Before you read any further stop and make a list of the Professional Speakers you know.
Was your name on the list? What about the other law enforcement trainers in your agency? Do you consider yourself a professional speaker? A professional trainer?
The reality is that if you are a trainer, you are a professional speaker. Once you can accept that ask yourself the following questions:
What are you doing to enhance your stage presence, your story telling abilities and platform skills?
What are you doing to enhance your PowerPoint presentations and other visual aides?
What are you doing to enhance your knowledge and skills with the technology you are using in your presentations?
What are you reading and listening to in order to enhance your knowledge of the speaking business?
During the Below 100 presentations we use a quote from Paul Capitelli “We have too much tolerance for negligent driving in our profession.” We need to fix this as it is costing lives.
I believe we also have too much tolerance for poor presentations and we need to fix this as it is diminishing the effectiveness of training. We all need to continue to work at mastering our presentation skills. We owe it to the officers we train to provide them with the best learning experience possible. The better the training the more likely the officers will retain it. The better the training the more officers will look forward to going to training. This takes work, it takes time, and it takes practice, but it is worth the investment.
Study those who have mastered the art of professional speaking, but be yourself when you are in front of an audience (just be a more professional version of your current self).
Here are some books that are great resources:
Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery by Garr Reynolds
Slide:ology: The Art of Creating Great Presentations By Nancy Duarte
Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs: How to be Insanely Great in Front of Any Audience by Carmen Gallo
The Police Instructor Handbook By Richard H. Neil (available at www.leotrainer.com)
Take care.
Brian Willis
Address: