10 Ways You Can Benefit from Speaking at a Conference


10 Ways You Can Benefit from Speaking at a Conference

This week, Jocelyn Bérard and I presented a keynote address at the Canadian Society for Training and Development (CSTD) Conference entitled Future-Proofing Your Organization Through Change Agility.

We knew that a keynote is a different game to leading a workshop. The audience is bigger (700+), people are physically distanced from you, scripting is required for pace and flow and engagement is more difficult (especially at the end of a day at a conference).


Another challenge is that we had never worked together. Learning about our styles and choreographing our movements was a must. It would take continual revision and rigorous practice to get it right.

As with most important events in life, this one flew by. I will always remember exchanging confident nods with Jocelyn as we launched into our presentation. Delivering our work was as exciting as I hoped it would be.

The best part of the day was when people approached us afterwards to say they appreciated what we had to say. What a feeling!

There are so many benefits to speaking at a conference and only a minority of people choose to do so. Here are the ones that have meaning for me:
 

  • Crystallizes your thoughts on a topic
  • Establishes your reputation as an authority in your field 
  • Builds capability (public speaking, communication, etc.) 
  • Broadens experience base
  • Helps people become better 
  • Meet new people (Jocelyn and I met at a conference)
  • Promotes what you have to offer
  • Scares you and makes you overcome the fear
  • Ups your game
  • Provides a sense of accomplishment

  • All of these benefits have one thing in common: growth. The best part of my CSTD keynote was working with Jocelyn. I learned so much from him and our partnering. We combined our knowledge, experience and styles to create something better than what we could have created on our own.

    Immediately after our session, we shook hands and both said, “Let’s do another”. That’s what most people say after leading their first conference session. You might too.

    Phil

     
     

    Leave a Reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Are NOT a robot, right? Please answer this simple math question * Time limit is exhausted. Please reload CAPTCHA.

    Take Action

    Ask us a question about your change

      Your Name (required)

      Your Email (required)

      Subject

      Your Question


      Get the newsletter
      Change With Confidence
      Please type your name and email address and click on "Send". We will add you to our newsletter distribution list. Thank you.




      Get Change with Confidence
      Change With Confidence

      Get Change on the Run
      Change With Confidence

      Twitter

      When impressing leaders, what is the 1 action you would take to get 80% results in 20% of the time? Here’s mine: bit.ly/3CHq0Ho. The podcast episode with key opinion leader @RobbyNap is on Sounder bit.ly/3iKl2js. #change #changemanagement #leadership #podcasts pic.twitter.com/wUxLfW3w0M

      About 2 weeks ago