How You Can Breakthrough and Perform at Your BEST with a Speech or Pitch

August 7, 2017 ~ Tom Marcoux ~ Leave a comment

PitchConfidenceWorkshopAD(7-15-17B — Learn and Practice Methods to Give Your Best Pitch when you CLICK HERE to Register for FREE EVENT

“When will I finally know that I’m doing well in giving a pitch?” my client, Andrea, asked me.

“That’s an experience that relates to what’s real in you, what’s real in the material and a Real Connection with your audience,” I said.

We’ll use the C.A.N. process:

C – call out what’s real in you
A – act in Effective Rehearsals
N – nurture connection

Call out what’s real in you

As the Spoken Word Strategist and a Pitch Coach, I help my clients connect with the words that sound real and confident coming out of the person’s mouth.

My background as a trained feature film director, actor and screenwriter helps me hear the real moments in a performance. It’s a unique, personal blend in the client’s words and performance that do NOT feel forced or like “acting.”

Let’s look at this distinction:

The Excellent Approach: Act It Until You Become It
Versus
The Garbage Approach: Fake It Until You Make It

When I help a client refine his or her pitch, I listen carefully to the client’s rough draft ideas, words and performance.

When a moment in the pitch works, I say, “Yes! Did you hear that? Keep that!”

Other times, I’ll guide the client to try other approaches.

By the way, as the client expresses his or her best moments, the person is taking action (“acting”).

The best pitch a client can make is like hidden treasure. My client and I go on a prospecting hunt. We come up with gems.

I call this Act It Until You Become It, because we’re having the client express the self and the material with compelling truthful moments. This has nothing to do with faking anything.

Act in Effective Rehearsals

We continue with our conversation about Act It Until You Become It.

My training with mentors in acting helped me realize that many great moments in film acting arise out of something that is true and real. Remember, a professional actor focuses on Acting not lukewarm “pretending” or “fake it until you make it.”

The actor finds something true in the character, the moment and the writing.

As a feature film director, my job is to guide the actor to that moment.

My clients (and attendees of my workshop “Pitch With Extreme Confidence” – August 16, 2017. CLICK HERE to register for FREE EVENT) learn to rehearse extraordinary methods to handle the fearful moments of giving a speech. What do you do if your mind goes blank? What do you do when an investor gives you a disruptive, tough question? It is through the Effective Rehearsal of techniques that we develop a higher level of confidence in ourselves. I guide the workshop attendees to use methods that create Extreme Confidence.

Extreme Confidence is when you KNOW that you know how to adapt to anything.

Here is an important distinction:

Ordinary Rehearsal: Rehearsing to the mirror or to family members who are jaded about the material.

Versus

Effective Rehearsals: Work with a coach. Work with test audiences. Practice appropriate things each day for a brief time (it can be as little as 9 minutes a day).

I’ve made vital pitches/speeches that have literally changed my life. And my clients and audiences have reaped the benefits: Learning my techniques that create a Real Connection with any audience.

Nurture connection

How do audience members connect with YOU and your material? Through emotion—then logic.

Connect with them from the start.

Someone who says, “Hi. I’m Joe Smitghy. I’m with XY Company and we make 1-2-3 Widgets” creates three bad things:

The person has wasted the opening fifteen seconds of the pitch
The person looks like an amateur
The audience fidgets because they’re dreading having to become embarrassed for a poor presenter

Instead, you can start with a story, a question, or “Imagine …”

Go for connection from the first moment of your pitch.

In my speech “The Savvy CEO: Master of Media Appearances,” I note that just a touch of appropriate vulnerability can win an audience to your side, too.

Connection is key!

In summary, we have covered material about:

What’s Real in you
What’s Real in the material
A Real Connection with the audience

This is accomplished with:

C – call out what’s real in you
A – act in Effective Rehearsals
N – nurture connection

Warmly,
Tom

Tom Marcoux
Spoken Word Strategist
Pitch Coach

CEO/Speaker/Executive Coach

This material is on my mind because I have now opened a special opportunity. When you CLICK HERE, you can go to my questionnaire-webpage and apply for a free consultation with me (limited number available) titled: “Increase Your Pitch Power for Funding – Strategy Session.”

Here are Your BENEFITS of such a free consultation.

