General Archives - Speaker Sponsor

The Cambridge Dictionary defines transformational as “a complete change in appearance or character of something or someone, so that thing or person is improved.”

Becoming a transformational speaker typically involves a combination of personal development, public speaking skills, and networking. Here are some steps you can take to pursue a career as a transformational speaker:

Define Your Message

Clarify the transformational message you want to share with your audience. Reflect on your own experiences, challenges, and growth journey. Identify the key insights and lessons that you believe can inspire and empower others to transform their lives.

Develop Expertise

Gain in-depth knowledge and expertise in the area you want to focus on as a transformation speaker. This might involve continuous learning, attending workshops, reading books, and staying up-to-date with the latest trends and research.

Improve Your Public Speaking Skills

Effective communication is essential for any speaker. Work on improving your public speaking skills, such as articulation, body language, voice modulation, and storytelling. Join a public speaking club like Toastmasters to practice and receive feedback.

Create Compelling Content

Craft engaging and impactful presentations or talks that resonate with your target audience. Your content should be informative, inspirational, and actionable, providing practical steps for personal transformation.

Start Speaking at Small Events

Begin speaking at local events, community gatherings, or workshops to gain experience and build your speaking portfolio. This will also help you refine your message and delivery based on audience feedback.

Leverage Online Platforms

Utilize social media, blogs, podcasts, and YouTube to share your insights and reach a broader audience. Consistently create valuable content to establish yourself as a thought leader in your niche.

Network and Collaborate

Attend conferences, seminars, and networking events to connect with other speakers, event organizers, and industry professionals. Collaborating with established speakers or thought leaders can help you expand your reach.

Seek Speaking Opportunities

Actively seek speaking opportunities at larger events, conferences, and corporate functions. Reach out to event organizers and showcase your expertise, highlighting the value you can bring to their audience.

Collect Testimonials and Refine Your Brand

As you gain experience and speak at various events, collect testimonials and feedback from attendees. Use this feedback to refine your brand and continuously improve your presentations.

Stay Committed and Persistent

Building a career as a transformation speaker takes time and persistence. Stay committed to your message, keep refining your skills, and be open to learning and adapting along the way.

So far, 2024 is getting off to a great start for the speaking industry. Every year several companies put out a yearly speaking industry forecast. If you’ve been working as a speaker for any length of time you probably already have a good gauge at how things are going. However, trends do still exist and change according to the economy and other disruptive issues.

Speaking industry forecast

Obviously Covid disrupted the meeting and event industry like nothing we’ve seen in a long time. But according to meeting and event professionals we are back on track to at least tie with pre-pandemic levels of face-to-face meetings. According to Knowland’s Hospitality Group and Business Performance Index we’re at close to 90%. During the pandemic many industry professionals left the business. But the good news is that more are staying and entering now. And their optimism for the future is high.

According to the American Express survey, 84% are optimistic about the future of the meeting and event industry. 81% expect their meetings to have a face-to-face component and 63% expect them to be totally face-to-face. Face-to-face meetings offer more opportunities for team building and collaboration.

Meeting and event spending

Meeting spending in general is expected to increase 4.2% in North America. Unfortunately, inflation is putting a damper on things and most don’t think the extra budget money is keeping up with inflation. Therefore they are looking into ways to cut costs across the board.

Maximizing sponsorship

With budgets being cut and inflation on the rise, more interactive sponsorship is being sought out. There have always been free speaking opportunities but during tough times you tend to get more of those. Speakers who have their own sponsors have tons of opportunities to make money by taking those free jobs and having their sponsors pay the bill. It increases the number of jobs out there and decreases the competition.

Diversity and sustainability

Almost a third of planners said they would try choosing diverse suppliers if they could. 70% said sustainability was very important to their organization. A majority want to incorporate it into meetings and events where they can.

Business and leisure travel

Another upcoming trend I happen to like is the blending of business and leisure travel and the opportunity to explore outside of the conference venue. This trend is expected to continue. Hopefully this will attract more attendees who might not think of traveling for business.

