The most common thing people say when they find out I am a professional speaker/MC is: ‘Oh no – I hate speaking in public! I don’t know how you do that!’ My answer for speakers is this: If you are completely terrified of getting up on that stage to deliver your speech, just ask the organiser to have someone like the MC or an executive of the organisation interview on stage. I enjoy the process of meeting with the organisers, understanding their event goals, conducting short interviews with the speakers to ensure I have the most purposeful introduction for them and researching the audience to ensure I have the right ice-breakers and activities for them. As an MC, of course, you’re much more involved in the entire conference. Ideally, I’d start with attending the welcome event the night before the conference kicks off because this informal environment gives an excellent chance to get to know the audience directly. This helps to tailor it on the fly to suit the audience. I have always found it imperative to attend as much of the event as possible before my talk, so I can soak up everything possible about the industry, the people and their challenges before my speech. Most speakers arrive at the event an hour or so before their speech then leave quite quickly afterwards. Since 1996 I’ve been a professional conference speaker and MC.
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