These days, motivational speakers seem to be a dime a dozen. In fact, many people claim that they are motivational speakers and put it in their resumes. Organizations are compelled to invite speakers during their events and gatherings in order to inspire and ignite people. However, choosing a good motivational speaker could be a challenge. This leads to the question of what are the characteristics of good motivational speakers.
Here are a few characteristics that should be considered when inviting the next speaker to a function or event:
1. Passion
Motivational speakers are able to speak with passion about a subject matter than they care about. The very reason why they were invited to speak is because they followed their passion, with excellent and inspiring results. When a motivational speaker speaks with passion, the air around him or her seems to vibrate with energy. When passionate people speak, listeners are usually spurred into action. Maybe some listeners do not act on a certain thing right away, but a powerful and passionate speaker will be able to hold their attention long enough to plant seeds of ideas into their hearts and minds. These ideas will spur them into action at a later time, and they will most likely remember that motivational speaker who spoke with passion and caused them to act.
2. Unique Point of View
This is a day and age of widespread information. People will more likely know what you are talking about because they already read about it online. Speakers shouldn’t assume that they have the monopoly of information because it isn’t the case anymore. Social media and the internet have seen to that.
What people respond to right now is a unique point of view and a fresh new way of looking at an issue. The topic that the motivational speaker is talking about might already be known to many people, but maybe they haven’t seen it from a different angle yet. That’s what the speaker should focus on. This is how they will capture their audience. Many people who have listened to great motivational speeches all agree that even if it is an old story, or information that is widely known, a good speaker will be able to make it seem fresh again.
People may not always agree with the speaker’s unique point of view, but at least the speaker is able to get their attention and they are able to think about an issue that need to be raised or acted upon.
3. Clear Message
Effective motivational speakers have a clear message. Listeners should be told within the first seconds of the speech what it is all about and what the goal is. Many speakers have the gift of gab and can sometimes be too talkative that they lose focus. They talk about a variety of topics that have nothing to do with the listeners and are not relevant to them. This is the best way to lose the audience’s interest.
But if the speech is focused, and the message is straight to the point, people are able to grasp the idea right away.
Sometimes the speech could even be about just one story. For instance, it could be about overcoming adversity or establishing one big thing or unexpectedly winning against the odds. A good speaker will be able to expand this one story and make it personal and applicable to everyone in the audience. The speaker may be able to get ideas that will specifically appeal to each audience member.
4. The Power of Possibility
Good motivational speakers have an air of possibility surrounding them. When they tell their remarkable and incredible stories, they don’t just make it about themselves. Good speakers have a way of telling the audience that it could happen to them, too. They could also make their dreams come true, they could also achieve impossible feats, and they could also be great.
Good motivational speakers are able to communicate that everything is possible and achievable. They are able to make even the most jaded member of the audience believe again.
It should be made clear that these are not motherhood statements or general motivation stories. Audience members also know when the speaker is “just pulling their arm.” People want to hear real and believable stories.
5. Lifelong Learner
A good motivational speaker is always delighted to learn new things and incorporate them in their speeches. The reason why they are so effective is because they never stop learning. They do not speak in front of an audience and claim that they are experts. In fact, the charm of good motivational speakers is their self-deprecating humor. They show the audience that they are also human and that they have their struggles as well.
They show the audience by example that they constantly seek new knowledge and experiences in order to enrich themselves.