Gain Clarity and Peace of Mind about Pitching so You Gain the Funding you really want
Discover the essential building blocks for having the Pitch that FUNDS your business or project
Determine the #1 thing stopping you from having the Successful PITCH you want
Identify the most powerful actions that will move you toward giving your Pitch with Total Confidence
Complete the consultation with the excitement of knowing EXACTLY what to do next to create the Pitch for Funding that Gets You Great Results

I invite you to apply.

Let’s see if we might get the chance to work together … as a free opportunity to you.

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Get the Advantages to take your business to a higher level. Learn Leadership Advantages, Pitch Advantages, and Success Advantages. To Soar with Confidence, you learn and use principles for top level communication to board members, team members and the media.
“Marcoux demonstrates how to “Prepare a Compelling Story that Moves Emotions.” He mentions techniques that he teaches clients for developing compelling Ted Talks.” – Dantalion Jones

Darkest Secrets of Making a PITCH for Film and Television: How You Can Get a Studio Executive, Producer, Name Actor or Private Investor to Say “Yes” to Your Project

Learn the vital skills of pitching your ideas and enrolling others into your vision. Get that “Big Yes” to funding your project. “This insightful book shows you how to zing a curveball right past the parts of the Hollywood exec’s brain that want to say no before you even make your pitch. You will learn what works when pitching, and more importantly, why, so you can get to YES much more often. Buy this book now. Consider it Spring Training before the big game.” – Danek Kaus

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This invaluable guide, used by people in 15 countries and now in its second edition, will help you become immune to dark persuasion. Learn to use countermeasures to defend yourself against unethical persuasion and seduction tactics. Break any trance in which a salesperson is trying to get you to buy something not to your benefit. “Learn how to defend yourself against manipulation. Best book you’ll ever read to protect yourself, feel strong and move forward in your life. Highly recommended!” – Dr. JoAnn Dahlkoetter

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Perform at Your BEST with a Speech or Pitch

July 6, 2017July 6, 2017 ~ Tom Marcoux ~ Leave a comment

Microphone — Learn “Extreme Confidence” Techniques in the book “Amazing You … Secrets of Extreme Confidence”

“I’m concerned about the concepts of my speech,” Rita, a new client, said.

For a time, I helped her with that. Still, there was a vital aspect of giving a speech that was too low on her priority list: 4 Vital Elements of the Speech need to land with the audience.

You’ll do well when you focus on these 4 Vital Elements which include: Ideas, Humor, a Dash of Appropriate Vulnerability, and Connection with the Audience.

Picture an Olympic gymnast spinning in the air and then landing. To “stick the landing” means that the gymnast lands and does not move her feet. If she moves her feet at all, points are deducted.

You want to avoid loosing points with the audience. I’m bringing this to the attention of two of my clients as we prepare their TED Talks. You must guard against losing points with the audience. You need to land these elements:

Ideas
Humor
Dash of Appropriate Vulnerability
Connection with the Audience

Big ideas plus NO audience connection equals an Epic Fail.

So Rita was appropriately concerned about the concepts of her speech, but she must take care to have a real connection with the audience. By the way, when you do what is necessary for that real connection, you eliminate a lot of fear and nervousness!

The solution is Effective Rehearsal.

TED Talk advisors suggest one rehearses every day. That is not enough. Instead, you need Effective Rehearsal. Just rehearsing by yourself or in front of a spouse or a friend does not insure your best performance.

I have devised Extreme Confidence Techniques (You can find many of them in my book Amazing You: Enjoy the Power … featuring Secrets of Extreme Confidence. Look inside the book when you CLICK HERE.)

Using Extreme Confidence Techniques, you can eliminate unnecessary nervousness. Conventional confidence is about feeling good about your retention of the text or content of your speech. That is merely the start.

As a professional speaker (member of National Speakers Association) for over 16 years, I can feel when I (or a client) lands each of the 4 Vital Elements of the Speech – or pitch.

The truth is: You need to get in front of Test Audiences.

I work with clients in-person and even over Skype (especially with their tight schedules). There is a change of energy when you’re performing in front of a camera in front of a professional speech coach. You can feel the adrenaline build. It’s similar to what I experienced in learning karate. You can “punch the air.” But a whole different energy built on adrenaline rises when you spar with an opponent.