AI for meetings and events

AI is helping meeting and event planners better customize the event experience. It can analyze attendee demographics, track engagement, and monitor social media. This helps provide valuable insights to make better decisions. Strategies can be altered to maximize success and time-consuming tasks can be streamlined.

Experiential meetings

Another trend that will continue from last year is more experiential events. This includes interactive technology and immersive environments through sensory elements. As a speaker, how can you add more of this to what you offer?

Hybrid meetings

The majority of planners expect to have more face-to-face meetings, but they are still keeping hybrid on the table to attract more national and international attendees.

Almost half of planners expect to see more internal meetings and local meetings as being on the rise. As a speaker, I’ve seen this too. A lot of those meetings are still in offsite locations. I’ve noticed this too. Planners can also save money on speakers by booking ones who live close to the conference venue.

Speaking industry forecast 2024

These are some of the trends that meeting and event planners will be implementing as part of the speaking industry forecast for 2024. How can you help improve the experience for them as a speaker?

AAE Speakers Bureau recently took a 2023 survey of around 500 meeting planners and professional speakers and found that almost a quarter of the planners have more money to spend on keynote speakers. That leaves 75% who don’t. And 53.1% of the speakers have said they have had to raise their speaking fee. The report said that the average fee for a keynote is $15,551. And the average total budget for speakers is $26,583.

Meeting planners expect added value from speakers these days, such as a meet and greet with attendees, social media promotion, a book signing, and a meet and greet with executives. This should all factor into what you charge as your speaking fee. But how do you know when you should raise your speaker fee?

When should you raise your speaker fee?

So many factors go into a speaker fee. And the truth is that there are really no rules about what yours should be. But there are some guidelines.

New speakers

If you’re just starting out as a speaker you can’t expect to get paid very much, if at all. Most speakers start out speaking for free. The only reason I never spoke for free was that I had my own sponsors. I taught other speakers how to make a living as a speaker from sponsorships. It cuts out all competition. Especially if you’re a new speaker. You can’t compete against seasoned professionals for regular speaking jobs, but with sponsorship, you have no competition. You get your own sponsors and create your own paid speaking jobs.

A good rule of thumb is that new beginning speakers can expect to charge between $500 and $2500 per speech. Again, if you have sponsors like I did when I first started out, you can charge as much as you think you can get. My very first speaking job was $2500 because I had several local sponsors and I put on my own event. If you can’t get someone to hire you as a speaker you can always become your own boss and hire yourself to speak. When the speaking industry is down this is a great option to still be able to make a living as a speaker. I used this method all through Covid to create my own virtual content for the sponsors I have in my portfolio.

Established speakers

Ok, so now you’ve been speaking for a while and you’ve been charging anywhere from $500 to $2500 and you’re pretty booked at that rate. By now you should also have at least one book on the market in your chosen topic in which you are an expert. If you’re marketing yourself you probably also have a decent following and are becoming well known in the industry. There’s no timeline about when that would happen. I’ve known very established speakers who spoke for free and low fee for a decade before they raised their rates. But it usually doesn’t take that long to get to that point. Go at your own pace. When you get to the established speaker level you will know it.

Established speakers should start to raise their speaker fee when they are too busy at the lower level fee to keep up with it. There are only so many days in the year and speaking every day of the year is not practical and will wear you out quickly. Speaking takes a lot out of you. Travel takes a lot out of you. And there is a sacrifice to be made in your personal life when you’re on the road so many days out of the year. You need the rest in between and you also need to have time to write more books and customize speeches for higher-paying clients.

Established speakers are able to charge between $2500 and $10,000 per speech. You’ve earned the right to boost your fee. Like every level, you don’t want to jump up in fees too quickly or you may find yourself struggling for work.

