Find out how motivational speakers draw you in…
Here at MN2S talent agency one of our most popular requests is for motivational speakers, who are popular for all sorts of corporate events. Whether it’s sold to guests as a casual celebratory event or a business seminar, any event which employees attend can be a good opportunity to bless them with some motivational messages.
Of course, it’s not just about existing businesses; motivational speakers can also be popular choices when the crowd includes entrepreneurs and those thinking about making a change – whether that’s pursuing a passion, starting a business or some smaller, personal achievement.
We’ve rounded up some of the most important qualities for any motivational speaker to exhibit, so if you’re looking for a speaker to inject some serious motivation into your next event, these are the essential qualities to look out for in potential celebrity speakers.
Relevance
Almost any subject and speaker can be motivational to the right audience, but choosing a speaker who will excite your guests is important. A business leader may be less interesting to an audience of creatives, while an artist or musician’s take on motivation might not carry much credence with tech entrepreneurs, for instance.
It’s why matching your speaker to the occasion is so important when it comes to choosing a motivational speaker. If they have a speaker relevant to your audience they’ll have more authority and their words will carry more credence.
Authenticity
The very best of motivational speakers offer a true authenticity to their audience – rather than delivering a polished speech and ticking all the body-language and eye-contact boxes, a brilliant public speaker might make mistakes and show vulnerabilities. They don’t try to be someone who they aren’t but instead draw on their own, genuine qualities and experiences and present them in an authentic way.
It’s the difference between twisting an anecdote to fit the point which a speaker is trying to illustrate and having genuine experiences on which to draw which do not need any twisting to fit the point!
Empathy
Empathy is also an important quality which can help motivational speakers to really get through to and inspire the people listening to them. A motivational speaker needs to be able to put him or herself into their audience’s shoes in order to understand what will resonate with them. It’s one reason that we think motivational speakers who have worked their way up from the bottom are the most effective.
From football players coming from working class families who started with their local team and eventually became an international player to actors and actresses who grafted for years in bit parts before getting their big break – these are people who can speak from the heart. It’s much easier for an audience to take on board a speaker talking about the merits of hard work and determination when it’s not just theoretical – that person has actually gone through it!
Focus
A motivational speaker of the highest calibre will also know what information to leave out, and what is pertinent. Rather than simply re-telling their life story and emphasising the most relevant parts, they might choose to skim over irrelevant details, tell a few less relevant but entertaining anecdotes and cater to their audience’s interests in terms of the parts that they focus on.
We’ve got plenty of great motivational speakers on the books here at MN2S, suitable for a wide range of audiences. For a younger audience or charity staff consider employing ex-boxer and charity superstar Amir Khan. If it’s an authoritative voice you need, former Conservative party leader Iain Smith is sure to go down well with audiences who have an interest in politics and current affairs.