The audience is not your opponent. The audience wants you to lead in a form of dance. You’re the speaker; you’re the leader. We’ll use the following process: Bring your best out into the S.U.N.

S – set up a schedule
U – up your game
N – notice what moves people

Set up a schedule

Do NOT leave things to chance. Set up a schedule so you rehearse and present to friends (and your coach) on Skype and in-person.

If you belong to Toastmasters, contact various groups to be a guest speaker. At one point, I was preparing for a speech, and I expressed my speech 11 times with different individuals. Then, I delivered sections of the speech in various settings with audiences.

Some of my rehearsals were even over the telephone. My speech blossomed and changed as I felt the ideas and feelings coalesce. By the way, I worked with my own mentors and coaches.

Up your game (with a coach)

Here’s the truth: When you’re about to give the most important speech of your life (perhaps, a TED Talk or an all-hands speech at your company—or a pitch for crucial funding), you need the guidance of a professional coach.

Think about it. An Olympic athlete can only rise to her best performances WITH a coach. (I know this for a fact because I’m the coach to a sports psychologist who has coached over 100 Olympic athletes, including 15 Gold Medalists).

A TED Talk is the Olympics of Speaking. The coach sees what’s working. The coach knows what to look for in the response of the audience.

As the Spoken Word Strategist, I’ve presented hundreds of times to audiences. I can feel how the audience responds. I can feel the vacuum or gap when the humor misses. I know how to adjust, even one word, to get the big laughter for a particular moment.

As a speech writer, I’ve written over 1 million words (many are in my 43 books).

I serve as a coach who helps the speaker discover what is true and compelling as spoken words from her mouth. The client “talks through” the speech. I often say, “Ooh! Did you hear what you said? Keep that!”

Then, holes in the speech appear on my radar. As a Pitch Coach, I can feel the gaps. (Also, you can realize that, as a feature film director, I have guided actors to their best performances. The film director stands in for the audience.)

For example, one of my clients asked me to watch a video of his test speech. While viewing the video, I could feel it: The audience had shut down. I said to my client, “They need you to reconnect with your family member. So, did you hug her or—?”

“Oh, no. I’m not talking about hugging,” he replied. This was a taboo for this client from a particular culture.

With my encouragement, he added this to his final speech: “And that’s when I took her hand and said, “I’ll never let go.’ And I never have.”

The audience needed to have that sweet moment. I know this by instinct.

You need someone guarding you so you rise to your best performance. Up your game by working with a professional coach.

Notice what moves people

The only way to know what works (and to save yourself from unnecessary fear) is to try out the material in front of test audiences. Stand-up comedians try out material in various venues across the United States before they record a final comedy special for Netflix.

The plan is to notice what moves people. I’m talking about moving the audience AND finding out what moves you.

You will not know what feels real and comfortable coming out of your mouth, until it’s “Showtime!”—when you’re in front of an audience.

There is a real problem about just rehearsing in front of a friend or spouse. They get tired of the material. Soon their responses are not “tuned in” to what an audience would feel and think upon hearing you—for the first and only time.

In summary, standard rehearsal does not yield your best performance.

Remember:
S – set up a schedule
U – up your game (with a coach)
N – notice what moves people

One of my editors for one of my books said, “Writing is a two-person endeavor. The writer works with the editor.” It can be said, “Rising to your best performance is also a two-person endeavor. Additionally, the speaker and the professional coach get real feedback from test audiences.”

The best to you in giving your pitch or speech.

Warmly,

Tom

Tom Marcoux
Spoken Word Strategist
Pitch Coach

CEO/Speaker/Executive Coach

Here are Your BENEFITS of such a free consultation.

Gain Clarity and Peace of Mind about Pitching so You Gain the Funding you really want
Discover the essential building blocks for having the Pitch that FUNDS your business or project
Determine the #1 thing stopping you from having the Successful PITCH you want
Identify the most powerful actions that will move you toward giving your Pitch with Total Confidence
Complete the consultation with the excitement of knowing EXACTLY what to do next to create the Pitch for Funding that Gets You Great Results

I invite you to apply.

Let’s see if we might get the chance to work together … as a free opportunity to you.

