The Leading Edge: Marry the Message With the Moment
I stood before a crowd of nearly four thousand people who were anxious to hear me speak. I had just a short time to capture their attention, build rapport, take them on a journey, and leave them wanting more. I had experience singing to thousands. For me, that came easy because when you are a singer, you already possess something that people enjoy and will want to listen to. But speaking to thousands? Now that was something altogether different. What would I say?
How would I say it? What could I do to make the uncomfortable comfortable?
The setting was the International Maxwell Certification Event in March of 2016 in Orlando, Florida. My name was called to come to the stage and I knew that this was it. This was my moment. As Celine Dion so eloquently stated, “You cannot be good all the time. You have to be good when its time.” But how do you marry the message with the moment? That is the essence of public speaking. It is taking that moment of stepping on the stage and translating it to the moment that changes your life.
Public speaking is speaking with the public in mind. It is baring your soul to touch a soul. It is as John Maxwell explains, “Identifying with them in such a way that it increases your influence with them.” The heart of public speaking is the art of public speaking. People respond to someone who feels what they feel, who says what they have been trying to say all along, and who sometimes helps them cry the tears they didn’t know they had. They want someone authentic who will give them what they need.
It isn’t enough to just fill a time slot. It isn’t enough to move effortlessly across the stage, maintain good posture, or use clever phrases. The audience wants more. Each individual wants to know that they are the most important person in the room. That’s right, the most important person. Everyone in the audience has a story, a dream, a struggle, and they need the speaker to speak to them.
As I approached the front of the stage and raised the microphone I remembered what my mentor Roddy Galbraith often says, “Tell them your story.” So, just as I had done so many times when singing to packed auditoriums, I allowed my heart to become one with my story and I offered it to them as though each individual was the only person in the room. I transported them into a hospital room where I bid a friend farewell and learned a lesson about significance that would change my life forever.
I connected that day. I identified with each person so much that my pain was their pain and my insight became theirs as well. As I exited the stage, my mentor Roddy gave me a big hug and I knew I had made him proud. Not because I conquered the stage, not because I received thunderous applause, but because I spoke as a public speaker should. I spoke as he had taught me to do. I married the message with the moment.
About Gary:
Gary White is a Transformational Leader and Executive Coach. Gary’s desire to bring transformation keeps him striving for growth and transformation in his own life so that he can be a vessel that helps others receive their own transformation. Gary has built a solid business in the construction industry and has helped guide training initiatives to successful completion within the Federal government. Now, through his membership on the John Maxwell Team, his purpose and passion is being fulfilled by inspiring and casting vision through Speaking, Coaching and Training. Gary has spoken from the main stage at the International Maxwell Certification event before as many as 3,500 people. Gary founded Bridge2ABetterU, LLC and is currently building, “The Bridge” program to help individuals and companies realize their dreams and learn how to achieve them through relationships and service. You can learn more about Gary and his program through his website.