ICan Speak

One thing I was always told was that if there is something that I wished to do then I should find someone else already doing it successfully and model them. In fact it's what I have been doing a lot of my life. Whilst I was at the Yorkshire Post working as telesales canvasser I won an award for being the best on the team for the year. I won the award because I watched and listened to the best and essentially copied what they did. Of course with my own personality thrown in for good measure.

I now speak all over the UK, and in May the world (Switzerland) and many people contact me and ask me to help them along the way with their own speaking as I am now a very successful professional speaker. For that reason I have put my first 'iCan Speak' Training session together so that iCan not only share my presentation but also HOW I have managed to speak over 500 times since that journey begun in 2005.

It takes place on Weds 5th May at Shine in Leeds from 6-8pm. Click here for address.

There will also be representatives from The Professional Speakers Association and Toastmasters International, both of which were a massive help in my success, to say a few words about what they offer aspiring speakers.

Bonus Session: Lee Jackson will share his session "How to create exciting slides for your presentation".

If anyone is interested in attending and spaces are limited to 40 (and a number have gone already) then send an email expressing your interest to

Justine(at)Richardmccann.co.uk

Or register on Facebook here:

Or on Linkedin here:

Hope to see you there.

Its a Miracle

Its a miracle. And her name is Isla, our 3rd child and 2nd daughter. She was brought into this world just 8 days ago. I have only just found the time to sit down at my laptop and scribble a few words about the experience. As Isla was dragged (it was a cesarean section so she was dragged) from my wife Helen's body it occurred to me how in many ways the experience of birth is a lot like life. Isla had remained where she was for near on 9 months, happy as Larry (if she had been a boy), content with where she had found herself, unaware that just around the corner there was another world. A world that she could not possible imagine. A world that, whichever way she got there, was going to be painful. But in experiencing the pain and discomfort of her change in circumstance she would allow herself to be able to grow in a way that nature intended.

Of course she had no choice in the matter but we do have a choice in where we find ourselves. In life many of us remain in a place that we are not happy with and for some reason unable to find whats necessary to take that leap of faith, to do that thing that we are frightened of, to do that thing that may, at first, feel uncomfortable but in fact will take us to a place that we never knew existed. We need to get out, to step out, to climb or even be dragged out of that comfort zone in order that we can grow and get anywhere near our full potential. One things for sure, that little voice that you may think is yours, talking you out of doing those things that you are capable of, was not a voice you were born with. Its an accumulation of your experiences or the experiences of those around you as you grew. The most important conversation you will ever have is the one you have with yourself. Stop living a life sentence, start being alive. Be brave, be courageous, be the incredible miracle you always were from the moment you were conceived.

Apart from that, nothing much doing here. Is there much doing in your neck of the woods?

Here's my latest podcast about theft if you have 6minutes.

www.richardmccann.co.uk

iCan Podcast

Hi
I'm feeling rather pleased with myself as I have just created my very first podcast: I said that I would do so when a group that I created on Facebook had reached 4000 members and because we have reached that point I had to put my money where my mouth was. Actually, it was more of a case of putting the mic where my mouth was.

Heres the link: (You have to remember that we all start somewhere)
http://www.podcastfm.co.uk/files/809/mp3/now_thats_what_i_call_inspir.mp3

It does remind me of what I cover in my workshops and that is when we set a goal and we commit to making it happen then anythings possible. (well almost: I don't seem to ever be able to catch up with my emails)

Why not give it a go yourself with that thing that you have been putting off. Give yourself a date and say by this date I commit to doing X, Y or Z.

In 2009 I said that I would definitely speak internationally in 2010. Even if I had to pay the flights myself and receive no fee for the engagement. As it happens I will not have to pay for the flight and I will be receiving my fee and in May I will be speaking in the beautiful Switzerland.

Over and Out.

Positivity

I have just had someone take a look at my branding and we have now come up with some new designs which I’m pleased with. When I was younger I was often teased with names like ‘Duracell’. The battery with a copper coloured top. And before I go any further I have to point out that I have ginger hair. I hated it when I was younger but I love it now. Anyhow we now have a copper coloured top on all the new materials, business card, pop up banner, email signature etc.