Soar with Confidence: An Executive Coach Reveals Secrets, Lies and Countermeasures So You Excel Like Top CEOs and Leaders – Pitch, Lead, Succeed

Darkest Secrets of Making a PITCH for Film and Television: How You Can Get a Studio Executive, Producer, Name Actor or Private Investor to Say “Yes” to Your Project

Darkest Secrets of Persuasion and Seduction Masters: How to Protect Yourself and Turn the Power to Good

Darkest Secrets of Charisma: Overcome the Lies about Personal Magnetism, Get People to Feel Your Charisma and Influence Others with Your Words

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What the Rich Don’t Say about Getting Rich: Work Smarter, Live Better

Use “Extreme Confidence” to Quiet Down Fear … Pitch and Gain Funding

April 7, 2017 ~ Tom Marcoux ~ Leave a comment

PitchConfidenceWorkshopAD “I think I have the text of my pitch fully memorized,” my new client, Alana, said.

“And?” I asked, seeing something in her facial expression.

“I’m still nervous!” she said.

“It’s understandable,” I began. Then, in an extended conversation, I introduced her to my term “Extreme Confidence.”

Extreme Confidence includes two things:

You KNOW that you know how to adapt to anything comes up during your pitch
You effectively control the “space” between you and the audience members.

When I refer to the “space” between you and audience members, I’m talking about whether you’re connected or separate from the individuals in your audience.

When you develop the skills of Extreme Confidence, you quiet down fear and nervousness.

Develop The Skill to Get More Time to Think

An investor asks a really tough question while you’re pitching to a group. You can say, “I need to pause for a moment. I want my response to be valuable to you.” You just gave yourself some time to think. Even while you say the above sample comment, your brain is thinking at 700 words a minute. You might even come with the answer just as you finish with “…valuable to you.”

Give Yourself “Room to Experiment”

Recently, I was asked about how to include a case study when one is talking to a prospective client.

I replied, “I’ll brainstorm here. You might try this: ‘I helped Joe upgrade his website, and he went from 10 new e-list subscribers per month to 1,237 new e-list subscribers per month. The rate of new clients he gained went from 1 per month to 4 per month—with a long-term value of each client as $6,000. So that was a net gain of …”

When I said, “I’ll brainstorm here,” I gave myself the room to experiment. After I said the above details, I might have come up with a better idea. Then, I could have continued with: “As I was sharing the details I just gave you, I had an another idea. This might even be better …”

The Golden Key: Rehearsing With Experimenting

There is a Paradox of a Good Pitch: Use a script for Selected Phrases and have space for improvising.

You need both.

How do you come up with the Effective Selected Phrases? You do rehearsing with experimenting.

I’ll give you an example. Recently, I went to a conference that included a number of life coaches, healers and others. I experimented with ways to start a conversation. Some ways worked better than others. Then I started saying, “How do you help people?” My tone was warm, and my approach was friendly curiosity. That worked well.

I also experimented with ways to respond to the question: “What do you do?”

After a number versions, and while I watched the faces of my conversation partners, I landed on this:

“I help people fulfill big dreams. Primarily, I help business owners and executives speak so powerfully that they get a lot of YES’s.”

As I said the above, I gestured with my hands as if a bunch of YES’s, like gifts, came toward my heart.

In terms of developing your pitch, practice in front of a number of “test audiences.”

* * *

In summary, realize that rehearsing with experimenting is an important of developing your best pitch to gain funding. Consider working with a coach so you pick the best details and Effective Selected Phrases.

Vital News: Attend Tom Marcoux’s workshop “Pitch with Extreme Confidence: The Pitch Hacking Method” on April 20, 2017. You will learn to:

· Experience Real Confidence
· Seize the Investors’ Attention
· Answer Tough Questions with Poise
· Let Go of Fear and Nervousness
· Use Confident Body Language
· Handle Tough Moments (even if your mind goes blank)

Click here to register – early bird fee of $10.00 https://www.meetup.com/Igniter/events/237843482/

The Secret to Drop Nervousness and Pitch Powerfully

March 2, 2017March 2, 2017 ~ Tom Marcoux ~ Leave a comment

pitchwithconfidenceonesheet2 On stage, I shook so badly that my right leg fluttered like a hummingbird’s wings. I was stuck. Where? I was stuck in “How am I doing?! How am I doing?!”

When I coach a client to give a great pitch to gain funding, I help the person shift out of such a dis-empowered state. I’ve been a professional speaker over 16 years, and I know what it takes to shift to the power to perform well.

