I’m about to tell you how I get hired to speak at Fortune 500 companies…and it’s not what you think.
Most speakers want to know how to get paid speaking gigs and I’m going to tell you that there is no magic pill. Actually there is. It’s just not what you think.
One of the first big-shot companies I was hired by was Remax.
After Remax, I was hired by all kinds of companies. AAA, Best Buy, Hilton, Furniture First, etc. And eventually I was able to charge $10,000 for a 45 minute presentation. But what exactly did I do?
You want to know the truth?
The truth is that the level of dedication required to make something happen is enormous. It’s more than what speakers think. And that’s the very reason why most speakers fail at this game.
There comes a time when you have to go from ‘hobby’ to ‘business.’ A time when you have to stop messing around and start getting more serious about the things you need to make happen.
And most speakers aren’t there (mentally) yet.
I don’t get hired by companies because I know some amazing method for getting speaking engagements. I get hired because ‘getting on stages’ is what I live, breathe, and think about all day.
When I was doing an event in Finland, all I could think about was, “How many other gigs can I get?”
When I was doing an event for Aflac, all I could think about was, “What other events do they do?”
And when I’m not at an event, all I think about is prospecting.
If you’re not getting speaking gigs, then something needs to change. The type of thinking required is different than how you’re thinking now.
You need to go from “How do I get speaking gigs?” To, “Here’s my system for getting gigs.”
The level of activity required to fill up your speaking schedule is enormous…especially if you’re starting out because nobody wants to hire a speaker without a proven track record (they need to see you in action).
There are gurus out there who will lead you to believe that within 30/60 days you’ll have your speaker product and you’ll be selling from the stage, making millions, speaking at all kinds of events, etc…all within a fews week. And if you believe that, then I feel sorry for you.
Selling people on the dream is easy.
I can sell you on the dream that you’ll be making a minimum of six figures speaking all over the world on big stages, yada yada yada. But the reality is that it’s hard when you don’t know what you’re doing…and it’s hard because most speakers have a ‘one foot in one foot out’ mentality.
They haven’t FULLY committed to making this happen.
Lets say that a speaker is starting from scratch.
The speaker who is FULLY committed will take a minimum of one year to make good money in this business. And that’s only if they’re going all-out with it…and doing the right things. If this speaker doesn’t have the right information (like knowing how to contact people, how to build his website, etc) then it’s going to take even longer.
And that’s the speaker who’s FULLY committed. Can you imagine how long it will take for speakers with one-foot-in-one-foot-out? But…everyone thinks they’re the exception.
So many people think things are going to work out but they don’t.
Just take a look at most speakers. They’ve been a ‘speaker’ for years and still can’t fill up their schedule because they’re not willing to admit to themselves that they haven’t committed to this yet.
Why am I telling you it’s hard? Is it because I’m being a Negative Nancy? No, it’s because if it deters you, you wouldn’t have made it anyways. If words can deter you from speaking for a living, then the actual work will crush you.
Most people underestimate the amount of work required to make things happen because they don’t see what really goes into making a speaking business work. They just get caught up in the dream because the big-time gurus won’t tell you it’s going to take you a year minimum. If they did, they wouldn’t sell their programs. Nobody wants to hear that it’s going to take work to make things happen.
I get hired by companies because I take this seriously.
Next week, you’ll get the SpeakPro Academy video series that shows you what needs to happen if you want to fill up your speaking schedule.
And when you watch these videos, a couple things can happen.
- You just watch it and go about your day
- You do something with the information
Most speakers will do #1. I’m not trying to use reverse psychology on you, it’s just a fact.
Most speakers barely watch the free videos on this Speaking Lifestyle site. Free videos that will literally make them six-figures. Why? Because they still treat speaking as a hobby and not a business.
The videos next week are for the extremely business-savvy speakers. The ones who are tired of going in circles and are ready to make things happen.
The SpeakPro Academy is for the business-savvy speakers who aren’t afraid to hustle. I help everyone in the program get on stages. We build out your systems, the whole sha-bang.
I’m going to end with this…
The reason I get hired by companies is because of one thing. I hustle my ass off.