| Good Sunday morning everyone, I do a lot of keynotes and public speaking engagements, and it’s taken me years to hone my craft. And as I’ve grown and evolved as a speaker – some of you may have seen me in action! – I’ve learned a few things that I thought I’d share with you here because I know how scary it can feel to find and USE your voice in a public way. And hopefully by sharing what I’ve learned, it will help you feel better/braver about doing so yourself: 1) It’s okay to have personality (aka, don’t kill your audience with “blandalism”!): My talks are full of humor, vulnerability… and the odd bit of political commentary (you can take the girl out of the CIA, but you can’t take the CIA out of the girl!). All of this is always relevant to the topic I’m there to speak on, of course, and no matter the audience, they always appreciate how candid and honest I am 2) Saying “I don’t know” with confidence is powerful… and essential: I don’t pretend to know things I don’t. I don’t answer questions I don’t have answers to. I reply as best as I can, and then acknowledge when I can’t go any further. It’s okay to not have all the answers (no one does), so don’t pretend 3) You’re not there for the eye-rollers: Not everyone in the audience will love what I say, how I say it, or that I’m there to say it at all. No. Big. Deal. I am not trying to convert followers; I am sharing what I know with honesty, candor, and positive intent, but not everyone is gonna be down with the message or the messenger. That’s just life. The reason I keep going – despite the eye-rollers and checked-out texters in every crowd – is for the people in the room who I AM connecting with and AM resonating with. That simple I can write a whole book about this stuff (maybe some day I will!), but if this was helpful and you want me to share more tips/insights about public speaking in future posts, just let me know! (Or better yet, reply to this email and let me know the specific topics you’d like me to cover… and I promise to tell you if “I don’t know” if I don’t! 🙂 xx Rupal |
 Check out this beauty! – I’m so excited to share with you a sneak peek at the new cover for my best-selling book From CIA to CEO. The paperback comes out on January 11th, and if you pre-order before December 31st, you can get your very own SIGNED/PERSONALIZED copy! Just pre order via this link before the end of the year! |