The thing about a Duracell battery, and any other battery for that matter, is that they have both a negative and a positive and both are needed in order for it to work. As a motivational speaker I often talk about the importance of having a ‘Positive Attitude’ when those negative things happen in our lives. How much easier life could be if we accepted that we will have our fair share of both negative and positive events in our lives.

If I look back over my life I could probably draw a graph going up and down tracking the positive and negative life events which have occurred. After every negative thing which has happened there has definitely been a period of recovery until finally I would be in a good place again.

Last week it was announced that we are still in recession. There was definitely a negative flurry of headlines for a couple of days afterwards but what none of the headlines seemed to point out was that the negative growth experienced during the last quarter was less than the previous quarter which meant that if things continued at this rate we would soon return to growth. If the media had reported that we are now heading back to growth (which we are) and sang and danced about it as much as they do when they report something negative then possibly that would have encouraged people to get out there and begin spending again and we might have returned to growth even sooner.


As I said today when I gave my Thought Provoking Presentation at a networking event in the North East...Focus on the Positive.

Service Stations: You can either love or hate them.

Hi Folks
Hope all is well in your world. Going great guns here (whatever that means) and I returned earlier from speaking in Manchester where a great time was had by all. On the way back I found myself at the back of an 8 mile traffic Jam on the M62. Just as I was about to become very annoyed (to say the least) I decided to chose a better attitude. And as if by magic a sign appeared as we all crawled along the motorway. It was the service station. "Perfect" I thought. I took the slip road, parked the car and entered and ordered my food. I wont comment on the food as that's another story but I ate what I ordered, enjoyed my tea and gathered my thoughts for a short while. I returned to my car around 40 minutes later, joined the motorway and hey presto, the traffic jam had disapeared.

As I often say in my work as an Inspirational Speaker, "we cant turn back the clock when things happen around us but we can decide what we are going to both do next and the meaning we apply to what goes on around us".

I made a recent observation about time spent in service stations and you can hear what I had to say here.

Deepak Chopra goes Deep

What a lovely weekend. Yesterday I gave a talk to 200 of the lovely folks at the Samaritans Annual Conference in York. I was so pleased that no one fainted as happened five years ago when I gave a talk to them on what was a scorching day.

Although I do enjoy doing a book signing afterwards I was conscious that I had to drive all the way to Manchester to see one of my hero's Deepak Chopra. I sold and signed so many books that I was 20 minutes late for his address. It was still amazing.


One of the most interesting things I heard him talk about was the notion that the Universe is actually us. We are the universe, we are not in our body but that our body is in us. That the whole Universe is in us. (Deep I know) The thing was that it reminded me of a time when I was a young boy, soon after mum had been murdered, when I remember feeling so bad about what had happened to mum, as well as all the other things which were taking place at home, and despite this I imagined that what I was experiencing was not real. That it was some kind of film or play and I was the observer. An observer watching everything that was taking place but that those things were not reality. I was reality. What was happening around me and to me was all being orchestrated. Having listened to Deepak last night I was taken back to that time. Although apparently there is no such thing as time..

Afterwards I bought a couple of books and went to get them signed by him. I was refused by his security team. They said that Deepak had decided not to do anymore. Just four hours earlier I had made myself late to watch him as I stopped and signed every book that my audience had requested. I didn't take it personally. Deepak is an acclaimed international speaker and author who was jetting off to Japan to give another talk. One day I might even get there myself. My first book is published in Japan so one never knows.

Until next time:

Richard

We cant predict everything:

It just goes to show you that in life, often when we least expect it, things can happen that take us by surprise. No one knows whats around the corner, of what will occur tomorrow, when we will get the news of a disaster, a job loss......life is like that. We can't turn back the clock but what we can do is dust ourselves down and start again. Which is just what happened after I had taken this video. I stopped rolling as I thought Skye had injured herself. She will love this in years to come.