Patricia Fripp Blog

100 Dollar Bills — Are you afraid to talk about money? If you aren’t willing to assign a value to your work, your prospects will do it for you and your work will probably be undervalued.

As a speech coach, I work with professional speakers to help them develop more powerful and persuasive presentations, my friend and colleague, Lois Creamer works with professional speakers to help them book more business, make more money, and avoid costly mistakes. Lois and I joined forces for our virtual event, How to Book More Business and Get Invited Back. At the end of this post, you can enjoy a replay. We shared industry-insider strategies to help speakers, trainers and consultants. Here is Lois’ expert advice for speakers, explaining how to determine and negotiate your professional speaking fees:

Money Talk: Book More Business Style!
by Lois Creamer

So many times when I talk to professional speakers I hear the following, “I hate to talk about money!” My reply (and I’m only half-kidding), “Then you better get a different job. Perhaps something in retail where price tags are used.”

JamieFoxxScreenShotSmall — Jamie Foxx receiving the Best Actor award for “Ray” in 2005.

In anticipation of the Academy Awards this weekend, Toastmasters International shares their picks for the most memorable moments from Oscar® acceptance speeches of the last 20 years. What would you say if you were called to the stage? Even if you aren’t an Academy Award nominee, it’s always a good idea to prepare for times in your professional or personal life when you might be called on to “say a few words.” Enjoy!

Toastmasters Picks 7 Most Memorable Oscar® Quotes from the Last 20 Years

Patricia Fripp explains the secrets to successful executive presentations through FrippVT. — Patricia Fripp shows you how to design and deliver powerful persuasive presentations through FrippVT.

“Why are executive presentations so boring?” Unfortunately, I hear this question often. Corporate leaders rarely receive the honest feedback they need to become powerful and persuasive communicators. Public speaking is the number one tool of leadership. Good presentation skills are no longer a nice skill to have; they can mean the difference between career life and death.

When you’re a leader, even if you have a communications department or an army of speechwriters working for you, YOU must be actively involved in the creation of your own presentations. Fortunately, even if you are not a born communicator, the strategies behind powerful presentations can be learned. As a leader who can speak publicly with confidence, you have the power to persuade, influence, and inspire others; build confidence in your corporate strategy; cultivate loyalty within your organization; move your team to action; and demonstrate to others why your products, services, and ideas are truly valuable.

To be powerful and persuasive, you must connect with your audience both intellectually and emotionally. Enhance your connection with your audience by customizing or personalizing your message for each specific audience. Customization is indispensable for professional speakers. However, even if you’re not a professional speaker, you will find that taking the time to tailor your next presentation to your audience’s unique interests and concerns will help ensure your success. I share this brief video sample from Fripp Virtual Training that explains the importance of customizing your speeches and presentations:

Every successful speech begins with an underlying structure.

As a professional, you know that when it comes to advancing in your career and boosting your income, good presentation skills can make the difference between stagnation and success.

Understand the payoff

When your message is memorable, your communication clear, and your presentation powerful, you will position yourself for greater success. You are smart enough to know that being ambitious, intelligent, and well educated is not enough. If you are going to reach your true potential you need to be known as someone who speaks in a clear, concise, and credible way.

A valuable asset to every communicator

Throughout my speech coaching career, my Fripp Speech Model has been well received and often requested. You have the confidence of knowing that it is used by professional speakers, corporate executives, and sales teams. They would not consider putting together a presentation without it.

When you organize your thoughts to create a speech or presentation, start with the basic key elements.

Make your presentation powerful

The key elements are your opening, your closing, and your premise. You will have access in this brief video below and The Fripp Speech Model and more.

Your speech begins with questions

In the video below, you will hear questions to ask yourself about the make-up of your audience. Also, what are the unanswered questions you need to answer in your presentation?

My gift to you – valuable resources

Because they will save you time and thousands of dollars.

The Fripp Speech Model and more

Executive Speech Coach Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE

Seven strategies to become a great speaker:

1. Consider learning to speak to be a long-term goal, not a one-day seminar.
2. Learn from someone who knows more than you do on this subject.
3. Practice with safe people – your supportive friends or others with the same goals.
4. Use web-based training for repetition and reinforcement.
5. Take your message to an audience.

Last summer, I was honored to deliver the opening keynote at the annual Toastmasters International Convention in Las Vegas. In case you aren’t already familiar with Toastmasters International, Toastmasters is a non-profit educational organization teaching public speaking and leadership skills through a worldwide network. I share Toastmasters’ roundup of the most buzzworthy speeches of 2015. Enjoy!

As an executive speech coach, people often ask me, “How do I come up with original stories to illustrate my key points?” Fortunately, you don’t have to have survived an avalanche, founded a pioneering tech company, or won a Nobel Prize to tell a good story – because audiences identify with and delight in stories drawn from ordinary life. In this video sample from FrippVT, I share a few strategies for finding stories and examples in your own life, or the lives of your colleagues, friends, and family:

A powerful, persuasive, professional presentation may appear effortless to an audience… but even an “effortless” presentation requires that you first devote time and energy to organizing your content around a strong basic structure. Presentations are comprised of content, structure, and delivery. The more you clarify your content and organize your structure, the easier it will be for you to sound professional in your delivery. I share this brief video sample from FrippVT to help you develop your presentations:

Hall of Fame Speaker, Patricia Fripp Presenting with Her Brother Legendary Guitarist Robert Fripp. — Hall of Fame Speaker, Patricia Fripp & Her Brother, Legendary Guitarist, Robert Fripp

While you might already know my brother, Robert Fripp as one of Rolling Stone’s “100 Greatest Guitarists,” you may not know him as a superb and entertaining speaker. When we deliver presentations together, it’s always a delight – both for us and for our audiences. Robert has an extraordinary ability to connect with an audience both intellectually and emotionally. I was so encouraged and inspired by these closing words from my brother; I thought I would share them with you:

Expert Advice about Presentation Skills
from Patricia Fripp

Professional Speakers – Do You Hate to Talk about Money?

And The Winner Is… The Most Fascinating Oscar® Moments

The Sure-Fire Way to Influence, Persuade & Inspire

Connect with Your Audience – Why & How to Customize

How to Organize Your Speech – Focus on The Basics