Influencer speakers

Once you’ve written multiple books and have tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of followers you move up to the influencer level of speakers. You probably also have a strong media presence. These speakers typically are able to charge around $10,000 – $20,000 per speech. Much more is expected of you as you move up to this level. My first big speech in this range was for 1,000 attendees for an engineering summit for Procter and Gamble. I was asked to take a lengthy internal research survey and find solutions for the issues they needed to find answers for. This was my first look at the difference between an established speaker and an influencer. You have to be prepared to up your game a lot at this point if you want to play in the influencer sandbox.

An influencer speaker is a known expert in their field. They don’t usually have an all you can eat buffet menu of speeches on 20 different topics. When a meeting planner thinks of your topic your name should be at the top of their list. This is also when you should start to differentiate yourself from other experts in your field. What’s in your background of experience that makes you different from all of your competitors? Hone in with laser focus on what makes you special, unique and different. What is your niche within your industry?

Celebrity speakers

Celebrity speakers are usually in the $20,000 range and over. If you are a celebrity in another field, such as a famous athlete or actor, you can skip the other steps. You are mostly being hired for your name draw. That doesn’t mean you haven’t paid your dues. Just the opposite. You’ve paid your dues in another industry and have earned the right to stand on a stage for big bucks.

A celebrity speaker is also a speaker who has been around for many years and paid their dues on the stage as a speaker. By this point you probably have multiple books and at least tens of thousands of followers. You are at least well-known in the speaking industry and probably by the general public as well.

Seth Dechtman of The Keynote Curators has a good guideline for working with celebrity speakers.

No rules

Again, there are no hard and fast rules for when you should raise your speaker fee. Being a professional speaker is a full-time job and there’s no contest for your own personal timeline.

As we’ve come out of the post-pandemic meeting industry it’s nice to be out and speaking in person for the past year. But what does the 2023 meeting industry forecast hold as we go forward?

Meeting industry forecast 2023

According to the 12th annual Global Meetings & Events Forecast, meeting professionals expect there to be more in person meetings. They also expect budgets to increase. But that also means they plan to do more with less, thanks to high inflation.

Planners dealing with rising costs and tight budgets are becoming more creative when it comes to finding budget-friendly options. According to Conventions South “this includes hosting fewer meetings, shortening meeting times, using less expensive venues and food options, choosing destinations close to their members, and negotiating everything.”

The cost of hotels and food is impacting the bottom line for meeting planners and they are finding ways to work around that.

Optimistic about the meeting industry

77% of respondents feel that the meeting industry will be strong in 2023. 67% think the number of in-person meetings and events will return to pre-pandemic levels in a year or two. I’m surprised that number is so low actually. From what I’ve seen most people are anxious to get out and network again. Airports have always been crowded lately as I’ve started traveling again for speaking work and for pleasure.

Face to face meetings

The good news is that most meeting and event planners expect 87% of meetings to have an in-person element. And virtual fatigue is a real thing. I, for one, am glad to hear that virtual is fading out. Part of the reason I like being a speaker is for the face to face, one on one with the audience. You can never get that same feeling from a virtual event no matter how well you do it. You can’t break bread over a virtual event or get instant feedback from an audience. Apparently, I’m not the only one that feels that way.

Meeting size

Covid is no longer a concern for most people. So meeting size is continuing to increase. Over 70% of events last year had attendance at or above 80% of 2019 levels. Two thirds of meeting professionals don’t expect the number of meetings to decrease.

Using industry speakers

One thing I’ve been seeing more of is that meeting planners are using more industry related speakers instead of general outside ones. I’ve asked if that is because of budget or if that’s what the attendees want and most of the time I hear that it’s what attendees want. There’s not much we can do as speakers to change that. Hopefully it’s a trend and will change, as things tend to do in this industry.

Overall the news is good. At least it’s way better than the past few years and there’s light at the end of the tunnel.

I’ve been working as a speaker for the past 15 years and have encountered a lot of different situations. But there is always a first time for everything. I’m posting this as a precautionary tale in case it ever happens to you in your speaker contract issues.

