Look Who it Was Random video

Public Speaking Tips for Authors with Joanna Penn. Filmed in Zurich

703 views · Published 29 October 2012 · 4:32 · Indexed 12 November 2026

Channel: The Creative Penn · 2012 · Education

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Joanna Penn talks about some of her tips for public speaking, while away speaking at WriteCon in Zurich for a weekend (as it snows!) Be hugely prepared and know your audience, be 150% of all you can be and give your energy to the audience, re-frame your "nerves" as shakti, energy you need to be able to speak at your best. Learn how to speak by training with professionals and then speaking for free. Get booked for speaking by building up your platform over time.
    My #1 tip is preparation. Do a questionnaire beforehand to get a sense of the participants and then be sure to tailor your material to the event. You should never give the same talk twice basically. I use slides but in the style of TED talks or Zen presentation, so more pictures than words, adding a different dimension to the talk.
    I also carry my material on a laptop and a separate USB stick as well  I also email it to the workshop organizer and I put it on the internet in case things go wrong and I have to download it. I print out a paper copy just in case it all goes wrong!

    If you feel nervous, try reframing those feelings as the energy you need for the performance. A teacher of mine, Robert Rabbin calls it 'shakti', and it helps you perform.

    Speaking is a kind of performance, and I am 150% me when I speak. I am an energetic speaker but I am not like that all the time. I am an introvert so I need to recharge my energy alone later but the actual event is a performance, but an authentic one.

    Zurich WriteCon panelWhy I love speaking and learning how to speak. I joined National Speaker's Association (in Australia but there are global chapters) and I went on an Academy and learned from other professional speakers. I spoke for free a lot before charging for my appearances.
    Learning as you go is critical so I like to use a feedback form so I can craft the material for next time and also get testimonials from happy customers!

    How to get speaking appearances. For me, it's based on my platform online -- this blog, twitter and word-of-mouth recommendations. I don't solicit for speaking usually, but I am always open to options!

I am available to speak for 1 hour all the way to multi-day events. Popular topics include self-publishing/independent publishing, online platform building, digital marketing, branding, multimedia and aspects of writing. Audiences are often authors, publishing industry people or small business/ entrepreneurs.

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