Motivational speakers and authors empower audiences to make transformative changes in themselves. These empowering changes can have benefits reaching across personal relationships, corporate teams and entire communities. The greatest speakers throughout history changed the world with the empowerment of words, and today’s top motivational speakers continue that legacy. Whether through bestselling books, keynote addresses or virtual guest appearances, words can spark emotions that resonate at personal, communal and even spiritual levels.
But stirring the inner strength of others is only the first step. For lasting change, an audience needs to truly feel motivated and empowered. They also need to know how they can make a difference. With words as their primary tools, today’s best motivational speakers and authors must provide listeners with the means to organize themselves and others for change. How do they use words to do that? And how can future speakers leverage this knowledge and skill?
Motivational speakers and authors create an emotional connection.
The skilled use of language can stir emotions in any of us. For motivational authors and speakers, building an emotional connection with an audience is often the primary tool in gaining and holding our attention. Through their words, speakers create feelings of inspiration, hope, sadness or joy. The most talented speakers can have audiences literally laughing through their tears.
One of the most effective means of stirring these emotions lies in storytelling. Motivational keynote speakers and authors such as Anne Grady and Suzy Batiz share deeply personal, sometimes painful stories from their lives. While we may not share their exact experiences, we relate to the emotions they experienced. We share the universal connection of personal tragedy, seeming defeat, fear and worry, and the strength required to thrive. In this way, the best speakers use words to guide us through a catharsis of tears and laughter while building trust.
Cultural motivators use words to build communities.
In a group setting, the emotions public speakers stir in us take on an even greater power. When we laugh, those around us laugh, too. When we cry or cheer, we see, hear and feel those around us sharing in those emotional releases. Whether those around us are team members or strangers, the catharsis of emotion becomes communal. The energy is often palpable, creating a sense of a greater community.
In this way, politicians, preachers and community activists use words as a foundation to grow entire movements for change. Veteran advocates such as Mo Brossette or women’s leadership speakers like Mally Roncal empower us through a strength in numbers. They use this gift to create a sense of a larger community in every public address.
Many speakers enhance spiritual connections through words.
If you attend religious gatherings, you know the power of words in building spiritual connections. This sort of shared spiritualism applies to churches, mosques and synagogues, but also to meditation retreats we love. Whatever your spiritual connection, great leaders and guides use language to transform a personal experience into a shared spiritual one.This form of empowerment can be electrifying.
Today’s top faith-based keynote speakers use words to create that same kind of bond even in business settings. No, they are not preachers, but they understand audiences at that spiritual core. Speaker and author Anthony O’Neal uses that understanding to empower audiences to live debt-free. Thomas Blackwell, on the other hand, creates stronger corporate cultures by improving individual mindsets. And Kelly Cardenas uses his gift for words to build and inspire stronger teams. In each case, their understanding of human spirituality creates stronger connections to motivate their audiences.
Speakers use words to transform self-perception.
The greatest obstacle in life can sometimes be ourselves and our own negative self-perception. The simple words “I can’t” often hold us back from happiness, learning and prosperity, and certain life experiences may inhibit us from being our best. Negative friends, family members, bosses and other social experiences can teach us to limit ourselves.
Gifted authors and speakers use words to help us move from a self-limiting mindset to a growth mindset. Through shared stories and wisdom, they guide us to see ourselves in a new light. Positive mindset experts such as Karen M. Allen, Shawn Achor and Nataly Kogan use words to help us reflect on ourselves. By enhancing our self-awareness, they empower us to see where we hold ourselves back and how we can rise above self-doubt.
Words can empower us to focus on self-care and well-being.
Part of enhancing our self-perception involves improving our overall self-care. That means better health, nutrition and lifestyle. Greater well-being improves performance, and with improved performance comes greater opportunities for success. Even small, daily or weekly gains can be the most self-affirming spark to empower us in the long run.
Keynote speakers such as Allison Graham remind us of the necessity to care for our own well-being. By doing so, we become better leaders for those around us. Others such as health expert Trent Shelton help us better understand that mental and physical wellness are inseparable. Through healthy, mindful habits, we build resilience and become stronger both for ourselves and those around us. Empowering us to take those necessary actions requires the gift truly motivating us to action.
Motivational experts provide a clear call to action.
Using the techniques outlined above, motivational speakers and authors create a sense of excitement and empowerment among their audiences. But that enthusiasm will be short-lived without one more critical piece: a call to action. But this is no simple task for the speaker. It requires building subject matter trust, authority and expertise. It also challenges the speaker to craft their words so that anyone in the audience can understand what to do while remaining enthused to do it. To do this, two main strategies come into play.
First, the speaker must simply and concretely articulate the actions necessary. Northwestern Medicine reports a routine can have benefits including improving mental health, mood and sleep efficiency. Audience members feel more empowered when they know exactly what to do next. The best motivators don’t say “Exercise daily.” Rather, they lay out a specific and unique fitness regimen that explains how to build a healthy lifestyle.
The second strategy lies in using words to guide audiences to visualize the exciting outcomes of their actions. These mental images and feelings should be colorful, personalized and inspiring. Advertisers, politicians and religious leaders each paint with words so that audiences see and feel the results of their actions. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech resonates to this day due to his artful use of language. He enabled his listeners to visualize an improved future, going beyond the how to take action and accentuating why. This method further motivates audiences through an understanding of outcomes and what lies at stake.
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