A few weeks ago I left for a very much needed 2 week vacation to Ireland. There must be some kind of law that says that you will book work as soon as you go out of town and stop looking for it. This has happened to me many times.

So, I’m in NY and miss my connection because of a 3 hour delay in L.A. and get stuck there for the day. That’s when I got a call about a speaking job. I’m not the most tech savvy person on an iPhone, but was able to get the meeting planner the info she asked for in a PDF version. Then I got a call from her right before getting on a plane to Ireland. I got the job!

Speaker contract issues

So, I relaxed and settled in for my 2 week vacation thinking all was good. Then she asked me to send her my contract, which I did asap. And by the end of the week I had signed the contract and thought I would be doing the job. She was supposed to send me the contract back with a signature and told me to go ahead and book my travel and hotel.

I got back and spent hours rebooking another speaking job to be able to make this one, and booking the flight and hotel like she asked me to do. I sent her an email to tell her that my flight and hotel was booked. That’s when she sent me an email to tell me that they had decided to go in a different direction for the event. This is after I rearranged another job and paid for a non-refundable hotel and another plane ticket.

I sent an email and called to find out what the problem was, but didn’t hear back from her. After leaving a voicemail she finally sent me a short message that they had never signed a contract. Basically I relied on her good word and the fact that she asked me in an email to book the travel and she asked me to send her a contract. I found out that she had done the same thing to other speakers and speaker bureaus.

My word of caution is to never, ever book anything until you have a signed contract AND a deposit. Even with a signed contract you still might have to fight it, but if you get a deposit at least you won’t be out the money.

Has this ever happened to you? How did you resolve it?

A Speaker Sponsor member recently asked why we send out opportunities for free speaking jobs. There are several reasons for that:

Should you speak for free?

You’re a beginner

When you’re just starting out as a speaker you may want to speak for free to get the practice. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t give it the same amount of time and professionalism you would give a paid job. But if you’re brand new you simply won’t have the same polish that speakers have who have been doing it for years have. Like a comedian who has to work out the bugs in a routine. It takes time to figure out what gets a laugh and what makes the audience cringe. Sometimes you stumble on something that gets a laugh that you didn’t expect. Each time you get in front of a new audience you learn something that you can add to your speech.

Speaking isn’t something you can learn by reading a book. You have to learn through experience. Students pay huge tuition fees to go to college. Think of this as your college education. Speak anywhere and everywhere you can. Try new things. Experiment. Be bold. When you’re speaking for free you can do more of that. Get in front of as many people as possible and as many different audiences as possible. Get feedback and keep improving.

A free speaking job can turn into a paid speaking job

Recently I’ve booked 2 paid speaking jobs because I filled out the online forms for free speaking jobs. Speaker Sponsor sends out free speaking leads, along with paid ones. It may seem like a waste of time when you want to get paid. But you never know when someone will be looking for speakers for a different conference. Or they secretly have the budget for speaker topics they really, really need. This is how I ended up with 2 paid speaking jobs.

Also, meeting planners will keep things on file for years. And when they need your topic they will search through them. I’ve booked jobs for things I filled out as long as 8 years ago. It was a free speaking job that I didn’t get at the time. I ended up getting my full speaking fee. So, I would say that it was definitely worth my time to fill out the free form.

If you have a book or other things to sell, speaking for free can often be a good deal. If you do speak for free ask for as many things in return as possible. Opportunity to sell books, etc. A free booth at their trade show. A list of attendees. All expenses paid. Mentions in their newsletter and social media. Opportunity to sell your coaching and consultant services. Your own sponsor, who they will help you promote.

You have your own sponsors

I’ve taken several free jobs as a speaker, especially in the beginning. But I have never, ever spoken for free. I’ve always had a sponsor who paid me to get them in front of their target audience. I learned about sponsorship completely by accident. I was living in NYC and working on a TV pilot. It was a variety show with writers from Saturday Night Live, Broadway dancers, and celebrity guest stars. In addition to raising half of the money for the show, I was also one of the reporters. Behind the scenes my boss asked me one day to go out and get sponsors. I had no idea how to do it, but I put together a proposal and went door to door looking for sponsors for the show. This was my trial by fire into the world of sponsorship.

