Some Reasons You Might Not Be Getting Booked

Some Reasons You Might Not Be Getting Booked

Getting paid speaking engagements can be a mystery starting out. It can come as a surprise that being a new speaker doesn’t have people knocking down your door to put you on their platform or stage. So you really have to look at yourself from an objective standpoint in order to get the proper assessment of why you are not getting booked.

You Know You Haven’t Put In The Work

This means that you know you haven’t invested in yourself and your speaking career to get better at what you. Most adults can cook on some level. But I doubt that most who say that their cooking would have people running to their kitchen to grab another plate of whatever they cooked. But if they had made the investment in learning what seasoning and spice work well together. If they learned how a dish can be balanced out by another dish, then they are on the road to having their own cooking show… LOL… :-D So when it comes to your speaking, are you working on your craft to the point that it becomes second nature to you? Are you so at ease with delivering the message that you can wait for the audience to feast on the mental meal that you have prepared? If you can’t answer “Yes” that could be one of the reasons that you are not getting booked.

No One Knows You Exist

If you have put in the work and have mastered your delivery style. If you have delivered soul-stirring speeches and created life-changing events then another reason that you might not be getting booked is that “No One Knows…” If the message that you have to deliver is that good, if the information is the aspirin to someone’s headache then you can’t wait to wait for someone else to sing your praises. You have to sing them yourself. You have to make some noise for you. For the person that you have become and the work that you have done in order to fill up your speaking calendar. Knowing your market and then marketing yourself to that market is a sure fire way to make the impact that you desire and leave the legacy that you will be proud of.

You Use Canned Presentations

When it comes to effective speaking, one size does not fit all. Les Brown said, “Never let what you have to say, get it the way of what they need to hear.” You can expect to use the EXACT same presentation and it does not get stale. Did you know that pancake, cupcakes and regular cakes have the same ingredients? The base ingredients are the same: eggs, milk, sugar, and butter. The trick comes in with how they are proportioned for whatever item you are preparing. The ingredients might be the same but how they are prepared is what makes the difference. Your presentation may have the same components, but depending on your audience you may weigh heavily on one or the other. You have to be able to read your audience and adjust accordingly.

You Haven’t Asked

Often times as speakers we are patiently waiting for that phone call. I remember hearing a story by Les Brown where he talked about his corner. No, not the one on his foot, the one on his ear. He said that he made so many phone calls that he actually had a corner on his ear. Can you say the same thing? Can you say that you have thrown your name in the bucket? Have you thrown your hat in the ring to speak? Once you have put in the work and you know that what you have is valuable, then you will have no problem opening your mouth and asking to be considered for speaking.

These are just a few and I’m sure I let some off this list. Since this magazine is for Speaker and those that support them, please let me know what I missed and your feature may be included in future editions of NGS Magazine.

~Cicone Prince