Show Notes
When you tell a story, how often does the lightbulb go off in the heads of your audience?
Stephen Shapiro is a master at this. He speaks about innovation, but he doesn’t get bogged down in futurism like so many others. Instead, his stories of innovation are refreshingly relatable to the audience.
Hall of Fame Speaker, Stephen Shapiro, takes the stage on this episode of Standing Ovation and shares a signature story about the nightmare that is baggage claim at airports. He also shares his best tips to help clappers ‘keep it real’ on stage.
Find out about:
- Hear Stephen Shapiro’s story about problematic baggage claim at airports
- How to keep you audience present
- How to craft a story that you didn’t experience personally and make it your own
- How Stephen keeps track of all of his stories
- Technology that helps Stephen deliver incredible keynote presentations
- How the expectations of audiences and event planners has changed
- Why Stephen’s baggage claim story is so effective
- Stephen shares his philosophy on coaching for speakers
- How Stephen writes his books in relation to his speeches
- How to know it’s time to write a new speech
Quotes from the episode:
“The questions we ask have a profound impact on the range of solutions we develop.”
“A lot of my preparation is trying to figure out what to eliminate and how I can build a strong story from start to finish.”
“We should create experiences for the audience, not just disseminate content, which I think is the traditional keynote approach.”
Connect with Stephen Shapiro
2 Key Questions
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given about the speaking business?
“The key thing is that it is a speaking business. When I left my comfy, consulting job, and decided to become a speaker…I realized that being a great speaker doesn’t mean you have a great speaking business. My rude awakening made me realize I needed to become better at marketing, selling, and 1,001 other things. So, surround yourself with people who can help you become a better business person, not just a better speaker.”
Who is your dream guest for Standing Ovation?
“Neil deGrasse Tyson – I’ve seen him speak several times now and you just listen to the way he talks and everything is just magical…and he paints pictures with his words in a way that I find to be so incredible”
