Enjoy your art

Despite the weather, an organisation I am a volunteer for managed to have an all day event without a drop of rain. Many attractions were booked to appear and one of them was Adrian Smith. Several times he has won the Strongest man in Britain title, come 5th in the world, been a finalist for Mr Universe and appeared on programmes such as Gladiators. All in all a busy man with rippling muscles. His strong man act was fantastic. What was also fascinating was Adrian himself. With all this success, he had time for everyone, chatted and joked with me in the public address tent and generally was a charming and interesting man to meet. He said that after he had retired from competition, he missed the buzz, the adrenaline of being 'on show'. He liked the attention of performing. This is why he had set up his 'act' and he enjoys every minute of it. He was not aloof, not arrogant, he just recognised that pleasure he got from his 'art'. I had complete empathy with every word. With speaking and presentations, I feel the same. I enjoy the thrill of speaking to an audience, of building the rapport with them and getting the message across. Unlike Adrian, it does not take 25 years hard work in the gym to begin to gain the results you need. Speaking in public is an art form, but one that anyone can learn and begin to develop easily. Building confidence, dealing with nerves, adding the skills and practical techniques are within the grasp of anyone. We cant all be the strongest man in Britain. We can all be good motivational speakers. In both cases an amalgam of dedication, practice, determination and training is required. Begin today, reap the rewards tomorrow.