We’re finally in the last week of the US presidential election, and for most of us it will be a relief to stop hearing about deplorables, groping, and that ridiculous institution the Electoral College.  It’s not too early to think about refocusing our hearts and minds on important stuff like your public speaking career and our general spiritual uplift after such a discouraging season.  So the purpose of the following is purely for getting you back on track as a public speaker and thought leader.  Enjoy.

1.It’s a lifetime journey, so enjoy the road. It’s an old idea, but it contains a lot of wisdom. You don’t want to be so focused on the destination that you miss the joys of the journey. Speakers especially who are obsessed with a particular keynote or fee or marker of fame can fail to be present for the most potentially joyful moment of their career: the moment before you begin to speak to an audience which has grown silent in anticipation of hearing you. There’s infinite potential in that silence – don’t miss it!

2.Remind yourself why you’re doing what you’re doing. You got into public speaking, I hope, because you had an idea to change the world for the better.  At root, you’re an idealist. We need the heart and courage of every idealist on the planet. We all need to be focused on changing the world in good ways.  Every now and then, celebrate why you’re doing what you’re doing, and give yourself a pat on the back in order to keep going strong.

3.Don’t let other people define you. One of the hardest things for a speaker/thought leader to do is to boil down into an essential phrase or two what you stand for. You don’t want to rule anything out; I get it. When someone asks, “Can you speak to audience X about Y,” your instinct is to say “Yes!” first and figure out what you might say later. But in the long run you’ll go fast and furthest by finding your core idea and sticking to it. Just make sure it’s your own, not something someone else has plastered on your forehead.

4.Stay generous even when times are tough. As a coach, I meet a lot of needy people. They need advice, book reviews, Q n As, introductions, leads, and so on. The list is never-ending. Here’s the thing: I’m even more motivated to help people who offer something in return. To take a simple example, I get at least one book a week from people asking me to review them, do a Q and A, or promote them in some way. I can’t possibly keep up with the volume. But the books I reach for first are the ones that come from people that I already have a connection with, possibly because they’ve had me on a podcast or talked up my book or the like. It’s not about bribes; it is about real, human connections.

5.Let yourself grow and change. It’s easy, especially for speakers, to get into ruts, especially when things are working. If you get a laugh from an audience on one particular line, how can you resist using the same line again? You want to ride that horse into the sunset; laughter is the best approval of all from an audience. But everything changes and nothing lasts forever and you need to be always renewing your material. That means allowing yourself to be open to new ideas and approaches so that you’re ready to throw out that perfect line and get an even better one.

The post-election, pre-holiday season is absolutely the best time in the year to start the process of renewal. And all our spirits need a lift. Here’s to new journeys, new ideas, and new hope.