Today is Rock Star Day
It’s 7:30 a.m. on a Friday morning, and in a few hours I’ll be speaking to the Napa Valley Chamber of Commerce. They booked me to speak on Free and Low-Cost Tools Small Businesses Can’t Live Without, based on the cool free tools I collect for The Cheapskate Freelancer.
Man but I love this stuff. I love standing in front of a crowd of people and making them laugh. I love when people line up after a session to give me their cards. I love sharing ideas that help people do their jobs better. And I love the energy I receive from the efforts.
The pressure’s on, though. When I’m invited to speak, it’s usually because someone’s seen me somewhere else, and I made them laugh and enlightened them at the same time. Thus, each presentation is a performance, and each performance has to be as good or better than the last.
When I’m writing, it’s easier to have a mediocre day. If I’m writing something and just not feeling it, I can usually switch gears for a while until I’m sharp again. And if I’ve got a upset belly or a new pimple or really bad hair, who cares? I can still perform as a writer, alone in my little (new, WONDERFUL) office a block from the ocean. Or I can take a walk and get rejuvenated. The timing is mine and the output doesn’t have to be 110 percent.
But there’s a bigger obligation to a live audience. I need to be ON — Super ON — at 12:30 p.m. in the Grand Ballroom. I need to have perfect clothes, great shoes, passable hair, an energetic personality and the ability to think on my feet. Each time I commit to a speaking engagement, I worry that my timing will be off, that today won’t be a great day. But, so far, every day has rocked. I leave each presentation more pumped than when I started.
My next speaking gig after this is Orlando the first week in November. I was hired to do the same 45-minute presentation four days in a row for small business owners in the diving industry. And after that I’m going to the Fancy Food Show in San Francisco to speak to more small business owners. I plan to keep growing this side of my business, so I can continue to gather and exude the energy of the live events.
As I used to have posted on my wall: Today is a Great Day to be Amazing.
rockstar on 25 Sep 2009 at 7:43 am #
Rockstar!
I love it – in fact, I am rockstar too!
http://screencast.com/t/D70mM3K2Ki3J
Are you getting a touring bus and can I get you’re autograph! Fill me in on the details.
Bonnie Koenig on 25 Sep 2009 at 2:11 pm #
Beth -
You’ve well articulated the challenge and benefits to public speaking gigs. I once had a mentor that said that being (just a little) nervous before a talk was a good thing, because it meant you still cared about doing your very best. Here’s to being the caring person you are!
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Sarah on 04 Nov 2009 at 7:51 am #
So I often think of this post because, being a high school teacher, every day is supposed to be ROCK STAR Day! It is so hard to be on and up (for me 5 times every day). I understand the pressure. Have a great time in Orlando.