Posts Tagged Toastmasters

What Are You Doing to Choose the Special Event That Will Define Your Life?

It’s called a palindrome — a number or word that reads the same backward and forward.

One example of a palindrome is 08-08-08 — August 8, 2008. It’s a rare occurrence on a calendar. Around the world, August of 2008 was filled with rare occurrences.

One such occurrence took place in Beijing, People’s Republic of China. The games of the 29th Olympiad began on 08-08-08 at 8:08 pm with 10,500 athletes competing in 302 events. Gold medals were awarded in twenty-eight sports.

On August 16, 2008, another rare occurrence happened in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The “Olympics of Oratory” was held — Toastmasters International’s World Championship of Public Speaking (WCPS) competition. Over 230,000 Toastmasters members from ninety-two countries compete in this nine-month, six-round contest. In the grand finale of this annual competition that showcases the ten finalists, only one trophy is awarded. In 2008, the trophy was awarded to LaShunda Rundles of Dallas, Texas.

Let’s assume that the number of contestants were equal for both events — 10,500 each for the Olympics and the WCPS. Statistically, a contestant has a better chance of winning one of the 302 gold medals than a single Toastmasters World Championship trophy — 302 to 1.

You are probably saying to yourself, “This is not a fair comparison. You can’t compare athletes to speakers.” And you’d be right. It’s like comparing apples to oranges. So let’s compare speakers to speakers.

On August 5, 2008, another rare occasion took place in New York City. The National Speakers Association (NSA) and the International Federation for Professional Speakers awarded forty-one speakers with gold medals for speaking excellence – the Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) designation. This is proof in the arena of public speaking that you have a better chance of winning a gold medal than you do a Toastmasters trophy. In the case of the 2008 ceremony, the odds were 41 to 1.

Everyone who is serious and dedicated about being a professional speaker can earn this gold medal. The NSA established the CSP designation in 1980. It is the speaking industry’s international measure of professional platform skill. The CSP is granted only to those who have earned it by meeting strict criteria. When the letters “CSP” follow a speaker’s name, it indicates that the individual is a competent speaking professional with proven experience who understands what is required, and knows how to deliver client satisfaction.

Even though it’s easier to win the CSP gold medal than a WCPS trophy, fewer than ten percent of the 4,700 speakers who belong to the NSA or the International Federation for Professional Speakers hold this professional designation. Even though it is more accessible, few make the effort to earn it.

I have won both — the gold medal and the trophy. On August 5, 2008, I was among the class of forty-one CSP recipients. And on August 26, 2000, I won the Toastmasters World Championship of Public Speaking trophy. In fact, I’m one of the few people in the world who has won both.
Every year, hundreds of people from around the world approach me about helping them win the WCPS trophy. However, I think they should go for the gold instead — the CSP gold medal.

Here’s why: I’m happy to have earned the CSP and won the WCPS. I value them both equally but for different reasons. Winning the WCPS has been a life-altering event. Because of the speaking invitations I’ve received, I’ve been around the world five times. It inspired me to pursue speaking as a career and it boosted my reputation. It is still paying benefits and providing unique experiences today. For example, a camera crew followed several previous World Champions of Public Speaking around in Calgary at the 2008 Toastmasters International Convention to film a documentary about Toastmasters. I got a chance to be part of that documentary.

Allow me to explain what winning this honor is not. It is not a guarantee to fame. Outside of the Toastmasters world, very few people know who I am.

It is also not a guarantee to fortune. When I won, I got all the free speech offers a person could handle. In fact, I did not get one paid speech offer. Because of my business background and marketing acumen that I developed along the way, I was eventually able to get paid for speaking. It took a lot of hard work and effort on my part to make this happen. I did not quit my day job for eighteen months after winning the contest.

And if I had to do it again, I would have waited an additional eighteen months. Public speaking is a great permanent part-time job. You never have to quit your day job. Unfortunately, many people quit their day jobs to pursue their passion for professional speaking only to bankrupt themselves.

Let’s look closer at the gold medal – the CSP. It took me over nine years to earn this designation. A speaker can be eligible in as little as five years if they make it part of their goals at the beginning of their speaking career and collect the proper documentation along the way. Like the World Championship of Public Speaking, outside of the speaking industry, it has very little recognition. However, inside the industry, CSPs are recognized as one of the best speakers in the business and have a proven track record. Because of this designation, speaker bureaus take my calls and book me.

Here is the point I want you to remember: only one person a year can win the World Championship of Public Speaking. However, every person reading this article can earn the CSP designation. Every one of you who is serious about a career as a professional speaker can earn the CSP designation and the first step is to join the NSA or the International Federation for Professional Speakers. Developing platform excellence at delivering a compelling topic in a way that yields satisfied clients is also part of the process. Another step is running your business in a way that provides a steady stream of paid speaking engagements.

Everyone can be a winner. To learn more about becoming a CSP, go to www.nsaspeaker.org for the technical qualifications.