Les Brown – Convey With A Story. You’ll Always Win.

Les Brown is one of the all-time best motivational speakers to Fortune 500 CEOs, small business owners, non-profit and community leaders from all sectors of society looking to expand opportunity. I never understand why, until recently. I’ve never taken the time to listen to a Les Brown, talk. However, during Dave Kerpen‘s Sunday Night Ask Me Anything event, I got to hear over an hour of insights from this master communicator. This discussion is part of the Listening and Beyond Community inside the Likeable Business Club in Clubhouse.

You’ve Got To be Hungry, the Greatness Within to Win is Les Brown’s latest book dispensing his wisdom on life and business. In order to achieve greatness, you must be HUNGRY.

The raw notes below, don’t do justice to the rapid-fire insights Les Brown shared. But I hope you’re able to glean just a bit from these notes.

Les Before He Was Famous

• Les was declared educable mentally retarded when he was young. Thankfully a teacher noticed him and encouraged him to never speak that way about himself.
• Les was an elected official in Ohio, but gave up further political ambitions to take care of his mother. Dave also asked Les about his marriage (and then divorce) to Gladys Knight. The reason the marriage didn’t work out, Les explained is that they chose to prioritize what was important to them. At that time, it was their respective careers, which were taking off at the time.

Tell A Story

• The best speakers make the fewest words go the farthest. Les over and over again expressed that storytelling was the key to his success. I’m a well-paid professional speaker but realized that I could advance even FURTHER in my career if I told more stories and more deeply connected with the audience. My tendency has been to go too tactical, too fast.
• If you want your speech to have the maximum impact,  deliver the message via a story.
• The storyteller is the most powerful person in the world, referring to Steve Jobs master class in presentation.
• How we live our lives is a result of the story we believe about ourselves. Les, credits his high school teacher for guiding Les to believe a DIFFERENT story.
• Faith comes by hearing and hearing and hearing by the word of God
• A Job is what you get paid for. Your calling is what you are made for, says Les.

Tips for Professional Speakers

• Les tips for beginning speakers is to not get caught in the trap of providing information from a memorized script
• NEVER let what you want to say get in the way of what the audience wants to hear.
  Speak to selling, has hijacked the speaking industry. Instead, speak to the audience, and people will want to buy your product(s), you won’t have to SELL them.
• Have multiple streams of revenue, build strategic relationships and understand you can’t build by yourself.
• For example, Les has worked with Pedro Adao, to create challenges. This relationship has turned Les Brown’s business upside down -in a highly profitable way.

Final Power Tips

• Kindness is POWERFUL, Dave asked why Les is so focused on kindness.
• We should be ashamed to die until we’ve made an impact, Les responded.
• It’s imperative to surround yourself with Only Quality People – OQP. People who are of kindred spirits with you. Consider a mastermind or coaching group.

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