Episode Details

Why Speakers Quit: Behind the Scenes of a Speaker Business Episode 23

Jenn shares what happens behind the scenes in her speaking business, inspired by speakers Fredrik Haren and John Coyle, and notes the less glamorous realities of being “always on,” frequent rejection, and socially exhausting meet-and-greets. 

“It is socially exhausting. You have to work in every room from the moment you arrive until you leave. You have to be “on” the whole time. And rejection abounds.” - quote from Coyle.

She outlines practical activities required to stay consistent, including continually seeking opportunities, posting on LinkedIn for visibility, podcasting and guesting, weekly email marketing, scheduling discovery and pre-event planning calls, networking, and reviewing analytics. 

On a monthly basis she batch-records content, maintains a “hot list” pipeline of short- and long-term speaking leads, and rehearses customized talks. 

Quarterly, she plans a promotional calendar and follows up on leads that may reopen later. She also describes delivery logistics (contracts, slides, payment, coordination), balancing speaking volume with family capacity, and the seasonal nature of speaking.

00:00 Why This Episode

01:15 Speaker Life Reality

03:48 Less Glamorous Work

05:11 Weekly Visibility Tasks

08:53 Calls Networking Data

11:29 Monthly Pipeline Rehearsal

14:13 Quarterly Planning Follow Up

16:59 Capacity Systems Seasons

19:53 Final Takeaways

Further reading:

Fredrik Haren https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/speaker-you-just-speak-right-well-yes-fredrik-haren/

John Coyle https://www.strategy-business.com/blog/What-its-really-like-to-be-a-public-speaker

Jason Connell https://jasonconnell.co/prospeaking/

Previous episodes mentioned:

Coaching with Michelle von Ruden https://www.buzzsprout.com/2593278/episodes/19424512

Rehearse like a $10K Speaker https://www.buzzsprout.com/2593278/episodes/18925127

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