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Saturday, June 12, 2010

Breakfast Onboard 6 AM

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Friday, June 11, 2010

Livorno

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Livorno

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Yummm!!!

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SCF Roving Report #2: Heresy in St. Peters!

I decided to do promotional videos in St. Peters. Marisol is Catholic and started chiding me for heresy. I had to sneak off to cut videos on my own but she caught me.

Speak on Cruises Free Tip #2: Give Brand Promoting Gifts

Assistant cruise director Gina told me today that she would have RCCL pens and key chains for me to give away at my onboard talks. This increases the likelihood people will like my talks. Here's how you increase the probability you'll get gifts. Tell the assistant cruise director the gifts will increase brand loyalty.

Then give the gifts away in response to your Q&As at the end of your talks- win-win-win!

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Wednesday, June 09, 2010

Toledo

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Barcelona

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Toledo

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SCF Roving Report #1: A Redneck Wakes Up In Cannes… France that is!

Marisol and I woke up in Cannes, France. Being born and raised redneck this is extra special. We flew straight over from San Jaun to Madrid, then kinda like somebody popped our old family camper (the one that pops on an old pickup truck). And wham bam up we wake off the coast of France!

Yup it's ol' doc Brown here again to give you roving eye's view of what it's like to cruise FREE!

This is our 6th free cruise in 2 years an we've saved $34,562.21 in total travel fees. That's a big pile of money we've been able to invest elsewhere even while we cruise and awaken in place you, your family, or friends have never imagined.

I know you're expecting the SCF famous extra special cruise free tip so here it goes…

Speak on Cruises Free Tip #1: Strangers Bearing Gifts Are Best Received

I met with the assistant cruise director Gina yesterday in the evening after boarding in Barcelona. She explained all the procedures. Importantly RCCL wants you to start and stop your presentation promptly. Don't chew the fat with folks in the conference center. Offer to talk with them afterwards at their convenience.

Anyhow, when she finished as we sat at the champagne bar on the Brilliance of the Seas, I opened up the black bag I'd carried up. I pulled out 5 CDs of the hottest Latin hip-hop, salsa, and pop to share with the cruise director and the captain. Then I handed her Spansh vocabulary and phrase cards since she had mentioned how she has to learn Spanish. I topped it of with saffron from Toledo, Spain.

She was extremely touched explained that NOBODY who speaks on cruises had EVER given her a gift. What kind of goodwill do you creates for less than $100? Think carefully in light of the fact that we've already saved $5,152.98 in that we got our cabin, food and all amenities for FREEEEEE!!!!

Nuf said…this rednecks headin' ashore to DO FRANCE!

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Tuesday, June 08, 2010

Use the Team

A few weeks ago another member of the SpeakersCruiseFree.Com network, Dr Scott Brown, called to say that he and his wife, Marisol would be in Toledo, en route to a cruise assignment out of Barcelona. Kathy and I jumped at the chance to meet and we headed off to this beautiful medieval city in the hot centre of Spain.

We met up on Sunday evening for dinner and chewed over a whole host of lessons we've each learned - not just in cruise speaking, but also in publishing, webcasting, revenue generating - and life enjoying. All the sorts of things that Daniel advises on in SpeakersCruiseFree.Com.

I have had an active, varied and successful career. But I have also learned so much from Daniel and the folks like Scott who I have met through Daniel.

And of course Kathy and I have also had some wonderful vacations - cruising the world free. We are getting over $15,000 worth of free cruising each year at the moment (that's based on discounted prices - not brochure price!!). All in exchange for doing what I enjoy - talking about things that interest me. Thanks to SpeakersCruiseFree.Com.

If you are not already cruising free and meeting great folks click HERE now!!

Happy cruising FREE!!
Andrew


Monday, May 31, 2010

Know your Equipment

We're just back from another great itinerary - another free cruise. 14 nights of relaxation and exciting ports of call - and all in exchange for just 5 talks of under an hour each! All thanks to Speakers_Cruise_Free.Com.

I was up against a destination speaker who frankly was totally unprepared. The sad thing is he did know so much - BUT - He talked to the screen instead of the audience!! He mumbled!! and worst of all he seemed incapable of holding a mike!!

As his head (and hence his mouth) went one way it seemed his microphone went the other.

The audience deserted in droves - from 160 on day 1 to under 20 on day 5!!

The Cruise Director's staff recognised what was happening and asked for help. Flexibility is the name of the game - so I beefed up the destination content in my talks and we spread the word that the second lecture each sea day had destination information. I've learned plenty from a life in business - and, of course, from Speakers_Cruise_Free.Com!!

My audience grew. My book sales soared!! and the officers made a point of thanking Kathy and me for the flexibility and support.

We will be welcomed back anytime.

The other guy will probably struggle now to find any cruises - and he's with an agency that charges him to cruise!!! In fact I've been assured that this line will not book him again - and are telling his agent why!!

To cruise free click HERE. That's what we did. :-)

Andrew

Thursday, May 13, 2010

The Secret

Lots of people in business and in their private lives follow the teachings of this very popular lifestyle guide, by Rhonda Byrne, based on the law of attraction.

My own secret of success shares these princples.

1) If I don't believe in myself why should anyone else believe in me?
2) If I am confident in my appearances I will gain legitimate confidence.
3) If I set clear goals in which I believe I have a greater chance of achieving them.

So far in this enjoyable life of mine these rules have served me well. When I moved out of the 80 hour corporate sector and into my own consulting and mentoring practice I wanted to build around me a team of strong and competent professionals - but I wouldn't choose to work with anyone who didn't truly believe in him or her self. That's not to say that I choose over confident people or just folks who talk a good fight. I will only select people who show that their confidence is well placed - a degree of modesty should not be mistaken for lack of confidence.