“We’ll have you shift out of ‘how am I doing?’ into ‘how are YOU doing?’” I say to my client.

This means that you prepare so well that you’re connected to the investors.
So, leave self-consciousness behind.

Think of it: What does the investor want? To avoid making a mistake. What’s the big mistake?—picking someone you can’t trust to do what it takes to succeed.
Making a business work requires the flexibility to pivot fast and the power to stay strong and to persist.

Investors test us when we’re giving a pitch before them.
Can you take a tough question and keep your poise?
Have you rehearsed more than just the text?

While I work with a client, I say, “Your mind just went blank! Use a Recovery Method.”

Recently, I saw Auli’i Cravalho perform “How Far I’ll Go” (song from Disney’s MOANA, animated feature film)—during the Oscars. Several performers behind her, swung huge flags. I thought, “Careful, don’t hit—” THUD—one performer hit Auli’i in the head with a flag.
Did Auli’i miss a beat?
No. She kept singing, beautifully. She’s a well-trained, thoroughly prepared professional. What a performer!

That’s what I want for you. Be that exceptional pitch-deliverer. It’s not just practicing the text of your speech. You need to make a real connection.
Auli’i maintained her connection with her audience and with her song.

What does your investor want? Remember, the idea is to connect with “How are YOU doing?”
The investor wants to know:

It’s safe to trust you.
You are flexible.
You care about your product, the people you’ll serve, and the investors who will take the journey with you.
You are confident in yourself.

My phrase is: “Confidence is Contagious; Compassion Is the Path.”

The idea is that when you shift from the self-consciousness of “How am I doing?” to “How are YOU doing?” — you’re going to a place of compassion. This ties in with my description of the Sequence: “Confidence is contagious. Investors pick it up. You build trust. Trust gets funding.”

Make that connection. Learn how to recover if your mind goes blank. (See this previous blog post for more tips when you CLICK HERE.)

Shift your thinking from “How am I doing?” to “how are YOU doing?”
Have that conversation with your audience of investors.
Look people in the eye.
Remember, it looks a like a group, but you’re really there with the opportunity to connect with individuals.

Someone asks you a tough question, and you’ll reply: “I’m glad you brought that up. Your name is? George? George, it looks like that’s important to you. Related to that, I want to emphasize …”

As you can see, we’re talking about connecting. When you pay attention to individual investors, you shift out of self-consciousness. You create a conversation.
They can feel your trustworthiness.
Often, as I work with clients, I help them express a personal brand of T.H.O.R.: trustworthy, helpful, organized and respectful.

The Powerful Move is to establish yourself as a peer.
Investors do not fund the work of supplicants.
You and your project are “the prize.”
Learn to connect and get your funding.

Warmly,
Tom

Tom Marcoux, CEO, Pitch Coach – Executive Coach – Spoken Word Strategist

P.S. April 20, 2017, I’m presenting the workshop “Pitch with Extreme Confidence: The Pitch Hacking Method” via Stanford Entrepreneurs and Silicon Valley Founders. (early bird discount when you click here: https://www.meetup.com/Igniter/events/237843482/

Here are Your BENEFITS of such a free consultation.

Gain Clarity and Peace of Mind about Pitching so You Gain the Funding you really want
Discover the essential building blocks for having the Pitch that FUNDS your business or project
Determine the #1 thing stopping you from having the Successful PITCH you want
Identify the most powerful actions that will move you toward giving your Pitch with Total Confidence
Complete the consultation with the excitement of knowing EXACTLY what to do next to create the Pitch for Funding that Gets You Great Results

I invite you to apply.

Let’s see if we might get the chance to work together … as a free opportunity to you.

Tom Marcoux
Executive Coach * Pitch Coach
Spoken Word Strategist

CEO (leading teams in United Kingdom, India and USA)

Speaker-author of 42 books (with free chapters on Amazon.com )

Author of Soar With Confidence: An Executive Coach Reveals Secrets, Lies and Countermeasures So You Excel Like Top CEOs and Leaders – Pitch, Lead, Succeed (See more when you CLICK HERE )

1.8 min. video (on YouTube): Tom Marcoux pulls back the curtain about how his directing a feature film that went to Cannes Film market helps with “Building Your Brand”: