Education
**Fearless Presentations**

Want to eliminate public speaking fear and become a more poised and confident presenter and speaker? Fearless Presentations is the answer. This podcast is based on our famous two-day presentation skills class offered in cities all over the world. Each week, we offer free public speaking tips that help you develop the skill to present with poise when you deliver presentations. This is the fastest, easiest way to eliminate public speaking fear.

Latest Episodes:

How to Introduce Yourself Before Starting any Presentation Apr 05, 2021

Show notes

One of the more challenging parts of any presentation is the very first part. If you are wondering how to introduce yourself before starting your presentation, you are in good company. For most of us, once we get the first few sentences out, our nervousness will diminish pretty significantly. So, this initial self-introduction is really important. If we struggle here, our nervousness will increase. In addition, the old adage, “You never get a second chance to make a first impression” is very true.

In this post, we are going to cover a very simple three-step process that will help you introduce yourself before starting any presentation. A summary of the steps is below.

Start with your name and company (or organization).
Tell your audience what problem that you can solve for them.
Share some type of proof (social proof works best) that you can solve this problem.

I will break down each step into a simple to follow process. But first… a little background.
For full show notes and an interactive Introduction Creator, visit How to Introduce Yourself Before Starting any Presentation
https://www.fearlesspresentations.com/how-to-introduce-yourself-before-starting-any-presentation/

5 Ways to Get Clients for Your Business by Speaking to Groups Mar 29, 2021

Show notes

This is part 2 of a 2-part series on how to use presentations and speaking to find new customers and clients.
I know what some of you are thinking… “You said we would get new clients by speaking. However, very little of what you have covered so far has ANYTHING to do with speaking. What gives?”

The often overlooked part of being a great speaker is to master your craft first. You can be a great speaker, but if what you are saying is gobbledygook, you won’t build a lot of followers. I get dozens of people every month wanting to be a guest on my podcasts. The first thing I do is Google them. Specifically, I look for recordings of the speaker. It usually takes less than five minutes of watching or listening to determine if he or she is an expert.

If you can’t easily tell an audience two or three really tangible tips, then when you speak the audience will think you are wasting their time. The audience will be confused. So, everything we have talked about so far is critical to being a good speaker. Now that you have done the hard work, let’s have some fun getting new clients for your company!
For full show notes, visit

Ways to Get Clients for Your Business by Speaking to Groups

https://www.fearlesspresentations.com/ways-to-get-clients-for-your-business-by-speaking-to-groups/

Ways to Get New Clients by Improving Your Internet Authority Mar 22, 2021

Show notes

Ways to Get Clients for Your Business by Speaking to Groups

If you happen to be a great speaker, you have a number of ways to get clients for your business by speaking. (By the way, if you aren’t a great speaker yet, keep tuning in, because we can help with that.) The most important thing to keep in mind is that your goal is to build your authority on a specific topic. Once you do that, you will create an endless supply of speaking opportunities and clients.

Your authority depends on a few things. First, when people do a Google search for your name (or your company name,) what do they find? Most everyone is going to do this simple due diligence as a first step. If you are applying for a job, the interviewer will Google you. When you want to connect with someone on LinkedIn, the connection will likely Google you. This is also true with potential clients or customers. When someone hears about you (or your company) for the first time, they will do an internet search for you.

The things that they find will either build your authority or diminish it. The good news is that you have total control over what potential clients find about you.

Use Writing and Speaking to Increase Your “Internet Authority” to Build Trust with Potential New Clients.

Before I go into how to use speaking and presenting to find new clients, let’s start will increasing authority. I had a student a couple of years ago who wanted to help inner-city kids make better decisions. This sounded like a worthy goal. After chatting with him a little, I realized that he had no experience working with kids. In fact, he currently worked as a mechanical engineer. Throughout his entire career, he never supervised or coached anyone either.

He had decided to venture into an arena in which he had absolutely no experience. This was not a goal, it was a pipe-dream. My point is that before you set off to be a speaker or writer, take time to develop your expertise. This engineer would have been a fantastic speaker on “How to Cut Energy Costs in Summer Months.” He was an expert at that.

