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Public speaking bundles networking, expertise and live content into one high-trust room, which makes it the fastest thought leadership tool there is. In this session Bobby is joined by Melanie Deziel and Lorraine K. Lee for a candid look at the business of speaking.

The three of them get into how event decisions get made 12 to 18 months out, why you pitch what the buyer's audience will get rather than why your talk is great, and why you are better off running one to three core talks you know cold than building a new one every time.

They are also refreshingly blunt about money. Melanie's rule is to open at $1,000, because if you ask for $500 they will talk you down to $200, and then you are losing money to teach on someone else's time. She is candid that she should have charged more sooner, and she names who that costs most, which is speakers from marginalized backgrounds who get taken advantage of precisely because nobody told them they could ask for more.

She also has a better move than working for free. Instead of saying you will do it for nothing, say you are willing to waive your fee in exchange for something you actually want, whether that is video footage, testimonials or introductions. You are still a speaker who charges. You have just decided what to charge in.

Lorraine's practical counterpart to all of it: you do not need a paid gig to get the assets in the first place. There is a stage at any university nearby, a friend can take the photos, and the reel gets built from there.

Also covered: how to choose a coach, what agents and bureaus really do (they manage demand, they do not always create it), whether you need a sizzle reel to pitch, and the pre-stage mindset that beats nerves every time. Bobby's version of it: be a teacher, not a speaker.

Melanie Deziel is a keynote speaker, two-time author and co-founder of The Creator Kitchen. Lorraine K. Lee is a speaker, LinkedIn Learning instructor and teaches at Stanford Continuing Studies.

The Power of Connection is hosted by Bobby Umar, 5x TEDx speaker and Inc Magazine Top 100 Leadership Speaker. For weekly insights on personal branding and thought leadership, join his newsletter: https://bobbyumar.substack.com