Shaklee International Toastmasters Club invite everyone interested to learn or improve your speaking skills.

Read the transcript of the speech

00:00- Let’s talk about the importance of public speaking.

00:04 Public speaking is an amazing skill,

00:05 and there are a lot of reasons to take it seriously,

00:08 so let’s get into those details now.

00:10 (mild compelling tones)

00:15 Hello there, friends, and welcome back.

00:17 I’m Alex Lyon, if we have not met yet,

00:20 this channel is called Communication Coach,

00:22 and we are here for your professional development.

00:25 We focus especially on communication skills

00:27 for emerging leaders.

00:29 So that’s probably somebody like you.

00:31 So in this video, we’re gonna talk about the importance

00:33 of public speaking, a really important topic for me,

00:36 and we’re gonna talk about four reasons

00:38 why you should take it seriously.

00:40 The first reason is your career development.

00:44 This is a really important skill

00:46 that will position you as a leader.

00:48 I’ve said it about a million times on this channel,

00:50 but when people see you standing up

00:52 in front of other people speaking,

00:54 they will say to themselves that’s a leader.

00:56 In fact I’ve coached people on public speaking,

00:59 and they will routinely tell me

01:00 after they do a good presentation,

01:02 someone will come up to them and say

01:03 you know, have you thought about applying

01:05 for this promotion we have over in this other department?

01:08 When you’re standing up speaking,

01:10 you’re literally leading the conversation during that time.

01:13 And because you’re prepared and you know what you wanna say,

01:16 and you’re getting your point across,

01:17 people really see that as leadership.

01:19 In fact, there’s a really rich guy Warren Buffet,

01:21 he’s one of the richest guys in the world.

01:24 You may have heard of him.

01:25 And he says that by learning to speak well publicly,

01:28 you add 50% value to your career,

01:32 because you’re taking whatever you know,

01:34 let’s say it’s computer programming, or art, or accounting,

01:38 whatever your subject matter is, and now you’re sharing it.

01:42 Now you’re transmitting that knowledge and that value,

01:45 you’re communicating to other people.

01:47 So you take whatever you know,

01:48 and now you’re sharing it more broadly,

01:50 and that adds value to everybody around you,

01:52 and thus to your career.

01:53 So professional development,

01:55 career development is number one.

01:57 Number two reason is personal development.

02:00 I don’t know about you, but any time I learn a new skill,

02:04 whether it’s surfing or Brazilian jiu-jitsu,

02:06 or some kind of other skill like photography,

02:10 I get a sense of personal value out of learning that skill.

02:14 And public speaking is like that.

02:16 In fact because there’s a little bit of nervousness involved

02:19 and excitement involved in public speaking,

02:21 we really gain a sense of confidence

02:24 when we do it and then end up doing it pretty well.

02:27 There’s that balance of challenge and success

02:30 that can make it very satisfying.

02:32 And I’ve seen people start to speak well publicly,

02:35 and then they start feeling more confident

02:37 in other areas of their life

02:38 because they know they can rise to the occasion

02:41 and take challenges head on.

02:43 So your own personal development is another reason to do it.

02:46 A third reason is working on finding your voice.

02:51 So your point of view, for example, on the world,

02:54 on whatever topic you’re talking about.

02:56 At first, when we first start public speaking,

02:58 we often start to imitate other speakers and just get by,

03:02 just work on our nerves and work on our basics.

03:05 But as you get better at public speaking,

03:08 you really find your own unique voice,

03:10 your own unique perspective on a subject,

03:13 and then you add that to the conversation.

03:16 I’m guessing that you have an important message to share,

03:19 for example, something that only you

03:21 really can talk about in your way, and the world needs that.

03:25 And by learning, maybe you could blog about it,

03:27 maybe you could write a book about it.

03:29 But public speaking is one great way

03:31 to get your point of view out there in the world,

03:34 and it will help you find your voice

03:36 by practicing public speaking.

03:37 And the fourth reason is ultimately to benefit others.

03:42 So far we’ve talked about finding your voice,

03:44 and personal development, and career development.

03:46 But really the whole reason to speak publicly

03:50 in front of other people is to benefit your listeners.

03:53 Otherwise you could just go speak in a closet.

03:55 So by speaking publicly, you get to teach people,

03:59 and they get to benefit that way.

04:00 You lead them in a new direction.

04:03 You share what you have with the world,

04:05 and we need more positive, encouraging, helpful voices

04:09 than ever in the conversation of life,

04:12 because let’s face it, not everybody out there

04:15 has something positive to say,

04:17 and there are a lot of people

04:18 that you might label quote jerks out there,

04:20 and they’re speaking up, they’re speaking publicly.

04:23 So we need your voice out there

04:24 to help benefit other people.