Your Monthly News & Updates |
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In News Flash, we provide the highlights of the month with links to the stories you most want to read. You'll find the full edition of News Flash online here. Please forward this newsletter to others whose careers benefit by improved skills in speaking and presenting. Some examples are members of Toastmasters, ATD, MPI, ICF, and AZODN among others.
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A Message from Our President |
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It is with great pride that I write my last message to the NSA AZ membership as your 2020-2021 chapter president.
It has been a very trying year for our speaking profession, yet we have survived. We have had to learn to adapt to a meetings industry that has been decimated due to the pandemic while learning new skills in a virtual world. I for one will be happy to never have to say to someone on Zoom, “you are on mute’.
We are seeing progress in reopening our world. It seems as if each day brings new news about destinations opening back up to full capacity events. I am happy to report that this past month I have been on the road with numerous in-person speaking presentations. It feels great to be on a stage where one can see and interact with attendees. People are hungry to get back to in-person events. I see a bright future for our membership.
I would like to thank you, the membership, for your patience and acceptance for what the chapter and you the member had to endure during these difficult times. We will emerge stronger as community of speakers because of it.
There are too many members to thank in this short message. Please know that you are in my thoughts as the best of the best.
I hope that I will be able to thank you personally at our first in-person event in fifteen months on June 12th.
I leave your organization in the very capable hands of Elaine Simpson, your board of directors and volunteers.
Onward to a brighter tomorrow!
NSA-Arizona President
2020-2021
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NSA-Arizona Monthly Meeting
Saturday, June 12, 2021
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THIS MEETING WILL BE IN PERSON |
Networking: 8:30 a.m.
Presentation: 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
KEYNOTE SPEAKER—Every Sales “YES” Begins With a “KNOW”: Web Search Secrets to Grow Your Speaking Business with Sam Richter, CSP®, CPAE
There are more professional speakers than at any time in history–and most of them are very good. To succeed, you need to constantly find new opportunities and ensure relevancy in every sales communication.
In this dynamic presentation, you will discover the following:
- Web search secrets that you never thought possible for finding leads, creating lists, and understanding decision makers.
- Tips and tricks for using social media as sales and competitive "intelligence agents."
- How to leverage the "Hidden Web," the majority of the valuable online information invisible to search engines.
- How to use information to differentiate from the competition and win in every sales call.
This may be one of the highest take-home-value programs you’ve ever experienced. This high energy, motivating, incredibly high content program has a huge "WOW" factor – you will be shocked at what you don't know (but soon will).
"Sam is brilliant and so energizing!!!!"
Registration is limited to 50.
Location: Terravita Golf & Country Club, Desert Pavilion Community Center, 34034 North 69th Way, Scottsdale, AZ 85266
NSA Arizona complies with all Arizona and CDC health guidelines and reminds members to do the same.
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Bestselling author and Hall of Fame speaker Sam Richter, CSP®, CPAE, is considered a leading authority on sales intelligence and digital reputation management. He delivers his top-rated, incredibly dynamic, highly entertaining, and extremely high-content keynote presentations and workshop sessions to audiences worldwide.
Sam was named one of the World’s Top 50 Sales Keynote Speakers, one of the Top 15 Virtual Presenters, and one of the Top 25 Most Influential Sales Leaders. In addition to his speaking, Sam is a technology entrepreneur, and has developed numerous search-related programs used by thousands of top organizations around the globe.
For his work, Sam has won numerous awards including a Gold Award at the International Film Festival and a Codie Award, the ‘Oscars’ of the software industry. Sam has been featured in thousands of news programs and publications including CNN, USA Today, and Forbes. He serves on the Board of Directors for numerous technology companies, and he is a past finalist for Inc. Magazine’s Entrepreneur of the Year.
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FREE Virtual Seminar & Open House
Wednesday, June 9, 2021 | 5:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
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Take Your Speaking Business to the Next Stage
Kristin Arnold and Tyrone Holmes Present Four Timely Topics
Join us for an incredible and timely educational program! Make connections, win prizes, have some fun, and be ready for a surprise or two!
