Here's how you can navigate the differences in public speaking between mid-career and early career stages.

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Early-career vs. mid-career public speaking - the differences that matter. At the early stage of your career, speaking on stage is terrifying. You’re either: Nervously clutching the podium Or hiding behind it But once you hit the mid-career phase, confidence kicks in. The trick? You’re no longer thinking about just yourself. Here's how your speaking needs to adapt: Early-career: ❌ Then: "I hope they think I'm good" ❌ Now: "What should I say?" ❌ Then: "What if I make a mistake?" ❌ Now: "What’s the best way to convey this message?" ❌ Then: "Will they like me?" ❌ Now: "How can I inspire or teach them?" Mid-career: ✅ "How can I add value for the audience?" ✅ "What can I do to encourage interaction?" ✅ "How can I leave a lasting impact?"

Being a thought leader is highly strategic as you progress through your career. Sometimes it is subtle when you progress from specialist to thought leader. I think about my audience and what they need and maybe, sprinkle subject matter with insights. To bring the audience with you also means taking them on a journey that will stir their thought and action.

Navigating the differences in public speaking between mid-career and early career stages involves an expertise shift. Early in your career, the focus is on building foundational skills, gaining experience, and establishing credibility. Mid-career, the emphasis shifts to leveraging accumulated expertise, fine-tuning your style, and addressing more complex topics. For example, an early-career speaker might concentrate on mastering basic presentation techniques and engaging general audiences, while a mid-career speaker can draw on their extensive experience to tackle nuanced subjects and captivate specialized audiences, demonstrating deeper insights and sophisticated storytelling.

Consider reframing your expertise. Early career speakers often focus on conveying their knowledge. Mid-career speakers can emphasize the practical application of their expertise, using storytelling and case studies to connect with the audience and illustrate the impact of their work. This shift in focus can position you as a thought leader and influencer in your field.

It is a major shift between speaking in front of your peers and supervisors to wider audiences. In the early days, it was about being very technical, resonating with the audience was not important. Just get it done and sit down! Tailoring my message while speaking to broader groups is now very important and ensuring that the audience takes away more than facts and figures or technical information. It is about communicating, listening, and receiving communication from them as well as creating positive energy.

As you progress in your career, the expectations of your audience will shift. Early-career audiences may benefit from more foundational knowledge, while mid-career professionals might appreciate a deeper dive into complex topics. Consider tailoring your content to their level of expertise and experience. You can also anticipate their potential questions and challenges beforehand to ensure your presentation resonates with them.

The audience composition and expectations can vary between early and mid-career stages. Early-career speakers may often address peers, junior colleagues, or smaller groups within their organization, while mid-career professionals may speak to larger audiences, including industry conferences, senior executives, or external stakeholders. Understanding the audience's knowledge level, interests, and preferences is crucial for tailoring the presentation content and delivery style effectively.

17 years old. 5:30 AM. National TV appearance #1….. This was me— nearly one year ago. The invite came completely out of the blue. I was both thrilled & terrified at the same time. From the afternoon of the invite to the live hit time the next morning, I had T-Minus 15 hours to prepare. I had no formal media training. I didn’t have a professional set-up. I only had a phone and my brain the good Lord gave me. I struggled to fall asleep that night— honestly out of fear for what lay before me. Though, when the alarm sounded at 4:00 AM, my fear was still there. The only thing that kept me steady was prayer. Praying the Lord would give me words to say, take my anxiety, and give me peace. He answered my prayers! 🙌🏼

Consider framing your nervousness as excitement. This positive reframing can channel your energy into a captivating performance. Even seasoned speakers experience pre-talk jitters. View it as your body's way of preparing you to deliver a powerful message.

At the start of my career, I did more public speaking than I ever thought I would. Many times, it felt forced and not natural. I didn't know how to prepare but I did realize that I wasn't uncomfortable. Now, I love speaking in front of large audiences and it is a love that has grown with time. My nerves are still there at the start but once the energy in the room has centered, it is all fine. Know your speaking points inside out! I remember an industry engagement where the projector died for 50 minutes of my 60-minute presentation, aka no slides. It is also good to be very focused, with no distractions before speaking and start with a strong voice to establish your presence.

Confidence in public speaking typically grows with experience and mastery of the subject matter. Early-career professionals may initially grapple with nerves, self-doubt, or imposter syndrome when speaking in public. However, as they gain more exposure, receive positive feedback, and refine their presentation skills, their confidence tends to increase. Mid-career speakers may exude greater confidence and authority, which can positively impact audience perception and engagement.

Authenticity (your authentic voice) and purpose is key to developing confidence in the delivery of the message in public speaking. In mid career, one would have gained more life lessons and work experiences to share, as compared to early career. But life experiences are not the biggest game changer when it comes to public speaking. A young/early careerist can also speak confidently. The greatest transformation in public speaking happened to me when I joined a local Toastmasters club in my early career. It is a public speaking community/mentoring platform that enables you to practice, learn and make progress in a supportive and nurturing environment. It propelled my career/professional development and I never looked back since then.

