[Tristan]

Well,

Just as in any type of speaking, you need to have a message that carries some value to other people...not just yourself. This is an important part because often would-be speakers who ask me the same question have a message that is important to them, but not so much to other people. You must deliver something that has weight to your audience.

Also the question must be asked...are you going to speak just to spread your message to others, or do you want to make a living doing talks...the latter is far more complicated to write in a single post.

I do workshops, trainings, speaking events, coaching, and writing in the field of Peak Performance and Human Potential. One of the biggest hurdles I faced when becoming a professional motivational speaker was answering the question, "What makes you qualified to speak to others about motivation?" or "Why should I be listening to you at all?" This requires that you have some sort of explanation of why you are qualified to motivate people and this comes from your own life. Myself, I had competed in the olympic trials and became a police officer and then a life coach and trainer, so I can tie in stories from my street experience and athletic achievement into my talks.

Anthony Robbins has his firewalking gimmick to separate him from everyone else. A speaker needs, not so much a gimmick, but something special that makes people want to come and listen.

Remember that motivational speaking is basically common sense put into perspective. You are not really teaching people anything that they don't already know. The power a motivational speaker has is changing their audiences' psychology into adopting and integrating those common sense things into their lives so that they become common practice instead of just common sense.

Tristan