Speaking up for motivation: main characteristics of successful motivational speakers
This article will do 2 things for you:
1. Talk briefly about some common (but pretty funny) stereotypes of motivational speakers. We’ll take a look at some real-life examples of the enormous variety of motivational speakers on the circuit today.
2. Give a little great tips on how to give your own motivational speeches by exploring the top 6 key ingredients that successful motivational speakers have in common.
The ultimate goal of this article is to help empower you to create and deliver your own inspirational motivational speeches so that you can move on and help others make positive changes in their own lives.
SPEAKING OUT LOUD
When someone starts talking about motivational speakers, most people:
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Mention your favorite speakers and share how those speakers changed your life, or
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Roll your eyes and groan.
… Most of the time, people do the latter.
When it comes to stereotypes, motivational speakers seem to have the blunt end of the stick. Often perceived as frantic, loud, and direct, this type of public speaking is commonly dismissed as, well, everyone talks.
However, there is a very defined (and growing) fan base for motivational presentations. After all, the words of inspiration and insight that a truly good motivational speaker shares can create the kind of “a-ha” moments that really resonate.
Inciting positive change for everything from kicking bad habits to chasing your dreams and living the life you’ve envisioned – quality speakers can motivate your audiences to realize the inner potential for success that lives in all of us.
The fact is, a strong motivational speaker can be a real force to be reckoned with, regardless of what your personal opinion of them is.
DIFFERENT SPEAKERS. DIFFERENT APPROACHES. SAME POINT.
Truly good and established motivational speakers have a pretty decent coin: Tony Robbins, for example, charges at least $ 100,000 per commitment.
The reason for this is that good motivators can impact the lives of thousands of people in a single presentation, creating a literally exponential return on investment.
But the tactics they use to inspire are often drastically different, so how do they end up making the same impact?
Let’s take a look at the very different styles of the top 3 motivational speakers to figure this out.
– Tony Robbins: Energy motivation
Tony Robbins’ high-energy, high-volume, high-audience participation performances have inspired millions to pursue their dreams. It literally pulls the attendees out of their seats, excited and boldly shouting affirmative mantras of success together.
The end result is a crowd of inspired entrepreneurs who are ready to “ask better questions and, as a result, get better answers,” answers that will (hopefully) help them navigate the path to success and happiness.
– Dr. Roberta Bondar: smart inspiration
Other speakers, like the amazing and super smart astronaut Dr. Roberta Bondar, choose to share their motivating public speeches with more intimate audiences in specific niches and settings.
Dr. Bondar’s approach is remarkably very different from Tony Robbins; his presence and words are significantly quiet, and his conversations tend to keep decibels at levels more pleasant for the ear. But her message consistently inspires people to pursue their “maximum performance potential” as she drops pearls of wisdom and serves for thought.
– Steve Rizzo: Hilariously helpful
However, other speakers rely on comedy to get their message across, like the hilarious Steve Rizzo. Having drifted away from his career as a comedian who shared the stage with greats like Jerry Seinfeld and Rodney Dangerfield, Steve uses his keen comic timing to deliver messages of perseverance through adversity that inspires crowds to “live the dream.” For Steve, laughter is the best motivation.
When it all comes down to it, successful motivational speakers come in all shapes and forms, but they all manage to inspire their audiences to make positive and impactful changes in their lives.
They do this by finding their own presentation style and playing with it. By discovering what works best for them and using it to their advantage, they successfully add an air of authenticity to their talks. And this authenticity is crucial.
After all, no one wants to listen to someone who does not seriously believe, 1000% believe what they preach!
As the premier motivational speaker booking agent, Rich Libner of MCP Speakers, says when discussing his own list of speakers on the circuit:
“It is important to remember that motivational speakers like Tony Robbins, Roberta Bondar or Steve Rizzo are not very different from the rest of us. They all have fears, failures, difficulties and dirty dishes.”
So if they can speak to and inspire crowds of people, so can you!
WHAT TO SAY AND HOW TO SAY IT
Believe it or not, there is a basic recipe for creating and delivering a successful motivational speech.
It doesn’t matter whether you decide to use Mr. Robbins’ over-the-top energetic approach or Steve Rizzo’s comedic delivery, following these key ingredients will help you on your way to motivational talk success.
- Tell a good story and tell it well.
Our evolutionary history has predisposed us to love a good story.
Consider this: every known culture in human history has stories. From sitting by the fire and listening to the elders tell stories of gods and monsters to buying a movie ticket and immersing ourselves in an epic cinematic experience: we, as a species, absolutely love a good story. We always have.
Take advantage of this love to capture and hold the attention of your audience. A good story uses a recognizable pattern to convey meaning, the most common pattern being the classic failure-epiphany-struggle-success plot …
I know. Love it. Use it.
- Be clear about what you are talking about.
Nobody likes to hear someone speak without an easily identifiable point. Like Charlie Brown’s teacher, public speakers who speak without clear intention or purpose quickly lose their audience’s attention and become background noise.
Keep it agile and on time. Let your audience know in the first 2 minutes why you are talking to them and what you are talking about. After that, make sure that every anecdote, story, and tip you tell directly relates to your purpose for being there.
In other words, give them a roadmap on what they can expect from your presentation, and stick with it!
- Create your own buy-in.
Returning to point number 2, a good way to create your own buy-in is to let your audience know what to expect early on. Tony Robbins is a master at this, and he often begins his presentations with the following formula:
Today I will tell you about _______. I’m talking about that because ________. My goal in the end is to motivate you to ________ so that you can ________. [-> Enter engaging but simple question to cap your intro and spur audience participation here.]
You don’t have to copy that exact formula, but hopefully you get the idea.
After you’ve established your roadmap, one of the best ways to further boost audience buy-in is to encourage participation. There are more ways to encourage audience engagement than this article can list, but a key point is making sure engagement is guided and relevant (and safe!).
For ideas on ways to encourage positive audience engagement, just Google “audience engagement.”
- Stay positive.
The best way n. # 1 to alienate your audience is to get depressed. This includes selecting someone to tease throughout your presentation, recounting horrible things that happened to people without turning or a positive ending, and generally being a disappointment of Debbie with little energy.
The key to motivation, especially motivational speech, is to stay positive. People are paying attention to you because they are looking for some kind of positive change, so stay positive with your motivational messages!
- Offer a different way of looking at things.
A key ingredient in creating positive change is altering the way you look at things.
As famous motivational speaker Wayne Dyer once said: “Change the way you look at things and the things you look at change.”
… Pretty deep, right?
It is also 100% true. Psychologists and marketers alike have known for decades that the best way to make positive change is to foster a positive outlook. From addiction treatments to brand loyalty, the power to alter a person’s perspective is undeniable.
Inspire your audience to see things differently by sharing a different (and positive) lens through which to view life’s challenges and difficulties.
- Practice. Practice. Practice.
… Then practice a little more.
Polished motivational speeches don’t happen overnight and even top-tier motivational professionals still fail from time to time. However, practice makes perfect, so practice for perfection!
MOTIVATE SUSTAINED MOTIVATION
In the end, the most motivating part of any inspirational speech is what the audience chooses to do with what they just heard. Help them make the right decision using the 6 tips above the next time you decide to get up and say sweet words of inspiration!
