Captivate The Crowd
The problem, in our quest to stand out and make a difference, is that most coaches, speakers, and entrepreneurs take themselves way too seriously.
At least that’s how they seem on video, sales presentations, or speaking live. I should know, I got the t-shirt and the bumper sticker when it comes to needing to lighten up. I love humor because it gave me a career and helped me lighten the heck up.
I came to New York City to pursue acting. I wanted to be the next Meryl Streep or Kristen Chenoweth.
My days were filled with: running to auditions and running around restaurants waiting on people. After working professionally as a singer, dancer, actor, and entertainer in TX since I was a kid, I moved to NYC and I couldn’t get booked for a single gig.
I put myself out there… at auditions but nothing. The casting directors wouldn’t even look at me.
I was too serious, too intense, too insecure.
If they’d made a movie about me, they would’ve cast Cathy Bates to play me!
Out of sheer desperation and because 53 casting directors told me to lighten up, I eventually took some stand-up comedy and improv classes.
Not only did I lighten up, but I found myself with a gift for humor (I didn’t even know I had)… I went from being invisible to performing for or noted by America’s Got Talent, Saturday Night Live, HBO, the TV Networks, New York Times, NY Comedy Clubs, and colleges across the US, Canada, and Australia. I was finally being noticed and funny money became my livelihood.
If I can go from ”Don't call us, we'll call you”, to an Internationally touring speaker, author, coach, then you can too.
Now I’m not telling you to “quit your day job” and become a stand-up comic. I’m inviting you to bring humor into your life and into your speaking in person and on camera, in order to lighten up, have more energy, and have more impact on your work.
When people laugh, they feel better because their endorphins increase, they take in more oxygen which gives them more energy. When YOU can make someone else chuckle, they unconsciously associate YOU with feeling good.
Dan Kennedy, the world-famous marketer, says: ”Nothing, nothing, nothing can get the audience on your side better than humor.”
We all know this from experience.
We all know this from experience.
When we listen to someone speak and they’re too serious, the impact of their message gets lost or isn’t even heard because we tune out from boredom or become disengaged.
Humor is not just about entertaining, it’s about our SHARED humanity... the good, the bad, and the ugly.
It helps us relate to one another, to empathize. Humor breaks down walls.
You could be using humor to tell prospects about your product or services, in your speaking and writing.
You could be using humor to talk about yourself, to tell stories that build rapport and trust, to influence, to motivate, and get audiences to take action.
You could be using humor in your daily life to create more fun for yourself and the people you’re around. Five minutes of YouTube can change your world.
There are basic tools that anyone can learn to add more fun to their work and life: Misdirection, Rule of 3, Stating awkward but funny truth, Exaggeration, Metaphors. (I'll write about these in Part 2)
Learning to look for the Funny in any situation is one of the BEST life hacks! The next time you’re having a rough day, you can say to yourself: This is going to be hilarious in a few weeks or months. To quote David Sedaris: Everything is funny eventually.”
You CAN learn to be more humorous, to lighten up, to cultivate your charisma, to captivate the crowd. For more humor tips and to stay connected with me, please go to www.CaptivatetheCrowd.com and grab the Confidence on Camera Checklist. Email: [email protected] Cell: 646-526-3522
Bio:
Elaine is an award-winning Video & Visibility Coach, Speaker, Best-Selling Author, and Comedian with credits like Saturday Night Live, America’s Got Talent, HBO, ABC, NBC, FOX TV; and has been featured in The New York Times, Hay House Radio & the Huffington Post.
Elaine’s clients have gone from never doing video/speaking live to doing Ted Talks, going on International Book Tours, speaking for NASA, and rocking their own successful YouTube channels. Grab your Confidence on Camera Checklist! Go to www.CaptivatetheCrowd.com
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646-526-3522
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Photo credit: Georges Milton, Christina Morillo Twitter @wocintechchat, Luis Quintero Instagram @jibarox, Pixabay, Gratisography