."
As soon as these words leave your lips you have peoples' attention. If
you
doubt this try saying, " Oh I'm sure you'd rather not hear this." and
see
them beg to be told your story.
This natural hunger for stories provides speakers and writers with a
powerful
magnetic tool to connect with and hold our audiences. NEVER give a
speech
without sprinkling it with generous doses of stories.
Stories inform, entertain and grab peoples' attention. Use them often
and
effectively.
This is a brief excerpt from Mike's
60 minute
audio " How to Use
Storytelling In
Public Speaking" To order your own copy visit http://motivationalplus.com/cgi/a/t.cgi?ps2
Public Speaking and The Law of
Expectations
by Mike Moore
The Law of Expectations states that we move
toward
and eventually realize what we expect from life. If you expect to be
successful,
if you work hard to achieve success and if you never give up, you will
achieve
your expectations.
When you combine the law of expectations with visualization you
compound your
possibilities. If you expect to be successful and visualize yourself as
successful
the likelihood of you achieving success is certain. Remember, we tend
to
become what we expect to become.
When
applied
to public speaking it looks like this. When you are hired to give a
speech
expect it to be a sparkling, enthusiastic success. Visualize yourself
as
an interesting, witty, well informed master of the art who totally
enjoys
the subject and the audience. Hold this expectation and vision in your
mind
firmly. Don't let go of it for anything. Repeat over and over," I tend
to
become what I expect to become and achieve what I expect to achieve."
If you
commit
yourself to this process you will begin to see improvement in both your
delivery
and in your relationship with your audience. You will be on the way to
becoming
the speaker you want to become. What's more, people will want to listen
to
what you have to say and your charisma quotient will increase
significantly.
It worked for me and it will for you.
ThePath to Profitable Speaking
By Mike Moore
What follows are excerpts from my
popular
manual Public Speaking for Profit and Pleasure. Every month I receive
numerous
emails from people all over North America asking how I got into the
speaking
business and how they can too. To respond to these many inquiries I
wrote Public Speaking for Profit and Pleasure. Here are ten
timely
tips, from my manual, to get you started on the path to profitable
speaking.
You know that you might have what it takes to become a speaker if you
feel
compelled to speak. The fact that you were drawn to this article and
clicked
The Path to Profitable Speaking indicates a definite interest and a
possible
compulsion. If you feel compelled to speak you can easily learn how.
You can
accomplish whatever you put your mind to.
- Good speakers enjoy what they do
and the
audience senses their enjoyment and responds positively. Enthusiasm is
essential
in an effective speaker.
- If you want to become a successful,
well
paid speaker you must become well known. Promotion and publicity are
vital
to your success.
- Leave your promotional footprints
wherever
you go so people find you easily.
- After each speech ask those who
hired
you for a written testimonial. Use these testimonials, or parts of
them, in
your advertising and publicity. I have never had people refuse to
provide
a testimonial for me. Sometimes I have had to remind them, but no one
has
ever refused.
- Access free publicity whenever
possible.
Write and submit press releases frequently. Writers and editors are
always
looking for new story material and your press release could result in
an interview
and a story being written about you, your work and/or your publications.
- Some new speakers say that it is
difficult
to establish a reputation as a speaker when many businesses are
reluctant
to hire unknowns to in-service their employees. I solved this problem
by offering
to speak free of charge ...with certain conditions attached of course.
- To get speaking engagements you
must present
yourself to people looking for speakers. Every community has an
abundance
of organizations, associations and service groups in need of speakers
for
their conferences, banquets and in-service sessions. Make yourself
known to
them.
- Write and record material related
to the
topics you speak on and offer these products for sale as back of the
room
items after every speech. Sales of these back of the room items
frequently
exceed the speaking fee you receive. Publish on demand using your
computer
and printer. Only have your products produced professionally when you
see
that they are selling well.
- Promote yourself and your products
within
each speech, but in just the right dosage. Too much self promotion and
you
can turn your audience against you. Too little and they might ignore
your
products altogether.
- This is just a sample of what you
will
learn in Public Speaking for Profit and Pleasure. Each tip presented
here
is expanded upon in the manual providing you with valuable information
to
get started in your own profitable speaking business.