We invite you, your colleagues and connections who are interested in learning more about NSA-Arizona and becoming part of our community.
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PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS MEETING WILL BE VIRTUAL. We will meet via Zoom so you can interact with other participants. Approximately 24 hours in advance, you will be sent a link that enables you to join the meeting.
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Thought Leadership as a Marketing Strategy for Professional Speakers
We’ve all heard the phrase, “The Riches are in the Niches”–but what does that really mean to an established, veteran speaker? If you want to be known as a thought leader (and be able to charge more money for your unique expertise), this session will give you the blueprint. You'll create your strategy to be known in your niche AND to be found in the sea of talented speakers.
In this session, you will discover:
- An energizing technique to discover potential “hyper-niche” areas
- Five different strategies you can pull from to be known as a thought leader
- An easy-to-follow process to create your own personal roadmap to success
Pricing Strategies in the Post-Covid World
How do you price a virtual event, hybrid, or F2F event in the post-covid world? Kristin will share a tested model to help you think through your pricing model as we move into the new normal(s).
In this session, you will discover:
- Seven different pricing different mindsets
- The formula for determining your optimal fee
- LOTs of levers to increase or decrease your fee
- Myriad compensation strategies to bridge the gap between the fee you want and the fee they are willing to pay
You’ll walk away with a generic proposal that you can adapt to your own speaking business!
Kristin Arnold, MBA, CSP®, CPF Master is known for her practical and concrete approach to helping teams think things through in order to make better decisions and achieve sustainable, substantive results. A wide range of clients depend on her for insight into what works best for teams today: Challenger Space Center for Space Science Education, KPMG, Make-A-Wish, Marathon Oil Company, Mercedes Benz USA, Mutual Funds Dealer Association, Nature Conservancy, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Raytheon Corporation, US Armed Forces, U.S, Food & Drug Administration, U.S. Naval Institute…just to name a few. Learn more about Kristin.
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How to Connect More Powerfully with a Virtual Audience
This session will show you how to connect more powerfully with a virtual audience by increasing interaction and applying a variety of virtual tools. As a result of our discussion, you will be able to do the following:
- Apply a variety of activities to make your virtual presentations more interactive.
- Apply specific tools to enhance the virtual experience for your audience.
Maximizing the 3 Building Blocks of Video Creation
This session will show you how to create engaging video using three building blocks: talking head, screen share and animation. As a result of our discussion, you will be able to do the following:
- Understand how to effectively apply each of the 3 building blocks in the video creation process.
- Use specific apps and tools to improve video development and editing.
Tyrone A. Holmes, Ed.D is a professional speaker, consultant and coach who have spent more than two decades teaching thousands of people to build powerful relationships in diverse settings. He has facilitated over 1,500 live and virtual presentations that have taught participants to reduce the “noise” in their lives, to effectively communicate their messages, to connect with diverse audiences and groups, and to reduce the negative impact of unconscious bias. Dr. Holmes served as a full-time faculty member at Eastern Michigan University in the Department of Leadership and Counseling, and at Wayne State University in the Department of Theoretical and Behavioral Foundations. He is also a Past President of the Arizona Chapter of the National Speakers Association. Dr. Holmes was awarded the designation of eSpeakers Certified Virtual Presenter and most recently, Certified Virtual Host. Learn more about Tyrone.
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Say Hello to Projects Lab:
- A casual, virtual co-working support space to focus on a project
- Meets 2 hours, twice weekly
- Includes 3 mini-breaks of 5 minutes each to share or get fast feedback
The lab is based on evidence that bursts of focused work of 25-45 minutes align best with brain function. Also, mini-breaks promote productivity and reduce stress.
Recent Projects Lab examples:
- Commencement speech teleprompter preparation (Roger Rickard)
- Working on book (Michelle May, Marla Harr, Lynette Charity)
- Consultant training prep and handouts for winter NSA (Bob Pike)
- Caption conversion for videos and classes (Lynne Wellish)
- Preparing client projects and reports (Natalie Sayer, Denise, Michele Redmond)
There's been fun, like Lynette working on a comedy gig, but also crushing tedious tasks like invoicing. The mini-breaks offer a moment to refresh but often to share inspirational comments and helpful feedback.
