Ruminations on Being a Youth Motivational Speaker

Wow! I just watched two video reels of youth motivational speakers who I know and admire; Ryan Blair and Joshua Shipp. My first thought was, wow, they're incredibly good. My second thought was, damn, I need to improve a lot.

Now that I'm graduating college, I've decided to do more speaking. In the next few months, I'll be speaking to thousands of youth in places like Nevada and Milwaukee. In the past, I've been doing speaking as more of a hobby and am transitioning to doing it on a professional level (in others words - getting paid a lot of money). As such, I want to develop my style more. Below are some thoughts that ran through my head after I watched those videos:

1. I'm tall. Although digital pictures of me make me look 3-4 inches tall, I'm actually 6'5" in real life. I think I can use this to my advantage in terms of my presence.
   
2. Speaking with Sheena. Sheena and I work extremely well as a speaking team. She thinks differently than I do and therefore connects with people on another level. Also, I think we are an example of how you can use the Extreme Entrepreneurship philosophy to become successful in more than a career.
   
3. I'm not as high-energy, and that's ok. The common idea for motivational speakers seems to be that you have to be very high energy on stage. The common idea for "connecting" with youth seems to be that you have to have an MTV-Style presentation. Quite frankly, I don't have a TV or listen to a lot of the same music as my peers, let alone my audience. Furthermore, I'm a laid-back, down-to-earth person. I think my role as a motivational speaker is:
   • Share my story. Not as a success story necessarily, but as somebody who has full-heartedly pursued their journey and had good results. I want to be so honest with myself on-stage that I help people be more honest and accountable with themselves. I want people walking out saying, "If he can do it, I can do it." If people say, "I could never do that", then I've succeeded in bragging about my accomplishments, but failed as a motivational speaker.
     
   • Expose people to success stories. No matter what you want, whether it's having an incredible relationship, tons of money, changing the world, or finding a passion, it's been done by millions of socially, economically, and mentally disadvantaged individuals in addition to just normal ones. You don't have to be superman or superwoman. You just have to plan, prioritize, and pursue your vision. It's not rocket science.
4. I need more hooks. I have a ton of stories and ideas in my mind. However, I need to get them into powerful sound bites.
   
5. I have trouble knowing how to challenge people. In the past, if I didn't see people living up to their full potential, I often called them on it. After awhile, I could tell I was alienating some people. So, for the past few years, I've spent a lot more time trying to understand why people are the way they are. Now that I can see from their perspective, I often acknowledge how they feel and don't challenge them. I think I could find a better balance.