Also included in the manual are the
following
topics:
- How to prepare and deliver a
great
speech
- How to really connect with your
audience
- How to develop confidence
- Overcoming the fear of public
speaking
- How to write and where to send
press
releases
- How to crack the lucrative
business
in-service market
- Establishing your fees
- and MUCH MORE
Good luck on the path to profitable
speaking.
Mike Moore
is
an international speaker on humor and human potential. http://www.speakforprofit.com
HUMOR MAKES GREAT THINGS HAPPEN.
Feel free to use this article in your
newsletter
or on your website provided that you keep contact information as is.
The
Business of Speaking for Profit, Pleasure and Personal Growth
By Mike Moore
I believe that public speaking can
be
rewarding in many ways. First of all it can provide you
with an
opportunity to earn a fantastic full time or part time income working
from
home. Groups, organizations and businesses are always looking for
informative,
entertaining speakers to address their members at banquets, annual
meetings,
conferences etc. As you become well known as a speaker the
invitations
increase. Word of mouth is still the best form of advertising. As
your
reputation spreads you will find people from outside your local area
approaching
you to present to their group. Since I began my speaking career I have
spoken
to numerous groups throughout Canada and the United States. Not
only
are the financial rewards terrific, but I get to travel, all expenses
paid,
meet new people and see new country. What a great life and what great
rewards
for doing what I love to do.
Another appealing feature of a speaking career is that you
control your
own schedule. You accept only those engagements that fit nicely into
your
other family duties and obligations. If you want a month off, you just
don’t
accept bookings during that time. When you add this to no traffic jams
to
face twice a day and no boss to contend with it starts to hit you just
how
appealing this career is.
Not only do you determine how many speeches you would like to
give per
month but you also can negotiate how much you will charge per
speech.
When just starting out in the speaking business you will receive in the
neighborhood
of $200.00 per presentation. Within a year you could be receiving
between
$500 and $1000 per talk. Not bad part time money for doing
something
you love.
I like to have a fee range to accommodate the various budgets of
different
groups and to provide room for negotiation. I am in the business of
opening
doors of opportunity not closing them because my fee is rigid.
This
is entirely up to you. I know speakers who will not negotiate their
fees.
That is their choice.
If you just want to speak locally you can. If you want to spread your
vocal
wings across the region and the continent the possibilities are
endless. Marketing
yourself and your service will bring opportunities galore. If you have
a
computer and are online you can advertise on your own web site. This
brings
inquiries from all over the planet and spreads the word about your
speaking
topics and availability to millions of potential clients.
Added
Benefits
of a Public Speaking Career
- Public speaking builds confidence.
When
you experience the thrill of holding an audience in the palm of your
hand
and receive their appreciative applause your confidence soars.
- Public speaking boosts your self
esteem.
When you see the audience relate to you as someone who really knows
what you
are talking about your self esteem increases. And we all can use an
increase
in self esteem.
- People start looking at you in a more
positive
way. Even if you never use your public speaking skills in giving formal
presentations,
people will notice that you are more articulate and confident in
expressing
an opinion or sharing an insight. You will discover that they begin
looking
to you for advice and opinions on many issues.
- It helps you become a more organized
thinker.
Planning, writing and delivering a well researched , well organized
presentation
has an overflow effect in other areas of your life. You begin to plan
and
organize your thoughts more effectively.. This is especially helpful in
your
career or business. When your manager or supervisor asks your opinion
on some
work- related issue you are better able to express your ideas in a
clear,
concise and well organized manner.
- Public speaking begins to alter your
self
perception. As you begin to use the skills involved in public speaking
you
will notice that you begin to start talking to yourself in a more
positive
way. You begin to see yourself as capable and confident.
- By accepting the challenge to speak
in public
you begin to explore and actualize your own potential. Many of us go
through
life not realizing how much we are capable of achieving. Public
speaking
is an effective tool in the process of self discovery.
- Public speaking gives you the courage
to
break out of your comfort zone. I believe that the comfort zone is the
enemy
of human growth. When we are too comfortable where we are we tend to
become
stagnant. Speaking in public pushes us out of the comfort zone and
reveals
to us our enormous capabilities.
If you feel compelled to share your expertise or message with others do
so.
Start slowly and start small but start. The benefits and rewards
are
tremendous.