Once I learned out to do it I started using sponsorship to produce plays. When I became a speaker I realized about half of all speaking jobs are free ones. So I saw a huge opportunity to fill those free jobs with sponsorship to get paid. I practice what I preach and am constantly finding new ways to supplement speaking with sponsorship. Having a portfolio of sponsors helped me earn a living as a speaker during the shutdowns of Covid when events were being cancelled. Sponsorship means never having to hold your hand out for a paid speaking job. You have a much better chance of getting a free speaking job and getting paid for it.

Many Speaker Sponsor members have their own sponsors and welcome the chance to find any speaking opportunities. Paid or free speaking. They know they can monetize them and get paid for the free speaking jobs.

You need to be seen

The very best way to get booked as a paid speaker is for someone to see you speak live. I have a saying. “If you want to be in the right place at the right time you have to be everywhere all the time”. That means you have to speak every single chance you get. If you only wait for paid speaking jobs you miss out on opportunities to get in front of people who can hire you. Have a portfolio of sponsors and things to sell and you have a guarantee of being paid.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gotten full fee speaking jobs because someone saw me speak live at an event. And I’ve also lost jobs because I was in the running with someone who was seen live by a decision maker. Speakers who are constantly working will get more work. And be seen by more people who can hire them. If you’re booked solid all year long with paid speaking work, this probably doesn’t apply to you. But if you’re new or not solidly booked, think about all the ways you can get in front of more decision makers. Even if you speak for free.

If you want more speaking jobs you need to do everything you can. This includes adding free speaking to your strategy. But always make sure you monetize everything to get the most out of those opportunities.

Every year American Express puts together a global meetings and events forecast. This year over 550 meeting and event specialists from 5 continents and 33 countries took part in the study. The great news for speakers is that there is optimism across the board that the meeting and event industry is still in a growth phase. The speaking industry forecast 2020 is bright!

Speaking industry forecast 2020

Spending is up in North America, Europe, Central/South America and Asia. Meetings are going to be longer, meaning more opportunities for more speakers. I’m already hearing about meetings and conferences that are looking for several keynote or general speakers. 70% of meeting and event leaders have said they are very optimistic about the future of meetings.

Face to face meetings are still one of the best ROI for businesses. Virtual meetings will be up slightly as well, but nothing beats face to face meetings for serious networking.

Good news for those speakers who have their own sponsors is that there will be more people attending meetings and conferences in 2020. The bigger the audience, the more money you can get from your sponsors.

More money for speakers

Spending is also up across the board, but that doesn’t always translate into more money for speakers, since the costs of everything they have to pay for is also going up and they have to factor that into their budgets. So event planners may still be dealing with having to do more with less, which is still fine if you have you own sponsors.

Since prices will be going up and demand will exceed supply, planners will probably start planning events further in advance.

Just like last year, interactive technology is playing a bigger role. Over half of planners want their attendees to have a great experience and are devoting more time to making that happen. Engagement is going to continue to be a huge part of events, both during the event and afterwards through polling, etc.

Most planners also agree that this is the year to have fully integrated technology at events, as long as it’s integrated successfully. Are you a technology speaker who can address this issue?

Wellness will play an important role in meetings in 2020. Are you a wellness or work life balance speaker who can help?

And events will also become more and more personalized, with feedback from attendees.

The good news for speakers is that the meeting and event industry will continue to be strong in 2020. Figure out how you fit into the picture and how you can help planners shine.

It will eventually happen to everyone…losing someone you love. And then you may be asked to deliver the hardest speech you’ll ever give… a eulogy speech. Eulogy speeches are all different depending on the situation and which friends and family members happen to be there.

