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420: Finding and Developing Your Big I.D.E.A. [Best Of]

Speaking Your Brand: Public Speaking Tips and Strategies

Release Date: 11/18/2024

Behind the Scenes of My AI-Powered Business: Real-World Use Cases

Speaking Your Brand: Public Speaking Tips and Strategies

Ever wish you had an extra set of hands - or better yet, an AI assistant - to take care of all those repetitive tasks in your business? In this episode, I’m taking you behind the scenes to share the exact AI-powered workflows I’ve built and now rely on every week at Speaking Your Brand. From automating my podcast production (yes, even these show notes!) to cloning my voice for a brand-new companion podcast, you’ll get a sense at what’s possible - and what's already working. I walk you through real-world examples of how I’m using AI to: Save time with automated content workflows ...

AI Is Already Impacting Your Business – Here are 4 Innovative Ways to Leverage It

Speaking Your Brand: Public Speaking Tips and Strategies

AI isn’t just on the horizon - it’s already here, reshaping how we work, connect, and show up in our businesses, no matter what industry you’re in. In this episode, I share how AI has fundamentally changed how I run Speaking Your Brand, well beyond using tools like ChatGPT (though I use that too!). I walk you through 4 powerful questions, originally posed by Wharton professor Ethan Mollick, that I’ve been reflecting on deeply and that can help you rethink your own services, content, and visibility. You’ll hear: What I used to do in my business that AI now does better (and...

Why Your Tech Presentations Aren’t Landing - and How to Fix Them

Speaking Your Brand: Public Speaking Tips and Strategies

You’ve packed your presentation with data, insights, and value — but your audience isn’t responding the way you hoped. If you’ve ever looked out and seen glazed-over eyes… or walked off stage and didn’t get the results you wanted, this episode is for you. As a former software developer and technology strategist who has presented at countless conferences and meetups, I’ve learned what works — and what doesn’t — when it comes to making technical or detail-heavy presentations land with impact. If you’re in a technical field — technology, software, AI, science, healthcare,...

What Giving a TED-Style Talk Revealed About Us as Speakers

Speaking Your Brand: Public Speaking Tips and Strategies

Have you ever wondered what it really takes to create, practice for, and deliver a powerful TED-style talk - especially one that’s only 8 minutes long? In this episode, I’m joined by Diane Diaz, our lead speaking coach at Speaking Your Brand, as we take you behind the scenes of our recent TED-style speaking experience. We were invited to be part of a live event called ElleX, hosted by a women’s entrepreneurship group at a local college. We had only one week to prepare our full talks for the audition! Diane and I share: How we came up with our topics and aligned them with the...

What Most Speakers Miss: 3 Secrets to Insightful and Inspirational Presentations

Speaking Your Brand: Public Speaking Tips and Strategies

Have you ever walked away from a presentation thinking, “That was… fine,” but not truly moved, inspired, or motivated? Here’s the truth: Most presenters mean well - they want to share valuable information - but they miss what truly makes a talk stick with the audience. In this episode, I’m pulling back the curtain on a recent presentation I gave at a local AI meetup that got amazing feedback - not because I taught all the things, but because I did these 3 key things instead. You’ll learn: What made this AI-focused talk both insightful and inspiring to a room full of people at all...

From Expert to Thought Leader: 3 Key Strategies You Need Now in the AI Age

Speaking Your Brand: Public Speaking Tips and Strategies

If I take a look at your slide deck or presentation outline and I can’t tell that the content is yours (vs. another speaker on your topic), you’re in danger of being a commodity speaker. Commodity speakers are undifferentiated and interchangeable. It will be harder for you to attract higher-profile speaking engagements, raise your speaking fees, and generate quality leads at your presentations. What you want instead is for your content to position you as a thought leader. You will have a much bigger impact on your audiences and your speaking will be an effective marketing channel and...

The Heart of Your Message: Why Emotion is Your Secret Speaking Superpower

Speaking Your Brand: Public Speaking Tips and Strategies

As speakers and entrepreneurs, we often focus on the facts, data, and tactics we want to share – but what about the emotional connection? In this episode, I talk about the power of finding the emotional heart of your message and why it’s essential for creating talks that resonate deeply with your audience and leave a lasting impact. In this episode, you’ll learn: Why the emotional heart of your message is critical for building trust and connection How mirror neurons make our brains wired for empathy and why that matters in storytelling Examples from popular culture, including Hamilton...

How to Land a TEDx Talk: From Idea to Application

Speaking Your Brand: Public Speaking Tips and Strategies

Have you ever imagined standing on a TEDx stage, spotlight on you, sharing a bold, transformative idea that resonates deeply with your audience? TEDx talks are powerful platforms, not just for delivering information, but for sparking new perspectives, challenging assumptions, and inspiring change. In this episode, I’m pulling back the curtain on what it takes to land a TEDx talk, based on my experience selecting speakers for TEDx events and coaching clients to develop their big ideas. Whether you’re a seasoned speaker or just starting to find your voice, I’ll guide you through what you...

What a Signature Talk Really Is - and What It Should Be Doing for You

Speaking Your Brand: Public Speaking Tips and Strategies

Have you ever wondered what truly makes a “signature talk”… well, signature? In this solo episode, I’m breaking down what a signature talk actually is (and what it isn’t), why most presentations fall flat, and how you can create a talk that not only connects with your audience — but also works for you as a speaker and thought leader. This episode is especially for you if you’ve ever felt stuck in what I call “the expert trap” - where you think you have to cram in as much information and training as possible in order to provide value. (Spoiler alert: that’s not how...

Want to Feel More Confident on Stage? Start Here.

Speaking Your Brand: Public Speaking Tips and Strategies

I’ve been there. Heart pounding, mouth dry, butterflies swirling - even after years of speaking on stages and on live TV. In this episode, I share some of my hardest speaking moments (including my worst ever speaking experience) and the surprising reasons we feel nervous before we speak, even when we know our stuff inside and out. You’ll learn: The 3 big reasons we get nervous (it’s not just about being unprepared!) How our physiology plays a bigger role than we realize — and how to work with it, not against it What to do in advance to reduce anxiety and boost confidence ...

More Episodes

Today’s episode it’s all about finding and developing your Big Idea for your thought leadership and public speaking.

Ideas are incredibly powerful; they can live on for years, centuries, even millennia. Ideas spark movements for political and social change. Ideas help us as humans understand ourselves, each other, and the world around us

Your idea doesn’t have to be something people have never heard of before; that’s unlikely as most things have been talked about before - and that’s ok!

As a speaker, you want to have something interesting and unique to talk about, you want to make a positive impact on your audience, and you want to develop your thought leadership

Perhaps you’re not sure what makes a good idea or which of your ideas is the best one. It all feels a bit messy and muddy.

That’s what I’m going to help you with in this episode! Think of me as your idea whisperer.

You’ll learn:

What a Big Idea is
Why too many speakers get stuck with superficial content
How to identify your I.D.E.A. using this handy acronym I came up with
Examples of Big Ideas from myself, from some of our clients, and from thought leaders you’ll recognize
Specific questions you can ask yourself to get started developing your Big Idea

Get these questions and a lot more in our 24-page FREE guide and workbook on Developing Your Thought Leadership at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/guide/.

This episode originally aired as episode 354 on November 6, 2023.

Links:

Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/354/

Get our free Thought Leadership guide and workbook: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/guide/

Discover your Speaker Archetype by taking our free quiz at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/quiz/

Enroll in our Thought Leader Academy: https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/

Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcox

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