The Blarney Stone is a historical stone, or actually part of the Blarney Castle in Ireland where it was believed that kissing the stone can grant you the gift of gab. Yeah, it seems strange in this day and age, but who are we to question tradition? It’s not like I’m saying that Santa Claus doesn’t exist (OOPS!).

There is so much to know about conversation that anyone, even I, could ever realize. You can go though watching talk shows; radio programs; clubs dedicated to public speaking; ordinary conversations; certain rules still apply when it comes to interaction through words. It may sound tedious, I know, but even though it’s your mouth that’s doing the work, your brain works twice as hard to churn out a lot of things you know. So what better way to start learning to be an effective communication is to know the very person closest to you: yourself.

1. What you know.
Education is all about learning the basics, but to be an effective speaker is to practice what you’ve learned. My stint as guest at every Toastmasters’ meeting I go to taught me that we all have our limitations, but that doesn’t mean we can’t learn to keep up and share what we know.

2. Listening.
It’s just as important as asking questions. Sometimes listening to the sound of our own voice can teach us to be a little bit confident with ourselves and to say the things we believe in with conviction.

3. Humility
We all make mistakes, and sometimes we tend to slur our words, stutter, and probably mispronounce certain words even though we know what it means, but rarely use it only to impress listeners. So in a group, don’t be afraid to ask if you’re saying the right word properly and if they’re unsure about it then make a joke out of it. I promise you it’ll make everyone laugh and you can get away with it as well.

4. Eye Contact
There’s a lot to say when it comes to directing your attention to your audience with an eye-catching gaze. It’s important that you keep your focus when talking to a large group in a meeting or a gathering, even though he or she may be gorgeous.

5. Kidding around
A little bit of humor can do wonders to lift the tension, or worse boredom when making your speech. That way, you’ll get the attention of the majority of the crowd and they’ll feel that you’re just as approachable, and as human to those who listen.

6. Be like the rest of them
Interaction is all about mingling with other people. You’ll get a lot of ideas, as well as knowing what people make them as they are.

7. Me, Myself, and I
Admit it, there are times you sing to yourself in the shower. I know I do! Listening to the sound of your own voice while you practice your speech in front of a mirror can help correct the stress areas of your pitch. And while you’re at it you can spruce up as well.

8. With a smile
A smile says it all much like eye contact. There’s no point on grimacing or frowning in a meeting or a gathering, unless it’s a wake. You can better express what you’re saying when you smile.

9. A Role Model
There must be at least one or two people in your life you have listened to when they’re at a public gathering or maybe at church. Sure they read their lines, but taking a mental note of how they emphasize what they say can help you once you take center stage.

10. Preparation
Make the best out of preparation rather than just scribbling notes and often in a hurried panic. Some people like to write things down on index cards, while other resort to being a little more silly as they look at their notes written on the palm of their hand (not for clammy hands, please). Just be comfortable with what you know since you enjoy your work.

And that about wraps it up. These suggestions are rather amateurish in edgewise, but I’ve learned to empower myself when it comes to public or private speaking and it never hurts to be with people to listen how they make conversations and meetings far more enjoyable as well as educational.

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A “prop” is any object that is handled or used while you are on stage. Props can be many different things such as flip charts, demonstrations, overhead projections – images, photos, and videos, and even other people. These props enhance the message you are trying to convey to your audience and can also help people connect with your ideas.

Props help your audience to get engaged in your presentation. They help to warm your audience and draws attention to the points your making in your presentation. They are visual illustrations that often are better able to convey the message than your spoken word can. It’s one thing to hear a new idea, but when people see your idea visually, they can develop a mental image in their mind and become visually oriented with what you are trying to say. Visual presentations often make your points interesting and it breaks up the monotony of only hearing you speak. For this reason, props can be used to add variety to your presentation.

Prizes and giveaways make excellent opening props. Often done with large audience presentations such as in large arenas, props are a great way to open your audience. It fires up your audience bringing excitement and anticipation for what you are going to speak about. The prizes may or may not be related to your message. You can use them as icebreakers or even as a way to draw excitement and attention to your support material sales at the back of the room.

Props can often be used as the “impromptu” portion of your presentation. When used correctly, your props can have your audience sitting on the edge of their chair as they strive to see what you are doing at the front of the room. As you talk about your props, your audience won’t feel like you are reading a speech, which brings us to the next point. They can also be a substitute for notes since they automatically prompt you to describe the reason for introducing the prop in the first place. You can essentially go through an entire presentation just using props!