I just gave my first one for a very long-time friend and my former manager. He was the one person who took a chance on me when I first came to Hollywood and fought hard to get me work. It’s because of him that I ended up staring in several movies. But I wasn’t the only one. He was known for giving people a chance, whether it was actors, writers, directors or members of the crew.

So the fact that 300 people showed up didn’t surprise me. Many more wanted to come but were working on sets. His assistant put together the memorial service, which was more of a celebration of life. An incredible life that started as a child actor and ended up producing or casting over 450 movies.

Several of us asked or were asked to give a speech to celebrate his life. I watched the others as someone who speaks for a living would. Some were actors, who already had a performing background, but most just wanted to express their thanks for knowing my friend and former manager. I had never given a eulogy before, so I didn’t really have anything to base it on. I just went with what I really felt, as did everyone else.

As an audience member I made notes of the ones that were really good and wanted to write out some bullet points for anyone who is put in the position of having to give a eulogy.

How to Give a Eulogy Speech

Speak from your heart

This will probably be easy to do since you’ll be talking about someone you loved or at least liked a lot. The passion you have will translate and will touch the audience since they will probably feel the same about the person.

Keep it brief

It’s hard to sum up someone’s life in a matter of minutes, but you do want to keep the speech as brief as possible, like maybe 3-5 minutes. Less than 3 probably isn’t enough time, and more than 5 starts to be too much for the audience. Which leads me to the next point.

Make it for the audience

A eulogy is a time to give the deceased their spotlight. Just like a regular speech, include the audience in it and make them feel like they are a part of the experience.

Share stories

People like to hear stories that they can relate to. They may not have the same exact stories as you, but if it relates to the person’s personality, the audience will relate and be able to share in the memory. This is a good place to put in some humor.

Add humor

This probably depends on the friends, family, and the situation, but I think anything is better when you add a little humor. This eases the tension the audience is already feeling and gives them a good way to take a slight breather from their grief.

Add pathos

The emotion will probably come out in your speech anyway if you deliver it with passion. But adding some pathos along with the humor will touch them deeply.

Keep it real

This was the most important thing I noticed. No one is an angel and no one is perfect. Show a little of the person’s imperfections, instead of painting them as perfect. It’ll ring truer and will probably get a laugh out of the audience since they will be thinking the same thing.

A eulogy speech may be the hardest speech you’ll ever give, but will probably be one of the most important.

The speaking industry in 2018 showed an increase in the number of meetings that would require speakers. The Bureau of Labor Statistics recently posted that between 2016-2026 the meeting and event industry would grow an average of 11%. The fastest growth in meetings and events is in the 101-500 attendee range. More bureau statistics show that 85% of meeting and event planners are optimistic about the future.

Speaking industry forecast 2019

But that doesn’t mean meeting planners don’t have challenges. The number one challenge on their list, according to Event Manager Blog, is budgets. The meeting industry continues to grow, and the economy remains strong, That also means their prices are going up and they have to deal with rising costs of venues, etc. It’s expected to increase an average of 2.2% globally.

More jobs for speakers

The great news for you as a speaker is that there are simply more jobs out there, paid ones and free ones. But even as the number of meetings increases, unfortunately meeting planners’ budgets will remain relatively flat. According to American Express Meetings and Events North American, the change from 2018 to 2019 is only +0.8%.

Local or regional events

Also, according to American Express Meetings, airfares are increasing 2.11% in North America and an average of 2.63% globally. As a speaker your odds of booking a local or regional event are much better. As a speaker, if you must travel, try and book more than one event in a location to save on those expenses or use frequent flyer miles or get sponsorship to help out if the expenses aren’t covered by a job. More than once I’ve booked a job because I was able to get creative with travel and sponsorship.

Because of rising venue costs, meeting planners are having to book further out than before when hotels were struggling. Now many hotels don’t even respond to requests for proposals. So as a speaker, be prepared for meeting planners to also book talent further in advance.

