As motivational speakers, our ultimate goal is not just to entertain or inform — it's to inspire action. Whether you're helping an audience navigate uncertainty, embrace change, or overcome personal obstacles, the power of your message lies in its ability to move people into action.

But how do we, as speakers, tap into the psychology of our audience to create lasting impact? The answer lies in understanding the emotional and cognitive responses that drive human behavior.

1. Appeal to Emotion, Not Just Logic

The human brain is wired to respond to emotions before logic. While facts, figures, and logical arguments are important, they don’t move people the way emotions do. Research in neuroscience tells us that people are more likely to take action based on how they feel in the moment, rather than what they think.

As a speaker, your goal should be to create an emotional connection. You want your audience to feel something — whether it's excitement, empathy, or inspiration. When you e...

I shot this video to teach about Speaker Demo Reels and hawk my wares.

When I went to trim it, I noticed several things about this video. I thought about NOT posting it because of what I saw. However, I realized there's some valuable lessons in how much the details matter when you are shooting video.

I shot this with a Logitech Brio 4k computer camera, and a Samsung Q2U microphone. I shoot in my bedroom because there are two large windows and the natural light works best. (I do have lights, but I prefer natural if I can use it. Plus, setting up the lights to get them right is such a pain in the rear and I don't want to do it every time I shoot.)

I recorded this on Zoom because I have a pro level account through the National Speaker's Association and it's easy to use.

The video is 10 minutes long and there is a HUGE shift in the lighting. It starts in the bottom corner and you will see the sunlight grow into a big bright spot. Most of the day the sun is behind my house so there is...

I’m going to be honest—I don’t think everyone can be funny. We’ve all sat through someone trying to be funny, and it was awkward and painful, like watching a slow-motion car crash. Shoot—I’ve even been awkward and painful at times when trying out a new joke.

But there is one technique I believe anyone can do. And even if it doesn’t make you hilarious, it will at least make your storytelling dramatically more engaging—whether humor is your goal or not.

 What’s at Stake?

 This is a question actors ask themselves almost immediately when given a role. A story must have conflict in order to be a story. What a character stands to lose or gain shapes how they react—and that’s where the magic happens.

 There are different levels of stakes:

• Deep emotional stakes: Love, pride, significance, revenge. (Think: "If I don’t confess my love, I’ll die alone!")
• Medium stakes: Job security, finances, major life changes. ("If I don’t land this job, I’ll have to move back in with my parents.")
...

You got the rejection email. You were in the running, and THEN they went with someone else. Not only did they go with someone else, but you know that someone else—and you’re a better speaker.

So why did they hire that person instead of you?

Coming from the acting world, I can tell you there are a few reasons you may not have considered as a speaker.

1. Your Marketing Assets Aren’t Good

You can be an amazing speaker, but if you have a boring headshot where you look like everyone else, a so-so demo reel, and an uninteresting talk title, they’ll glaze right over you.

In acting, the headshot is everything. There has to be something that stands out—usually the expression, the eyes, or the colors. The same is true for your photo. If you have the typical boring gray or blue background headshot with your arms crossed in a suit… snooze.

You need something—whether it’s a standout demo reel, humor in your email, or a talk title that makes people do a double take—to get them to look at y...

(Be prepared: I am going to “should” all over you about storytelling in your speech. There are always ways to bend rules, but as a general practice, I find these to be effective in regards to creating an emotional powerful moment with the audience – which is a huge part of what stories are for.)

 Annnnnd Action. 🎬

He was an old white guy rambling on for an hour. His speech was basically a thinly veiled sales pitch to hire him for his services. Right when I thought he couldn’t annoy me anymore, he pulled out the ol’ sports hero story to end his sales pitch/speech.

 He wasn’t an athlete. If he was and it was HIS story - that would be different. It wasn’t. It was something I could have googled and read about on Wikipedia. I, and half the room, don’t care about sports. We politely endured what I am assuming was what he considered motivational.

When he was done, I imagined him getting his hefty speaking check, sauntering over to the bar to order an Arnold Palmer or Whiskey Sour, hitt...

How do you get someone to fall in love with you the first five minutes they meet you? I don't know that answer, which is probably why I'm single. However, I do know a few "tricks" to get an audience to fall in love with you within the first 5 minutes of taking the stage.

Your Intro:

Your intro is often wasted real estate space for audience connection. If your bio/intro is filled with a bunch of accolades such as you hold a PHD and won the Olympics after falling off a cliff and now are a CEO of a multi billion corporation...you've probably lost me already.

Why? Because you're obviously a better person than me. You may be interesting and I may get a nugget or two, but we have nothing in common. You don't know my life, so why should I trust you with telling me how to make it better?

When creating your intro it's fine to showcase your knowledge or experience, but throw in some things that are relatable. Examples could be that you are the proud owner of two dogs, you once threw up...

Because I speak for a living, I watch a lot of other speakers at the same event. The one thing many of these speakers have in common is: they're boring. Intelligent content....but so hard to pay attention to for a full hour.

When I watch these speakers, the fact they are boring is easily fixable. They seem to make the same mistakes in regards to "engagement".

Here's how you'll know if you are accidentally a snoozer on stage.

1. You have graphs and a lot of words on your slides. No-one will remember all of your stats. No-one. Slides are valuable real estate for making an emotional connection with your audience, as well as reaching your visual learners. One image or one powerful statement is way more impactful than 6 points with numbers on the same slide. One powerful piece of art - hits you emotionally. One powerful quote - hits you emotionally. Facts and data make many wonder when lunch and recess is.

2. You think your job is to educate and inform. If I ask you to name 3 presiden

   ...

 You Hate Being on Camera.

I get it.

Your nose looks funny. Your head does a weird side tilt thing when you talk that you didn't know it did. Your voice sounds shockingly different. You didn't know your office or your hair actually looked like that.

However, you KNOW you should be making videos. 

Or worse, you just paid a fortune for a videographer to create your demo reel and you hate all the footage they shot.

As an actor who has done a lot of commercials and some film, I so understand the cringe factor of watching yourself. An acting coach once gave me the advice, that I turned into a worksheet below, to help you.

First, remember we live in a world of glorious photo and video filters. I am so spoiled with using filters that a regular photo or video of me makes me want to dry heave. Here's the truth. You don't look like the filtered version of you. SORRY! But you can't expect to be on regular video and think the filtered you is going to show up. It's not. The regular video is w...

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