Props have a valuable role in your presentation. Visual images are more easily remembered than the words you speak. On top of that, showing your audience the points you are trying to make can say more than telling your audience those same points. You know the old saying that a picture is worth a thousand words! Props can also help to invoke excitement and rev up your audience as you warm them up for your presentation! Begin to use props in your presentations and see how engaged your audience becomes!

- Use bridge words or phrases. These are words like “finally”, “however”, “in addition”, “moreover” and “meanwhile”. This bridge helps your audience to stay connected with your message. These words or phrases represent linkages between the points you make.

- Use the same word or idea twice. You can say, “A similar idea is that…” or “this is what people see… this is what people think…”.

- Ask a question. Engage your audience and emphasize the points you are trying to make. “Was there ever a time when…” “How many of you…”

- Refer back to information previously stated in your presentation. “Remember when I told you earlier…”

- Review the points you’ll be making or the point you’ve made. Itemize them one by one. You can say, “There are 5 important concepts to know…”

- Use a visual. Use a prop to finalize your point or even introduce the next point you are going to make. Insert a humorous cartoon or image for your audience to focus on.

- Use a pause. Give your audience a moment to think about what you just said. You can also introduce a dramatic pause for evoking emotions.

- Use physical movement or a change in the tone of your voice. Walk to different parts of the stage. Use different gestures or postures to emphasize what you mean. Change your tone of voice as you are speaking.

- Use testimonials or a personal story. Let your audience know what other people are saying about what you’re talking about. Make your points more relatable by telling your audience how you or someone else handled the issue or problem.

One of the most common mistakes that professional speakers make is that they don’t use transitions in their presentation. You could potentially lose your audience because they aren’t processing your information as quickly as you want them to. Another common mistake is that the transitions used are too short. Transitions are processing times for your audience. It gives them a chance to catch up to where you are at in delivering your message. The last most common mistake made with using transitions are that the same transition is used over and over again in a presentation. Vary your transitions and your presentation become more interesting.

While only representing a small portion of your presentation, transitions are powerful tools you can use to keep your audience tuned in to what you have to say. If you’re not seeing the success you’d like to see with your audience, consider working on improving your transitions.

One of the first steps as you launch your professional speaking career is to get good at what you do. You’ll find that you’ll need to speak for free. Gain experience and build your client database. In doing so, you’ll be able to go after higher paying jobs as you can demonstrate your professionalism, credibility as a speaker and your ability to draw large crowds.

- There are a number of places that hire professional speakers and many of them are in your neighborhoods. Places like universities, colleges, your local Toastmasters organization, speaker bureaus, non-profit organizations, businesses, and libraries are just a few of the places that have a need for professional speakers. Make contacts with people in these organizations and offer your services.

- You can also do an online search for the keyword term “calls for speakers” or “speakers wanted”. You’ll obtain a listing of organizations and meetings that are requesting professional speakers.

- Search speaker’s forums for paid jobs. While this place does not have a lot of paid jobs, you might be able to find one that suits your niche.

- Review conference schedules of various associations related to your topic. Many associations hold annual conferences and they will post a call for speakers. This call will be placed about 6 – 8 months in advance of the speaking engagement.

- Work as a trainer with training companies. Places like Fred Pryor hires contract speakers for many different topics. This is a paid job that requires travel and often times, a hectic schedule, but the flip side is that paid speakers can make over $75,000 annually.

- Research the NTPA (National Trade and Professional Associations) Directory. You can purchase it for about $150. Issued in February each year, it gives you the information you’ll need to begin making contacts in the association market.

- Research the meeting planner’s directory. The Directory of Association Meeting Planners costs $550 and is available every March in a CD format. There is another directory called the Directory of Corporate Meeting Planners. This second directory costs approximately $450 and is available every March in a hard copy format.

- Network with peers and potential clients in your industry. Word of mouth referrals are by far the most popular way that meeting planners find speakers for their events. With that in mind, it’ll definitely be worth your time to network!

These are places where you can find jobs, however, you will need to also put together a promotional kit. Start with a simple letter and build your promotional kit up. You’ll also have to develop a marketing strategy to build and maintain a potential client listing. Using this listing, you can use direct mail or make phone calls to promote yourself as a professional speaker for hire. Now that you know where to look, you’ll be able to start going after speaking engagements and gaining experience!