Emotional connection to the audience

Here’s more good news for speakers. According to CWT Meetings and Events, “Booking a speaker based on their celebrity status will be a thing of the past in 2019, as the importance, business insight, and emotional connection to the audience comes first.”

Technology use will continue to increase for meeting planners as events become more and more interactive and experiential. Event management tools like multi-use apps will become more popular. Meeting planners are looking for ways to increase productivity and decrease costs.

More experience creation

According to the International Association of Conference Centers, “80% of event planners say that their jobs involve more experience creation than they did 2-5 years ago.” Their audiences want fresh concepts and purposeful meetings.

Mindfulness and wellness continue to play a big part in the design of meetings, and that includes speakers who can tap into that area of work/life balance.

With unemployment rates at historically low records, employees are having a hard time finding and retaining good talent, so the topic of employee retention will continue to be needed for the near future.

If you happened to take the Speaker Sponsorship 101 webinar you know that trade shows are a good way to break in as a speaker with sponsorship. The Center for Exhibition Industry research noted that the trade show industry is also growing, but not as fast. I’m sure they would love to have good, qualified speakers, but probably can’t pay them, so they would be open to them having their own sponsorship. This is a good way to get into an area where other speakers haven’t thought of going and carving out a niche for yourself with sponsorship.

This is all good news for speakers who can bring value and expertise to the table in 2019. It’s good news for the speaking industry forecast 2019.

I found out that you can get more speaking jobs by helping other speakers. Last week I got a call from a meeting planner regarding a keynote for their next conference. I spoke on the topics they were looking for and was available for the date of the event. She set up a time for me to have a 3-way call with the president of the company. And I had my list of questions to ask.

It quickly became clear that he was looking for something completely different. And I was met with a lot of resistance on the other end. At that point, I could have tried to push it in my direction but I got the impression if I had gotten the job they wouldn’t have been happy.

So after hanging up I called my competition. I knew that he was more what they were looking for and he was local. I’m not sure if he’s excepted the job or not but I felt much better knowing that the client will get what they want and get a great speaker and I won’t be miserable trying to fit a square peg into a round hole.

Sometimes your competition is a better fit

The point of the story is that sometimes it’s better to pass on a job than try to make it fit. Sometimes your competition is a better fit.

I had a friend who wanted to get on a TV writing staff, so she came up with a long term strategy that was kind of a gamble. She decided to spend a whole year helping other people in the industry get work. Not ignoring her own work, but always keeping an eye out for writing jobs that she could pass on to other writers.

For months, she networked like crazy and recommended good writers that she knew whenever a job would come up that they were right for. Many times the writers were direct competition. Sometimes they were better suited for that particular job than she was.

After several months she was starting to think maybe the strategy wasn’t going to work. She got a lot of grateful writers work, but she still wasn’t on a TV writing staff. And then one day she got a call that one of the writers she had helped had been promoted to showrunner of a new TV series. And that writer never forgot how she had helped her. She got the job as staff writer on a show that lasted a couple of years. Not only did she make a lot of money, but that led to other staff writing jobs.

Help the meeting planner

The bottom line is that there is a lot of work out there. If you’re the very best person for the job, you’ll get it. And if you don’t get it, you might as well be the one to help the meeting planner find the best person. That will make the meeting planner happy, so the next time they will remember you helped them out with a really good speaker. And the next job may be one you’re perfect for.

It will also make the speaker happy. Hopefully they will steer some business your way when the time is right. Sometimes they may be busy on the date of the event, or they could refer you the next year.

Speaker commission

You could do it just for the karma or you could do a reciprocal commission of 10 or 20%. But make sure you’re working with professional, ethical speakers who will do a good job for the meeting planner. Otherwise it’ll backfire on you. Get more speaking jobs by helping other speakers get speaking jobs.

This is why it’s a good idea to network with professional speakers who can hit it out of the park and pay it forward for you if possible. Even if it’s your competition.