I just returned from the American Society of Safety Engineer's Professional Development Conference. Although the conference kept me busy for 4 full days, a great deal of the value I received from attending came down to 60 short minutes. These 60 minutes covered the 1 hour presentation I delivered. Speaking to a highly targeted group, in your area of expertise, cannot be overvalued. Yes it's a lot of work and often stressful but it is one of the best ways for a consultant to get their name out there. If you have not spoken at one of the big safety conferences (such as ASSE, AIHce or NSC), I strongly encourage you to do so. One very inportant thing to keep in mind - you must submit a proposal to speak at these events well ahead of time - usually close to a year in advance. The deadline to speak at ASSE's June 2008 conference in Las Vegas is quickly approaching - July 31st - and will be here before you know it. To submit a proposal, visit http://www.asse.org/speakerpage08/. The deadline to submit a proposal to speak at AIHce's conference next June in Minneapolis is August 15th. To submit a proposal, visit http://www.aiha.org/callforpdcs.htm. The deadline for the NSC isn't posted on their website yet but if I remember right, the deadline is around December or January for the conference held the following October. (If anyone knows the details, please let me know).
If you know you should speak more in public but are still nervous about the idea, consider finding a partner or putting together a panel. Having someone to share the spotlight with can help put you at ease. You also have plenty of time to get some practice and/or instruction. Take advantage of opportunities to speak in front of local chapters and enroll in a course or two on public speaking. A few resources to try include Patricia Fripp at http://www.fripp.com; the National Speaker's Association at http://www.nsaspeaker.org/ (local meetings are usually open to non-members and are great) and the old standby, Toastmasters (http://www.toastmasters.org/). Whatever you do - take the first step. The ability to speak in public is very important if you are going to suceed as a consultant.
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