This is an excerpt from Mike Moore's Manual PUBLIC
SPEAKING
FOR PROFIT AND PLEASURE
Mike Moore is an international speaker on
humor
and human potential. http://www.speakforprofit.com
Feel free to use this article in your
newsletter
or on your website provided that you keep contact information as is.
How
to
Avoid Audience Saturation
By Mike Moore
When I first started my speaking career I had to fight constantly
against
the urge to tell my audience everything I knew on the subject at hand
within
the one hour assigned to me. After the contract had been signed
and
the topic defined the conflict began. What content should I
include?
Which stories should I tell? What humorous anecdotes should I
select?
My answer to these questions was always, “ Why not tell them everything
you
know?”
When I prepared a speech I had so much good resource material
that I
was easily seduced into giving the audience the whole works in one
sitting.
My rationale usually centered around the fact that I might only have
one opportunity
to share my accumulated wisdom with these people so I wanted to give
them
the whole package while I had the chance. This kind of thinking can get
a
speaker into difficulty on a few fronts:
- If you share too much material in a
limited
period of time you run the risk of appearing disorganized and rushed.
What
you want is to come across as relaxed, focussed, knowledgeable and
entertaining.
- Imparting more content than is
reasonable
or desirable results in your attention being scattered thus giving the
impression
that content is more important than creating an intimate connection
with your
audience. In my opinion a good speaker is one who relates well to the
people
being addressed. When you are concentrating on quantity of
material
rather than on quality and intimacy you are heading in the wrong
direction.
I don’t want to give the impression that it isn’t important to have a
thorough
and comprehensive understanding of your speech content. It is. But you
also
need to be able to effectively measure the dosage of content to
the
time available and the audience’s ability to absorb the material you
present.
Here are a few tips that I have found helpful in overcoming with my
inclination
to saturate my audiences.
Keep in
mind
that most people can only absorb five or six points in a speech.
This
seems to be all our human attention span can handle at one sitting. If
this
is true, it’s pointless to feed them 30 or 40 points at a time.
- When you have the topic defined and
clearly
articulated, prepare a catchy introduction. This can involve a personal
experience,
relevant quotation or a humorous quip. It is important that your
introduction
grab the attention of your audience and make them want to hear more
from you.
- Now identify and list your six
main
points. I like to write them in point form as I just need them to
jog
my memory. I have no intention of reading them to the audience.
- It’s now time to go to my story and
humor
files to select a few items to help get my key points across.
Stories
are important in public speaking as people seem to be able to recall
stories
more readily than they can general information. For this reason I
sprinkle
my presentations with liberal doses of story and humor.
- When you have finished listing your
main
points and connecting the stories and humor to each one, write a
reminder
to recap your material for your audience before concluding your
presentation.
The old rule in public speaking that says “Tell your audience and then
tell
your audience what you just told them.” is still a rule worth
following. Make
certain that the recap is very brief. You don’t want to give the
presentation
over again.
- Now conclude your speech with a
couple
of lines from a poem, share a quote or a quip or just offer a few words
of
encouragement or affirmation. I also like to thank my audience,
tell
them how much I enjoyed being with them. and say that I look forward to
meeting
some of them after my talk.
I find that when I discipline myself to follow this outline I am more
inclined
to stay on topic, avoid becoming scattered and I am more present and
connected
to my audience. It also gives me the feeling of having given a power
packed,
well organized presentation that will be easily remembered long after I
leave
the building.
Mike Moore
is
an international speaker on the role of appreciation, praise and humor
in
maximizing human potential. http://www.speakforprofit.com
Feel free to use
this
article in your newsletter or on your website provided that you keep
contact
information as is.
The Profitable World of Self Publishing
By Mike Moore
Five years ago I was a professional speaker desperately in need of my
own
book. After each presentation members of my audience would approach me
and
ask if had a book or a tape for sale. The need was obvious. The market
existed.
All I needed to do was write a book and bring it to my audiences. This
is
how my first book Embracing the Mystery was born.
I wrote nonstop for two months and finally had it written and
illustrated
with my own original cartoons. The question facing me now was who would
be
chosen from among thousands of publishers to bring my masterpiece to
the waiting,
eager multitudes. After many submissions to numerous publishing houses
and
many rejection slips, I finally found one who agreed to publish my
book.