NEW! We’ve launched a 6-week pomodoro style writing challenge.
This is an extension of Projects Lab but at a new time and focus for six weeks (May 13 - June 17, 2021) on Thursdays from 2:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m. with two short breaks.
This will give you a defined time period and virtual accountability/support group to hit some specific goals and make progress on writing efforts related to do the following:
· Articles and blogs
· Website copy
· Pitches/Proposals
· Video scripts or podcast outlines
· Book chapters and outlines
You’ll be invited to mention your six-week writing goal or planned products/content on the NSA-Arizona Facebook page, if you desire to share. If you can’t meet at the specified meeting times, you’re still invited to participate and check in on the Facebook page or on dates you can attend.
Join us on Zoom:
- Projects Lab: Mondays from 12:00 - 2:00 p.m. - Meeting ID: 810 0479 9119 | Passcode: PROJLAB
- Projects Lab: Writing Challenge: Thursdays from 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. - Meeting ID: 896 0984 8982 | Passcode: PROJLAB
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Reason to be at Speakers Lab #23-B
Renew (verb)
1. Resume (an activity) after an interruption
2. Extend for a further period the validity of (a license, subscription, or contract)
“The very least you can do in your life is figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope. Not admire it from a distance but live right in it, under its roof.” ―Barbara Kingsolver
“Genius is the ability to renew one’s emotions in daily experience.” —Paul Cezanne
With all the challenges of the past year, it is time to renew our commitment to our hopes and dreams and plans. It is tempting to think that renewal is an occasional event, like New Year’s Resolutions. (Is it time for "Renew Year’s Resolutions?")
Instead, it should be a habit, a way of living.
Come join us at NSA-Arizona Speakers Lab to get energized and to bolster your grit. We are known for providing valuable feedback from skilled evaluators. We also provide a unique networking environment. You are instantly among friends and colleagues. Speaking for myself, I have established multiple valuable friendships through my participation in Speakers Lab.
We provide feedback in a structured environment. We ask presenters what their purpose is and what kind of feedback they want or need. We provide guidelines both for evaluators and for speakers. This helps to provide supportive, constructive, and useful advice.
Is there an area of your speaking or your speaking business that would benefit from some feedback? Come join us at Speakers’ Lab and experience the valuable feedback and encouragement to help you improve in any area of the speaking business.
We meet via Zoom the 3rd Wednesday of each month from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., with networking from 6:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. An announcement regarding the Zoom session for the Lab will be emailed prior to the Speakers Lab. When you respond to that email to register for that session, you will be provided with a link.
You may attend these sessions as a Guest. However, if you wish to present at the Lab, you must be a chapter member in good standing. We ask that you attend as a participant twice, before you sign up for time to present.
In a normal meeting, we have three 30-minute slots. Speakers can use the time to receive feedback and tips for a specific purpose, like trying out new material or trying a new form of speaking. They can also get feedback about marketing materials, web sites, or a book idea.
“Insanity is doing the same thing, over and over again, but expecting different results.”—attributed to Albert Einstein
“If at first you don't succeed, then skydiving definitely isn't for you.”―Steven Wright
Upcoming Guest Enrichers | June 16, 2021 – TBA
07/21/2021—No Speakers Lab (summer hiatus)
“Speakers Lab is one of the greatest features provided by NSA-Arizona. It is designed to be a safe place to not only practice and hone speaking skills, the feedback given by NSA members is extremely valuable and well worth the price of membership. I highly recommend Speakers Lab to anyone serious about advancing their speaking career.” — Rita Hudgens
NSA-Arizona Speaker Lab Leadership Team: Michael Haley, Debra Exner, Natalie Sayer, Antonio Valles.
