Quiz Time: What helps you attract more speaking opportunities? A) Posting vacation photos B) Building a strong online presence and networking C) Giving away free merch D) Ignoring social media Let’s test your knowledge and get the ideas flowing!

Let everyone know what your message is! Some of us here could be good referral partners!!

How can I start speaking to corporate America about Mindfulness? I’ve written nine books on the subject.

When I started speaking I was operating my full time business, or rather it was running me! I had 27 business development groups in 12 cities in 5 states! It was a lot to manage. Then a new member who was an organizational specialist challenged me to find more time in my day to take a break! I thought having coffee with new members was my break! Boy did she show me! The techniques she introduced me to saved me no less than an hour a day! I was so impressed I hired her for the month! Once a week she'd shadow me and make suggestions on how to stream line my business. She helped me create systems that kept me focused. Did you know you don't have to answer the phone just because it rings? haha That one tip saved me more time than I could calculate! From that point on for 12 years I would hire either an organizational or time management consultant to keep me on my toes. I even created an audio program with the concepts that helped me the most. It became one more tool in my belt! Being a speaker takes a lot of juggling when you do it well! What do you do to keep up with the details?

I joined Inspiring Speakers to hang out with other speakers who know what it's like to be in the throngs of the professional world. I look forward to reading the stories of the challenges and successes you have gone through. For those who are newbies, it's hard to imagine what it's like to overcome things like: fear of being on stage, dealing with hecklers, power going out in the middle of a presentation, facing a bank of windows with the sun shining in your face, making it impossible to see the crowd and so many experiences that are inevitable. Then what do you do with your successful speaking gigs? I wrote in a journal, all my success stories are in the front of the journal, all the challenges from the back to the front! I learned so much from the challenges! I was fortunate to have discovered national speaking events where I could go and hang out with those much more experienced than I was and learn from them. I went to six events every year. Then magically, I became a mentor to new speakers, which was immensely rewarding. So when I came to this group, I was looking for the same nurturing environment and the only way to fulfill that is for members to participate. Share your stories, comment on others' and connect with the members to enrich your experience!