The problem was that they couldn’t get around to it for about a year
and
a half. I would receive 20% of the retail cost of each copy sold and
would
have to do most of the promotion myself.
This arrangement just wasn’t satisfactory. I needed the book as soon as
possible
and I wanted to receive more than 20% of each copy sold. It was then
that
I decided to enter the world of self publishing and started Lifeline
Publications.
Five hundred copies of Embracing the Mystery were printed as a test run
and
I sold them all within the year as “ back of the room” items at my
speeches
and seminars. Since I wasn’t on the road speaking 365 days of the year
I wanted
to have my book available for purchase seven days a week whether I was
speaking
or not. I had my webmaster create a store for me and connect it to my
speaking
website. I was in business.
With well chosen and well directed advertising online and off I began
to receive
orders in my mailbox and by email. As sales increased so did the number
of
published items in my store. At present I have a total of nine
information
products, manuals, books, tapes, and special reports available for
purchase.
In my first year as a publishing tycoon I sold 300 copies of my
products online
alone and another 100 offline. Add these sales to those at my talks and
you
can see that I was off and running as a self publisher. The orders seem
to
increase in number each month.
Writers are no longer dependent on the acceptance and approval of
editors
and publishers. Using the internet as well as offline classified ads in
popular
magazines you can bring your writing directly to a wide and eager
market.
People are always seeking “ how to” information. In fact the most
sought after
items on the internet are information products. So if you research
peoples’
needs, wants and interests then write to satisfy them you are going to
sell
effectively..
Self publishing is simple and cost effective especially if you print on
demand.
You don’t print a copy of your product until you get an order for that
product.
By doing this you avoid the cost of having 500 copies printed plus
having
to find storage space in your already cluttered basement.
If you have the writing bug and have received enough rejection slips to
wallpaper
a bedroom, try self publishing. When that first order comes in you will
feel
great satisfaction and a surge of self confidence which will,
inevitably,
result in more sales. You will be on your way to conquering the world
of self
publishing. GOOD LUCK!
Mike Moore is an international speaker and writer on humor and human
potential.
His most recent manual is How to Write and Publish Your Own Information
Products.
You can take a look at Mike’s books, manuals, tapes and reports at
http://www.motivationalplus.com/store.html
Mike Moore
is
an international speaker on the role of appreciation, praise and humor
in
maximizing human potential. http://www.speakforprofit.com
Feel free to use
this
article in your newsletter or on your website provided that you keep
contact
information as is.
Using
Humorous One Liners in Your Speeches
by Mike Moore
I find that brief, humorous
one-liners
tend to fit better into the flow of a speech than longer forms of humor
and
are much easier to use, especially for beginners. Here are a few
examples
of one line humor and how I connect them to various speech topics. The
first
thing I do is take a look at my preparation notes and see if I can
insert
a relevant one liner into the content and flow of the talk. To do this
I use
the following format:
- Speech Topic - list
all your speech topics. You might have four or five specific topics
upon which
you build presentations.
- One liner - go to your files and
select
those one liners that could be used in each speech topic. Every
speaker
should be a collector of humor related to the subjects they speak about.
- Context - Write the context out in
point
form or in paragraph form to make sure you know how and
when to
use the one liner in the speech.
Here are a few examples of one liners I use
in
my talks and how I insert them following this format.
- If speaking on the topic of diet and
wellness
this is an effective bit of humor, “ If we are what we eat, many of us
are
in serious danger of becoming french fries.” I establish the context
like
this: “The dietary habits of North Americans leave so much to be
desired that
if we are what we eat many of us are in danger of becoming
french-fries. What
you have to do is make sure that, in the flow of your speech, you
include
this context statement.
- If your presentation is on parenting
or
communication this one liner is a gift. I use it frequently and it
always
gets a laugh, “ Getting into an argument with a teenager is like
getting into
a peeing contest with a skunk. You’ll never win.” Set up the one
liner
like this, “ We all know the importance and the frustration involved in
communicating
with teenagers and many of us have come to the conclusion that
communicating
with a teenager is like getting into a peeing contest with a skunk...”
