Story of the Week
In 2011, my new podcast had become the #1 business podcast in iTunes (this was before it became Apple Podcasts) and the demand for my time and attention grew exponentially. My inbox was getting bombarded with partnership opportunities from companies, podcasters who wanted me on their show, and listeners and readers who wanted my help. Keeping up with my emails was difficult, and I ended up having to hire someone full time just to manage my inbox.
There was one type of inquiry, however, that was super easy to manage. Every time I saw one make its way into my inbox, I immediately redirected it to the archive. No, it wasn’t for spam—it was for any request to have me come speak at a live event. I said “no” to every single opportunity, but not because I was trying to stay focused. In fact, speaking on stage was a huge opportunity that completely aligned with my goals to help more people and become more of an authority-figure. I said no because I was deathly afraid of speaking in public.
77% of people fear public speaking, and I was definitely within that group. Despite knowing that public speaking could be hugely beneficial for my business and personal growth, just the thought of getting up in front of a crowd of people and delivering a presentation gave me hot flashes and cold sweats.
In the middle of the year, however, my friend Philip Taylor called me and asked for a huge favor. He had asked me if I could deliver the closing keynote at his inaugural event, The Financial Blogger Conference (FinCon), in Schaumburg, Illinois in August. It was already July.
For anyone else it would have been an immediate ‘no’, but he needed help. The scheduled keynote speaker had bailed on him, and I knew how much this event meant to him. I also knew that if I was ever going to conquer my fear of public speaking, this was the perfect opportunity. So, despite my nerves, I said yes. I volunteered as tribute.
What happened next was transformational. After the initial shock, I immediately started to put in the work. In true “if this were easy what would it look like” fashion, I reached out to a couple friends (champions) who I knew spoke on stage before, and immediately one of them told me to pick up a book, Stand and Deliver by Dale Carnegie. Just-in-time-information, in action.
Trivial work got put to the side, and my gaming console finally got a much needed break. I was in a high-pressure, high-stake situation, and that’s what drove me to stay focused.
By intentionally putting myself in this high-pressure situation, I created the perfect conditions for transformation. The looming deadline, personal stakes, and potential upside fueled my motivation. The inherent challenge of the task pushed me far outside of my comfort zone. And the opportunity to prepare gave me the tools to succeed.
When the big day arrived, I was a ball of nerves. I still remember pacing through the hallways of the convention center hours before my talk, and even getting lost once because even though I had arrived two days earlier, I had spent most of my time in the hotel room practicing in the mirror. I even practiced with my suit coat on because I believed it would help me get a better sense of what it would be like to do the real thing. That’s kind of weird when I think about it, but I also take that as a sign that I cared so much about what I was about to do.
At 4:00pm central on the last day of the event, Phillip introduced me onto the stage. On my way up he handed me the clicker to advance the slides and after the applause died down, I looked up at the audience through the bright lights, and I froze. I forgot what to say.
I asked the audience to give Philip a round of applause to buy me some time, and after stalling for a few more seconds, I finally remembered where to begin. My presentation was in full swing, and it felt like an out-of-body experience where something took over me and I was just on auto-pilot. I guess all of that prep work paid off, because after twenty-four minutes, it was over. I had survived my first talk.
The audience was cheering for me, and I looked over at Phillip and he had a huge smile on his face. I didn’t let him down, and I didn’t let myself down either, because at that moment, even though I was scared, I was proud of myself for getting up there.
My presentation was far from perfect though. For some reason, I was clutching a water bottle the entire time which was distracting, and I never even drank from it. I also paced back and forth across the stage a lot – a clear sign of my nerves. I stumbled on quite a few words and had skipped an entire section of the talk I meant to add in. But, I also surprised myself, too. Unscripted, I added jokes that made the audience laugh. The content kept them engaged the entire time, and after the event was over, I had a line of people outside the ballroom who wanted to meet me. Many of those people complimented the talk and were surprised it was my first time on stage.
Since then, I’ve spoken on more than 300 live stages around the world, and I eventually started to get paid for my time on stage, which I never thought would happen. In total, I’ve generated over $500k in revenue from presentations and keynotes, and I even started hosting my own live events, too.
Recently, in a very full circle moment, Philip and his son Drew, who collects Pokemon cards, attended my event, called Card Party. Card Party brings thousands of Pokemon fans together with their favorite Pokemon creators from all around the world, and when I saw Philip at the event, I nearly broke down in tears. A lot of what I have to be thankful for is a result of the opportunity Philip offered me back in 2011, and thankfully, I agreed to do it.
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I hope you enjoyed that small part of my new book. I hope to have it written and published by the summer of 2025, so look out for more info leading up to that date! Thank you!
