Whether you’re just starting out or you’re a seasoned public speaking professional, you may want to hire a coach to help you in your public speaking business. Someone that will help you develop your skills and focus on areas you’re good at. This is an important role in your professional growth so the person you choose must be the right fit for you. Let’s get you to the right public speaking coach faster with the following steps:

Determine your goals

Before you even start to look for a public speaking coach, you will want to define your goals. What do you want to get out of your coaching sessions? What are your ultimate goals in your public speaking business? What skills are you trying to develop? Are you just looking for more public speaking opportunities?

It’s important to have a little game plan before choosing a coach so that you will get the most out of your sessions. After determining your goals, be sure to communicate them with your coach and do regular check ins to determine if you’re making progress.

Find a coach with experience

This should come as no surprise, but you will probably want to find a public speaking coach that has extensive experience in speaker coaching and not just in public speaking but also in coaching. Most coaches were once speakers themselves and will be able to give you first-hand information and tips that will help you develop your skills.

Ask the appropriate questions, of course, to find out the specifics of their experience so that you know if it will align with your goals. Remember, time doesn’t always translate into knowledge. You will want to find about their experience as it pertains to your audience, industry and/or key skills.

What their coaching style is

 Your coach is someone who ultimately help to shape your public speaking career, so you must make sure that the two of you have chemistry. You should ask any potential coach about their process, specialties, result, or anything you need to know that will make you feel comfortable.

It is also important to know the characteristics of your audience well. Different audiences require different approaches, and your coach should know how to teach you to speak to your audience. Every crowd is different, but a good coach will know how to elicit the intended emotion or help you deliver the right message to most people you’re speaking to.

Ask about past clients

It’s possible that your potential coach can’t give you the specifics of who they worked with, but they should be able to tell you the types of clients they work with and potentially their goals. Get as much information as you can such as industry, job titles, experience range and more. As stated above, if you’re able to get more insight on their client’s past results, that would be best. Learning more about the other public speakers they work with will help you determine if the fit is right.

For example, if you are in tech and are looking to speak to audience who are also in tech, it wouldn’t make sense to hire someone who primarily works with teachers. While I’m sure all coaches have insight to share, you will want to work with someone who has experience with people like you.

If you’re looking for public speaking coaching, it may help to keep these tips in mind but you’re going to have to decide what works best for you and create a plan for yourself and your public speaking coach.

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