Used
like this the humor becomes a natural part of your talk. It isn’t
merely
inserted as an after thought. After I use this quote I proceed to tell
a
story from my own experience as a father which illustrates the truth of
the
one liner. ( Again I draw from my story files)
- Try to us e a one liner as if
it
just jumped out of your own humor bank. If you are talking about
starting
over with renewed courage after one of life’s setbacks you can easily
use
this one liner, “ I know many of you might say that it’s
difficult to
make a comeback when you’ve never been anywhere but comebacks are
what
we should commit ourselves to whenever life delivers a set back
If you are delivering a speech on time management you can easily work
this
one liner into the flow of the talk, “ Punctuality is important but the
problem
with being punctual is that there’s never anyone around to appreciate
it.”
I remember using this gem during a talk to members of the medical
profession
about doctor/nurse/patient relationships. Context: Language often
creates
a barrier to intimacy. When we try to hide behind unclear,
confusing
terms a barrier is created between us and those we serve. A good
example of
this was recorded on a medical record. “ The patient failed to achieve
his
wellness potential.” ( He died) Don’t forget that humor reflects
reality back
to us.
I was giving a talk to teachers about the increase in the number of
difficult,
and rude students in classrooms all over Canada and the U.S.A. During
the
talk I said, “ Never raise your hand to a child. If you do you leave
your
groin unprotected.” This evoked howls of laughter from the
audience.
In this speech it wasn’t difficult to fit this one liner in.
In all of the above I have followed the basic format of speech
topic,
one liner and context. In the beginning the most difficult part
of this
will be establishing the context. It becomes easier with practise.
If you know who said the one liner always give credit, but if you
don’t, just
use it and forget about authorship. Many one liners are credited
to
many sources, so many that no one really knows from whom it
originated.
The origin and authorship of most are lost. Just use them.
Remember that if the one liner evokes laughter pause and let the
audience
enjoy the moment. Don’t rush to continue the talk.
For a more comprehensive study of
humor
in public speaking see my Special Report, How to Use Humor in Public
Speaking
at http://www.speakforprofit.com
Download
your
FREE copy of my latest ebook The Healing Power of Laughter athttp://www.motivationalplus.com
Mike Moore is an international speaker on
humor
and human potential. http://www.speakforprofit.com
Feel free to use this article in your newsletter or on your
website
provided that you keep contact information as is.
Little Things
Mean
A Lot
By Mike Moore
While I am always on the lookout for ways to market myself as a speaker
it
is often a time consuming task and one I am not overly fond of. Once in
awhile,
however, something you do inadvertently turns out to be an effective
marketing
strategy. Let me explain.
Last summer I was driving alone through Northern Ontario, Canada on my
way
to Lake Superior country for my annual solo camping trip. I do this
once a
year to find solitude and peace in the beauty of nature and to recharge
my
emotional batteries . As I was driving through a small town between
Sudbury
and Sault Ste Marie I passed an insurance business which I knew was
owned
by the family of a young woman I had gone to College with many years
before.
I began to reminisce and wondered where Margaret was and what had
happened
to her since college days. On the spur of the moment I pulled into the
parking
lot, went in and met her brother who had taken over the business after
their
Father had retired.
After discovering that my friend from college was alive and well and
now a
director of education in Southern Ontario I gave her brother my card
with
a request to tell Margaret that I had dropped in and was asking for
her. I
continued on my way north.
One year later I received a call from Margaret telling me that her
brother
had indeed given her my message. After a long conversation, during
which we
caught up on all the news, Margaret invited me to conduct a one day
seminar
with her administration and office staff. I agreed and we started
making plans
and fleshing out the details of the day.
The day took place on the 16th of April/03 and went very well. For my
efforts
I was wined, dined and housed in a very nice hotel. Best of all, I not
only
received my full fee for a one day seminar, but also received a very
healthy
order for 250 copies of my books.
If I hadn't stopped on a whim to inquire about a college friend from
years
ago I would have missed out on a full day seminar at full fee, a
healthy order
for my books and a glowing testimonial letter from a satisfied school
board
official.
The lesson? Those little unassuming, spur of the moment gestures of
interest
in others often open doors of opportunity for you that you hadn't even
give
a thought to.
Mike Moore
is
an international speaker on the role of appreciation, praise and humor
in
maximizing human potential. http://www.speakforprofit.com
Feel free to use
this
article in your newsletter or on your website provided that you keep
contact
information as is.
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