On the other hand, I have a friend who was attending an accounting conference years ago. He sat through a breakout session because a friend of his was the guest speaker. During the question-and-answer part, someone in the audience asked a question about a specific software package. The speaker had never used this software, but he knew that our mutual friend had. So, the speaker asked my friend to answer the question. 20 minutes later, my friend and the speaker were still answering questions together. Now, my friend travels the world as a guest lecturer himself.

So, write and speak on topics where you know the content inside and out, and you will do very well. If you don’t feel like you are there yet, study and train a little more to build your expertise.

For full Show Notes, visit

Ways to Get Clients for Your Business by Speaking to Groups

https://www.fearlesspresentations.com/ways-to-get-clients-for-your-business-by-speaking-to-groups/

How to Use Seminars to Build a Loyal Customer Base with Dr Ritter Mar 15, 2021

Show notes

This is a fun interview with Dr. Benjamin Ritter who started an entire consulting business from scratch using just seminars that were open to the public. If you want to learn how to use speaking and/or creating seminars to build your authority in your industry, make sure to listen to this episode!
Connect with Dr. Ritter on his website at https://www.liveforyourselfconsulting.com/

How to Create and Test a Train-the-Trainer Process Part 2 of 2 Mar 08, 2021

Show notes

This is part 2 of a 2-part series on Train-the-Trainer programs. In the first episode, we talk about how to uncover the quality of a train-the-trainer process before investing in it. On this session, we talk about the steps involved in training your trainers using the process.
Train Your Trainers Using the Train-the-Trainer Model.

That last story leads us into the next part of the train-the-trainer model — the actual training process.

Good Presentation Skills are Essential to the Train-the-Trainer Model.

Once you have a great course designed, now you will want to spend time actually training your trainers. Step one is to help them develop good public speaking skills.
Remember that being a great public speaker is not a natural gift. It is a skill. This skill takes time to develop. When help companies create or revitalize a train-the-trainer process, we almost always start here. If the Subject Matter Experts are confident and if they communicate well, the programs are always more effective. If the SME’s are poor communicators, the process will fail almost 100% of the time.

For details about the specific skills to focus on, refer to 7 Qualities of a Great Public Speaker.

Develop Your Subject Matter Experts.

When you institute the train-the-trainer model within your organization, start small. Use the “fast food” model that I mentioned above. Have Subject Matter Experts-in-Training explain part of the process to a newer team member.

“Docendo Discimus (by teaching, we learn).” — Seneca

Over time, as your team members become more knowledgeable and skilled, increase their opportunity to teach. The technique that I use with my instructors is to have them start by watching me (or another instructor) teach a session. Next, give them a fun activity to lead while co-teaching with another instructor. Little by little, I increase their face-time in front of the group. In most cases, after they have developed good presentation skills, this learning happens fast.

Audit Both the SME’s and the Results of the Train-the-Trainer Model.

A big mistake that I made early on was not auditing my trainer’s classes. I assumed that since they spent over a year developing the train-the-trainer skill, the skill would be permanent. If you recall the telephone game that I described in the first part of this session, that is what can happen. I call divergence the “anomaly/snowball effect.”

An anomaly occurs. Most of the time, it is something really small. It is out of the ordinary and may never happen again. However, the trainer sees this anomaly as a problem with the way that the training session has occurred. As a result, he/she changes something slightly. The change then causes another challenge. Another adjustment is made. Every time a change is made that is outside of the original procedure, the divergence gets bigger and bigger. Over time, the SME isn’t following the outlined procedure from step one at all.

Before making changes to the process, it is a good idea to audit the train-the-trainer programs to make sure the process is being properly taught to the next generation.
For full show notes, visit The Train-the-Trainer Model on our website.
https://www.fearlesspresentations.com/train-the-trainer-model-how-to-create-a-train-the-trainer-course/

How to Create a Train-the-Trainer Process Part 1 of 2 Mar 01, 2021

Show notes

The Train-the-Trainer Model is very common in the business world. However, many Train-the-Trainer programs have big flaws. A good analogy of what happens during this process is the old “telephone game.” Put ten people in a room. Whisper a phrase with more than 10 words into the ear of the first person. The second person then relays the message to the third person. This process continues over and over until the phrase reaches the final person. When you compare the first message with the last message, they will be totally different. This is what often happens when organizations try to implement a train-the-trainer model of employee development.

