Yesterday we talked about the networking benefits of giving speeches. Getting up in front of a group and sharing your knowledge is an amazingly powerful way to network and can increase your number of connections considerably faster than just meeting people one at a time. If you know what you’re doing.
But what if you aren’t the best speaker in the world? What if getting up in front of a group scares you down to your toes?
Well, first, get over it. Very few truly successful people work in a vacuum. As a part of that success, you will have to interact with and address other people both singly and in groups. The better you are at it, the more successful you will be.
That being said, while you are developing your crazy oratorical skills, what can speaking do to extend your network? Simple. Find opportunities for others to speak.
If you are a member of a group that has regular speakers, offer to help out. At its simplest you can recommend people you’ve already met to make a presentation. At a slightly higher level you can even offer to approach people you don’t know about presenting for the group. What a great way to get to meet someone!
What this does is make you shine in everyones eyes. The organizers of the events love you because you’ve taken a task off their hands. The speakers love you because you are giving them the chance to get up in front of an audience. Heck, the audience might even begin love you because they will find out that you are a Person to Know.
Finding opportunities for others to present to an audience is a great “value adding” way to start or strengthen a relationship. Speakers and event organizers both will see you as someone who is willing to go out of their way to serve others without the expectation of getting something in return. If you are willing to look out for their best interests, you can bet they’re going to be willing to look out for yours.
