You want to influence others every time you speak. Especially when you speak in a public speaking capacity. After all, that’s the end of the game for public speaking, right?

Well… you don’t want to be just another boring speaker, do you?

You want to be dynamic and persuasive.

In dynamic public speeches, business presentations, or any type of presentation or communication, our status will greatly influence our effectiveness.

Of course, there are other important factors, such as the intellectual veracity of our positions and arguments and crafting our message in a way that resonates with our audience, but for optimal delivery and persuasion, our state must be equally optimal.

WHERE DOES OUR STATE COME FROM?
Our state is the result of two things:

1) Our choices in our thoughts and beliefs in the moment.

2) How connected and expressive we are with our physiology in the moment.

Let’s tackle the first thing: our thoughts and beliefs at the moment.

POWER OF THOUGHTS AND BELIEFS
Our thoughts are mostly habitual. Experts (can you believe people actually study this stuff?) say that more than 90% of our daily thoughts are habitual. Therefore, the thoughts we had yesterday are likely to be the same thoughts we had yesterday and the same thoughts we will have tomorrow.

Okay… but public speaking is a highly unusual and nauseating and terrifyingly unique situation. A situation where our habitual thoughts often give way to thoughts and feelings of absolute fucking DEATH. Like right now, in front of these people, my life is going to end in a painful, public and humiliating way! If not literally, certainly metaphorically.

THEN, MASTER YOUR THOUGHTS IN THE MOMENT
OK I understand. easy to say Hard as hell to do. Especially in very tense, scary and stressful circumstances, like public speaking.

Well, what you want to do is:

1) Become centered and present in the moment. Present within yourself.

2) Be present in the moment with your intellectual AND emotional passion and purpose of your message. Just like in meditation, if any other thoughts enter your mind or body, let them drift away and immediately bring your attention and mental, emotional, and physiological connection back to your passion for your message. Its meaning and great value for you and your audience.

3) Be present with your audience. Not with your audience as a group of terrifying strangers, en masse, ready to destroy you, but with your audience, one individual at a time. The people you believe (an intellectual construct) and feel (a physiological awareness) are loving, supportive, empathetic, captivated friends or like-minded cohorts.

See, hear and feel the massive, incredible and transformative meaning of your message for you and your audience.

Even if you’re talking about how your audience can best get rid of any unwanted lint in their belly buttons, find the meaning AND the humor in this for your audience. If there is no meaning, you have no place to be there talking to your audience.

And believe – you absolutely KNOW – that they are on your side!

LET ME BE BRUTALLY GROSS: “F” REALITY BABY! REALLY!
Your thoughts and beliefs about your message and the degree to which your audience supports it may or may not be true.

AND THAT?! Don’t give a shit!!

REALLY. THAT’S NOT THE POINT!

You don’t know what they think and feel. And that? It is not relevant.

All that matters is what you believe, what you feel and how that affects your state, your ability to connect, care and communicate. That’s what matters.

YOU LIE TO YOURSELF EVERY DAY.
Heck, every day you tell yourself nonsense, negative stories (beliefs with feeling and emotion), right?

Don’t lie. You know you do.

You do it all the time (we all do).

But these stories are mostly harmful to you. They are stories of how someone doesn’t like you. How are you going to fail? Stories of fear, failure and survival.

I get it. It is hardwired into our brains. We are all like that.

CHANGE MAN. WRITE NEW STORIES. THOSE WHO SERVE YOU.
So, since you have a habit of telling yourself bullshit stories (lies) that hurt or limit you, why not choose what might (or might not) be stories that are totally empowering, invigorating and inspiring? Really????

Feel your passion for your message and for your audience to flow freely and emanate from your physical being for optimal and dynamic communication.

Really. This is one of the areas where 99% of people who want to be public speakers or master their presentation skills fall flat. They think their speech or presentation is about words and ideas.

IT IS NOT. Your speech or presentation is about feeling and emotion. It’s about how your words, ideas, products and services will make each individual FEEL BETTER, SAFER, HAPPIER.

DO YOUR HOMEWORK. THEN THROW IT. IT HAS NO PLACE IN YOUR PRESENTATION.
Yes, your arguments must be intellectually and empirically sound and valid. That is giving in. What you have achieved and covered in your preparation.

Your power, effectiveness and, frankly, your relevance during your presentation comes from your emotional and physiological connection (in your baby body) with your message.

Your power and influence will come through the degree to which your body, your entire physiological being, connects and becomes passionate and communicates your message. His message, by the way, is ALL ABOUT HELPING AUDIENCE MEMBERS.

There should be no emotional, intellectual or physical holds or blocks to connected and effective public speaking and business presentations.

IT IS ABOUT YOUR BELIEFS AND YOUR PHYSIOLOGY AT THE MOMENT.
And, with that, we have covered the second main point.

Yes, you need to do your homework and have strong and valid (for the audience) data, concepts, ideas and solutions. Ones that are artistically and intellectually solid, structured and articulate.

But your power in a presentation comes from your emotional and physiological connection and expression (feeling the power of yourself, your audience, your ideas, and your value within your body).

Friends of Peace and Prosperity.

Think, believe, feel and express with power and purpose.