Creating a Venn Diagram can be helpful to identify the universe of points that can be made in a speech, and the points that will generate more of outcome A, outcome B, etc., with outcomes being what the speaker hopes the listener will take away or apply from the speech. Then, the speaker can hone in on which outcomes the speaker believes will be most effective for its audience and include points from the diagram that address those points in a meaningful and effective way. Mapping out or outlining a speech, even for mid-career professionals who have become comfortable with public speaking, can be very helpful.

STORYTELLING is the VEHICLE of a strong message delivery to your target audience. As you advanced into Mid-Career stage, you will discover that refining your speech strategies will also help to make your message more polished and persuasive. Having a CLEAR & PURPOSEFUL message that resonates with the receiver (boss, co-workers, stakeholders) is pivotal. During early career, you might have limited resources or expertise to strengthen the communication clarity. As you progress in your career, you will meet life/career mentors, and widen your social influence and gain more resources that can empower and deepen your storytelling skills. This in turn will make your message more relevant, powerful and impeccable to the target audience.

Being precise in your messaging is important in every stage of your career. Yes, practice makes perfection, but even early on the time to be spent in refining and premising a message should be taking up most of your time in preparing your presentation.

With experience comes the ability to refine and articulate messages more effectively. Early-career speakers may focus on delivering clear, concise, and impactful messages while honing their storytelling and persuasion techniques. Mid-career professionals, on the other hand, may delve deeper into complex topics, offer nuanced insights, and incorporate real-world examples or case studies to illustrate key points. Continuously refining and adapting the message to resonate with the audience's needs and interests is essential at every career stage.

Navigating differences in public speaking between mid-career and early career stages with engagement evolution involves adapting your interaction strategies as you gain experience. Early-career speakers should focus on interactive elements like Q&A sessions and audience polls to keep the audience engaged. For example, they might use live polls to gather opinions and spark discussions, making the audience feel involved. Mid-career speakers, with their deeper understanding of audience dynamics, can incorporate storytelling and nuanced humor, drawing from their extensive experience to create a more profound connection and maintain engagement throughout their presentation.

Incorporation of storytelling in your public speaking is involving over time. The principles stay the same but it is your experience and your "life" stories that evolve overtime. Building upon them to get your message across. Awake emotions in your audience so that your message gets remembered.

Engagement is crucial. It goes without saying - if you're not making the effort to involve the audience and everyone watching with your message and your presentation, you're going to have a hard time coming across as relevant to them. Add simple and fun activities - we're human - we enjoy a good laugh! However, there's a fine line between witty humour and clown behaviour - ensure you work out the right balance by understanding your core message properly, and navigating around the message a little to interpret it in different ways, which should help to frame the right activities you can include. Examples could be a simple online voting activity, or a stand up and shake off activity - it really does depend on what you have got to say!

Engaging the target audience is an art and science in our evolving world. Consider building up on your “story bank” as you progress in Mid-Career stage. Why? Developing ethos and pathos can beef up one’s credibility. Coupled with real-life stories, these techniques can sharpen your message and audience engagement. Engagement strategies and techniques become critical when creativity meets opportunities in public speaking. Those in Early-Career has an advantage if they are tech/media-savvy. They can bank on using social media, “live” tools and leverage LinkedIn connections/community to build on their credibility and create content to engage a wider audience internationally. Similarly, those in Mid-Career can upskill/reskill to learn them.

Navigating public speaking differences between mid-career and early career stages involves adaptability. Early-career speakers should be flexible and open to feedback, experimenting with styles and techniques. For example, they might incorporate multimedia or interactive activities to engage the audience. Mid-career speakers should leverage their experience to fine-tune delivery and quickly adapt to unexpected changes like technical issues or audience reactions. For example, a mid-career speaker can seamlessly shift their presentation focus in response to audience questions, staying relevant and engaging despite changes in the planned content.

The single most important thing you probably haven't considered in navigating the differences in public speaking between mid-career and early career stages is the value of mentorship. Mentorship bridges the gap by allowing early-career speakers to learn from the experiences and insights of mid-career professionals, accelerating their growth and adapting more effectively to various speaking scenarios. It also helps mid-career speakers stay current with new trends and techniques by engaging with fresh perspectives from their mentees.

Early Career Stage: Focus on Building Confidence Develop a Clear Message: Concentrate on clarity and simplicity. Seek Feedback and Learn : Leverage Your Fresh Perspective: Share innovative ideas and new approaches. Mid-Career Stage: Leverage Experience and Expertise Build Authority and Influence: Use public speaking as a platform to build your authority in your field. Mentor and Inspire

An aspiring public speaker in Early Career is like a young caterpillar discovering their speaking style, creating their voice and credibility, while seeking their public speaking mentor/coach. 📍Golden Tips: 1. Speak with Stories; 2. Humility to learn & seek courage; 3. Articulate well; 4. Novelty of listening & engagement skills An advanced public speaker in Mid-Career is like a beautiful butterfly that has morphed beyond their comfort zone, gain positive influence/affluence with their new found confidence, and developed their vocal charisma. The bedrock of a successful public speaking stems from a strong foundation of mentorship, supportive network/community of mentors who can provide encouragement to refine their skills.