“I’m not going to do it,” said Slide.
The King, owner of the Castle, stood at the fence rail and offered a handful of hay to a cow. The cow immediately took a liking to the King, and became his best friend.
Slide Rule, owner of Building Blocks Inc., the chief architect of the Castle, stood next to the King, and on the other side of the King stood Igor, who was from Moat Designs Ltd., the general contractor of the Castle.
After the King finished feeding the cow, they all wandered down the road to the market square and decided to stop for lunch at an outside café.
“So Slide, what are you not going to do?” asked the King, as they sat down in the shade. Cold brews were immediately served.
“I was asked to give a speech.”
“A speech? What a great opportunity!” said the King.
Igor laughed.
The King glared at Igor. “Why are you laughing?”
“I wouldn’t do the speech either.”
The King took a deep long draw of his afternoon brew, and set his mug down loudly. “Let me tell you a story. An architect, like you Slide, went into consulting after writing a book published by McGraw- Hill, a major publisher. He was invited to speak at a prestigious gathering of contractors, and although reluctant, he decided he would give the speech to launch his consulting career, but only on one condition-his first speech was to be his last, as he didn’t want to rely on speaking to get his consulting engagements.”
“So what happened?” asked Igor.
“Well, he gave the speech, and at the end there was a question-and-answer session that went very well. As he left the podium he was very relieved it was over, and also knew it was his first and last speech.”
“So, if I may ask, your Majesty, how does this help Slide, who has already decided not to speak?”
“Well, let me continue the story.” The King got up and started to pace. Another Master Class was in session. “The architect stayed for lunch and had several conversations with contractors who asked him even more questions. Then on his way out to his car, his cell phone rang, and he looked and it was an unfamiliar number.”
“Cell phone?” questioned Slide.
“A future thing. As it turned out, the call was from a vice president of a very large subcontractor. The VP told him he liked what he had to say at the morning presentation, and invited him to his office for a meeting the following week. After several meetings, the company became his client, and over the next eight years, he worked with it behind the scenes, traveling far-and-wide to multiple states to help other divisions of their company attract new business.”
“Doesn’t matter, I’m still not going to stand up in front of people and speak,” said Slide.
Igor shook his head. “I don’t know, it’s starting to look like a pretty good opportunity to me.”
The King stopped pacing and took another long sip of his brew. “The story gets better.”
“Really?” said Slide.
“The next morning he received another phone call, and it was from a construction management company, and he later met with the company and also signed a consulting agreement. That relationship lasted for more than five years.”
“Really,” said Slide again.
“So, what happened?” asked Igor.
“Despite his vow never to speak again, he became a regular speaker at conventions, seminars, peer groups, as well as universities. He learned that the secret to speaking is being over prepared, and having an absolutely great and powerful PowerPoint slide presentation. He also learned another secret that makes a difference, and that is most architects and contractors at the end of their speech or presentation, will turn and walk out of the room. But a good speaker will stand and close.”
“What’s the close?”
The King smiled. “The speaker will make some kind of offer to do business together. He asks for the order in a very subliminal way.”
Slide was very quiet.
“So, Slide. What’s your decision?”
“I’ve decided to throw my hat into the ring. But I’ve one question. What is your goal as a speaker?
” The King sat back down at the table. “Like the cow that ate hay from my hand, a good speaker will have the audience eating out of his or her hand, because when you speak, you’re considered an expert in your field.”
Note: The story of the speech and the two clients is a true story, and the author is still speaking to this day helping contractors grow their business.
With the exception of an occasional guest appearance by the author, any similarity to actual events or people living or dead is purely coincidental.
Ronald A. McKenzie is president of COMPASS Consultants Corp., a strategic planning and marketing company specializing in developing business growth. He is a published author and has made nationwide presentations on the subject of strategic planning and marketing. He resides in Las Vegas and can be reached at ramckenzie.compass@gmail. com and www.compassconsultantscorp.com.