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Volunteer Spotlight: Rick DeBruhl
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Where do you live now? Where are you originally from? Do you share your home with pets or family? My wife and I grew up in Los Angeles and moved to Phoenix back in 1978 because of a job offer. I honestly didn't know anything about Arizona and figured I'd only be here for a year or two. Four houses, two kids, and seven dogs later, we're still here. Turns out Arizona is a great place to live and enjoy so we never left.
Do you have any hobbies, travels, volunteer work, or other interesting things to share? I'm a self-professed car geek. It started when I was a kid. I built car models and read car magazines. My mother realized my obsession and even put up car wallpaper in my room. I did two hours of auto shop in high school each day and worked my way through college as a mechanic. I've just always enjoyed the beauty and the power of the automobile. It's also a great way to look at pop culture and industrial design for the past 100 years in America.
My other hobby is at the opposite end of the spectrum. My wife and I collect antique maps. Our oldest map dates back to 1520. They're both amazing works of art, and also give great insight into world history.
As for volunteer work, these days I'm on the board for St. Joseph the Worker. It's a wonderful organization that finds jobs for people living on the edge of society. SJW provides training before the job interview, and assistance with transportation and clothes after they get hired. SJW has even started a transitional living program to help clients save enough money to get their first apartment. If you live in Arizona, considering donating your charitable tax credit money each year to SJW!
What is your speaking specialty? I talk about the importance of communicating at the right speed. Poor communication is a major cause of employee stress and a drain on profits. Improving the way organizations communicate can help both the employee and the company succeed! I have a great story from my time spent covering the Indy 500 for ABC that has some important lessons about what can happen when communication works.
What kind of work did you do before you started speaking? Are you still doing that or other work in addition to speaking? Most of my career was spent working in television. I worked for thirty-two years doing television news as both an anchor and reporter. I was fortunate enough to work with great people and win plenty of awards (including three Emmys). In addition to my news work, I also spent three decades covering auto racing for TV networks like ESPN, ABC, NBC and others. These days I'm the voice of the Barrett Jackson collector car auctions on the A&E Networks. Since I'm a car geek, it's really just a way to have someone pay me to pursue my hobby!
When did you start speaking? When did you join NSA-Arizona? I'm relatively new to the speaking world having just started a couple of years ago. I joined NSA-Arizona at about the same time.
How have you volunteered for our chapter? I did a Living Room Forum (in the pre-COVID era) about how to get media coverage and what to do when you're interviewed. It was a way to use my previous career to help fellow speakers. I used that same knowledge to write a book, The Insider's Guide to Media Training: 99 Tips to Survive Your Interview in the Digital Age. During our quarantine, a good friend and I put it together.
For you, what is the best advantage of NSA-Arizona membership?
Honestly, I'm not a joiner. I generally avoid associations, but NSA-Arizona is different. From the first event I attended (a living room forum at Damian Mason's home) to the latest monthly event (Ed Rigsbee), I've gotten great value and insight. More importantly, I've met lots of great people who have been very supportive and gracious enough to help me understand this new world.
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Editor’s Note: This feature reminds you to take advantage of our fabulous lending library of NSA Convention recordings.
Even though we're always enthusiastic when new material comes in, there's lots of great material from years gone by. So I went through the CDs and, almost randomly, picked one out from the 2008 convention: Three Top Secrets to Easily Making a Six-Figure Income as a Speaker by Jennifer Cummings.
Here's one of the tricky parts to hearing audio only of a live presentation, without benefit of handouts or PowerPoint slides. The speaker makes a list and will say "the first thing is," but will hardly ever say "the second, third, or fourth thing is." So I'm not sure when one item ends and another begins. I'll repeat what I heard, as best as I can organize them.
Jennifer asks the audience, "Do you want to grow your business incrementally or exponentially?" The secret to quantum growth, she says, is taking small incremental "aha" moments, and consistently putting them into actions. Jennifer encourages the audience to write down their inspired "ahas" and a corresponding action step.
There are three secrets to rapid growth: "The first one", she says, (and she never says "the second one") "is to know how to invest your time." Napoleon Hill defined wealth, and you must know what it means to be wealthy. What does wealthy mean to you, not just income and net worth, but also in time, health, and friends.