However, this doesn’t have to occur. If you put the right steps and processes in place, your employee development can be phenomenal. (It can also cut your training costs dramatically as well.)
This is a two-part series about how to create a good train-the-trainer process. I also show you how to judge if a process that is being promoted to you is worthwhile.
For full show notes, go to How to Create a Train-the-Trainer Process
https://www.fearlesspresentations.com/train-the-trainer-model-how-to-create-a-train-the-trainer-course/

Very Simple Way to Persuade an Audience in Just Three Easy Steps (Persuasion Outline) Feb 22, 2021

Show notes

Amazing Persuasive Speech Outline

In the post, How to Design a Speech Quickly, we gave a few tips to create a quick presentation outline. In this session, we add a little more detail about how to make your presentation more persuasive. This simple, three-step process will help you persuade event the toughest audiences.

Change from Feature/Benefit to Problem Solver.
Identify the Three Most Important Problems that Your Product or Idea Solves.
Prove to Your Audience that You Can Solve These Problems.

The secret to being persuasive is to show your audience how they can get what they want. It is amazing how so many people will try to be persuasive by being self-centered. For instance, many salespeople will start their sales presentations talking about their product or their company. “My company has 20 years of experience in this industry,” or “This product has a number of different features.” This three-step process will help you think like your audience. When you think like your audience, your audience will more likely agree with your conclusions.
For full show notes, go to

Amazing Persuasive Speech Outline with Sales Presentation Examples

https://www.fearlesspresentations.com/amazing-persuasive-speech-outline-with-sales-presentation-examples/

Schmooze Your Audience with Cody Lowry Feb 17, 2021

Show notes

On this episode, I interview Cody Lowry who is a best-selling author and the founder of a successful advertising agency. However, Cody is actually more famous for being able to talk his way into meetings that are typically pretty hard to get.
For instance, he tells us how he had a couple of extra days in New York, so he decided to audition for Saturday Night Live. He actually got the audition less than 48 hours from the time he reached out to the producer. He also got meetings with a President of the United States, got to carry the torch in an Olympics, and a few other really interesting situations that came about just by being able to "Schmooze" the right people.
Cody's book is on Amazon at Schmooze: What They Should Teach in Harvard Business School.
https://amzn.to/2NiiCxP

5 Ironclad Ways to Prepare for a Presentation Feb 08, 2021

Show notes

“I don’t present very often, so how do I prepare for a presentation?” That is, by far, one of the most common questions that we get as presentation skills coaches. In fact, most public speaking fear comes from situations where presenters just don’t speak very often. They have a hard time building up momentum. For instance, if you only drive a car once every couple of years, you will likely be nervous every time you slip behind the wheel. However, if you drive every day, the process becomes second nature.

The same is true when you deliver presentations. If you don’t speak very often, your nervousness will be higher. In these situations, the way that you prepare for a presentation will determine if you are more nervous or less nervous when you speak. Below, I’m going to give you five time-tested ways to prepare for a presentation that will help you speed up the process. This process will also help you reduce the nervousness a little as well.

For full show notes, visit
5 Ironclad Ways to Prepare for a Presentation, Cut Prep Time, and Reduce Nervousness.
https://www.fearlesspresentations.com/5-ironclad-ways-to-prepare-for-a-presentation-cut-prep-time-by-137/

Communicating Under Stress-Claire Chandler and Ben Baker Feb 01, 2021

Show notes

This is episode #151, and this week, I interview Claire Chandler and Ben Baker. They are the authors of the new book Leading Beyond a Crisis.
Ben's background is in creating a brand for yourself and your company, and Claire started out in human resources and has spent the last few years helping companies attract high-level employees and retain them. The topic they wanted to cover, though is how to communicate more effectively in this new world full of stress and uncertainty. We talk about recovering from Covid... Well, I mean as a business anyway. Lot's of great information. So enjoy the session!
Grab a copy of Ben and Claire's book Leading Beyond a Crisis by clicking here.