The 3 M's of success are:
- Mechanics: what to do, how to do it, and what to say.
- Momentum: energy and overcoming inertia. As Isaac Newton says, an object in motion tends to stay in motion. And an object at rest tends to stay at rest, unless acted upon by an outside force. How do you keep your momentum going, and how do you keep momentum in the audience? Jennifer sets herself apart from the competition by following up with attendees, included in her fee.
- Mindset: how you think, what you believe, your perceptions. Mindset is the most fundamental of the three; without the proper mindset, the other tools will not work.
The 3 keys to a magnetic mindset are:
- Reset your thermostat. A thermostat is set and controls all areas of your life. Jennifer grew up on welfare, and her personal thermostat was set for "welfare." So even when she made money, she'd "do something stupid."
- Shift your focus. What you focus on, you will manifest. If you are focusing on what is not working in your business, you will manifest more of it.
- Choose abundance. Choose to have more of what you need, whether that's more money, more time, more friends. We are either in scarcity or in abundance. "Everything you do, every thought you think, either attracts business or repels it."
- (I counted four things) Get out of your ego. Be of service instead. If you think you have a flaw, and you can't fix it, then feature it. Jennifer put up a slide that said "Iamnowhere," with no spaces. Some people read it and thought "I am nowhere." Others thought "I am now here." "Now here" is far more effective than "nowhere," and will attract business.
The 3 keys to staying in momentum are:
- Create the right atmosphere. When you are around the right people, it's easy to stay in momentum.
- Seek out accountability. Ask for feedback; how can I improve, what can I change?
- Generate activity. Take the action step. It doesn't have to be big. Pick at least one or two things you can do daily.
- (Again, I counted four things) Know what business you are in. You are in the marketing business. Marketing is to compel someone to buy, and it is an education process. An educated person will make an educated decision. You really get paid to be an expert problem solver. Jennifer offers a 10x guarantee; if they don't feel they got 10 times value for what they paid, she will refund her fee on the spot.
If you are a speaker, then you are a commodity. Instead, Jennifer says to "pick a U10 topic and target." Focus on your unique 10%, what you are uniquely qualified to do. Focus on that and pick that target. One of Jennifer's clients was a generalist, and he was overwhelmed. She encouraged him to be a specialist and his business flourished.
Also give clients options. Offer different products and price points: high tech that can make residual income like downloads or webinars, and high touch like coaching and consulting. And "master the art of potato chip marketing." Get them to come to you by leaving a trail of potato chips: let them try before they buy, use a "give to get mindset."
Look at your marketing material and see how much is about you and how much is about them. Patricia Fripp has an "I-to-you" ratio in marketing. Create a hook in your marketing, and one of the biggest hooks is lumpy mail. Lumpy mail gets opened. One of Jennifer's clients mailed a 25 cent key chain and it turned into a $25,000 contract.
What were my "ahas" after listening to Jennifer? Just last month I offered a new service funnel by offering group tutoring on the weekends. I can rewrite my bio to be more "you" focused. I have my 10% uniqueness-who else could teach license exam preparation while doing Yoda impersonations?
Richard is NSA-Arizona’s librarian who accepts donations of books, tapes, magazines, CDs, and videos of interest to speakers. Contact Richard for instructions to download recent NSA Convention sessions.
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For more details and to register, visit the NSA website.
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Word Tripper from the Platform |
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Do you ever confuse this word pair? Now you know the difference so you won't get tripped up!
Allude, elude – To “allude” means to refer to casually or indirectly. To “elude” means to avoid or escape by cleverness or speed; to escape the comprehension of. “May the force be with you,” the boy said to his friend, alluding to Star Wars, as they split up to better their chances of eluding the bully chasing them.”
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Due to COVID, Living Room Forum has been cancelled until further notice. |
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Email your News Flash announcements to editor Linda-Ann Stewart at or call 928-600-0452 by 15th of each month. Thanks to proofreaders Michelle Cubas and Richard Victor.
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