Similarly when I chose to work with Daniel Hall's SPEAKERS_CRUISE_FREE.COM I wanted to be sure that we were both contributing success to our relationship. I was very pleasantly surprised by what I found in Daniel. SPEAKERS_CRUISE_FREE.COM is built on success. Daniel's own success and the success of the network members. Team sharing ensurers ongoing support and mentoring - and contributes to repeat cruise - FREE!!

If you are not already part of this success network then let me tell you a secret - just click HERE - I'm sure you won't regret it!

Happy cruising FREE,

Andrew

Tuesday, May 04, 2010

Nearly Packed and Ready to Go. :-)

Our next cruise departs a week on Saturday. Here in Europe we're still facing disruption from the Icelandic ash cloud that closed our airways for nearly a week. So we have an alternative plan to get to the port in plenty of time.

I enjoy planning and make a point of having my talks complete and loaded on my webbook way ahead. I carry back up copies of my PowerPoint presentations on DvD and flash drives - just in case. And I have my speaker notes filed and ready to roll.

When I take on a new SPEAKERSCRUISEFREE.COM assignment as an enrichment speaker I always like to tailor my talks to the itinerary. I will look at the links to our ports of call and ask for a rough indication of the nationality mix. That way, when I talk about cultural differences, life in the sun, the development of modern tourism, lifestyle improvement or economic overviews I do so with a talk that is tailored to my audience and to their cruise.

I'm not suggesting that I re-write every talk. But I do make a point of offering advice that is relevant. When I talk about the days of the Grand Tour, if we are calling into Rome I will point out the importance of the city as a Grand Tour destination a couple hundred years ago. When warning about the cultural pitfalls to avoid, if we are calling into the UK, with a largely North American audience I'll point out (with a smile) that over here a bathroom is a room with a bath tub in it and a restroom is a room with comfortable chairs in it. A lavatory, a toilet, a WC are what they say - but to be polite you might like to ask for the "loo"!! Or in Spain for "los servicios".


Kathy & I have got so much out of our free cruises since we signed up to SPEAKERSCRUISEFREE.COM. Great vacations and lots of wonderful new contacts.

If you are not already part of this outstanding network then do yourself a big favour and click HERE now.

Happy cruising - FREE,

Andrew

Monday, April 26, 2010

Same old same old

We have many friends whose idea of a vacation is back to the same beach or ski slope every year. They are comfortable there and know what to expect.


Well since we signed up to SPEAKERSCRUISEFREE.COM we know what to expect too -


* Luxury cruises provided free of charge by some of the very best cruise lines

* Different and exciting destinations to choose from

* Some wonderful and inspiring travelling companions

* And the familiarity of good, caring staff, comfortable accommodation, outstanding entertainment AND

* The professionals take care of the scheduling.


After years of travelling on business around the globe I relish the idea of unpacking once, yet visiting 4 or 5 contrasting ports a week.


If you fancy exploring the world in comfort and luxury check out SPEAKERSCRUISEFREE.COM NOW.


Happy cruising - FREE!!


Andrew

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Cruise Ship Speaker and Becoming a Mini-Celebrity

I wanted to share this video I made for you. It was shot in my stateroom on a recent cruise but I think you'll like it. It's all about one of the many benefits of cruise ship speaking. Check it out and let me know what you think in the comments.



Now, if you are not already a member of the posse, what are you waiting for?

Go now -- your path to mini-stardom --> http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Know your limits?

Do you reckon that you know the limits of your own capabilities? Most of us do. But let me share a little secret with you - most of us undervalue our own ability. Even those bores who talk all the time about how wonderful they are, have no real idea just what they are capable of.

So many people that I meet would make great public speakers - yet they've become conditioned to believe that they can't do it.

Well if you are one of those folks let me encourage you to picture yourself on stage and imagine the audience in raptures at what you have to say. See the fun, feel the thrill, hear the applause - and squeeze together the thumb and middle finger on your right hand. Now see the image that you probably repeat to yourself far too often. I don't know what you think will go wrong - but conjure up that image - now squeeze together the thumb and middle finger on your left hand.

See the image of failure on a large screen infront of you, as you squeeze together the lefthand thumb and finger - and in just one tiny pixel in the top lefthand corner place the image of it going well.

Now alternate the images. Make the success image larger pushing aside the picture of failure, as you squeeze together the righthand thumb and finger. Repeat this 5 times, each time making the success image larger, so that by the third swap it is one third the size of the image of failure and pushes it further away. By the fourth swap make success just over half the total size and watch the image of failure disappear as you make the switch for the fifth and final time, as it gets sqeezed out completely. Squeeze together the thumb and finger on your righthand.

Now you will have a strong trust in your own ability to succeed.

And succeed you can. Click HERE NOW. You can join the fantastic network that is SPEAKERSCRUISEFREE.COM.

Cruise for free? Yes you can. Click HERE now, before you miss your chance.

Happy free cruising,

Andrew

Monday, April 05, 2010

One Step at a Time

When I first approached Daniel Hall to find out more about SPEAKERSCRUISEFREE.COM I was impatient to get signed up. My impatience has been one key to my success - when I have a job to do I want to get on and do it - really well.

But at times that same impatience has got me into trouble by jumping just a tad too early!

Daniel explained very clearly how the SpeakersCruiseFree system works. His simple explanations of the few steps I had to take to get signed up makes it all so easy to understand and to follow.

If you want to find out just how easy it is click HERE now.

When you do you can join the SpeakersCruiseFree network of speakers cruising the world - FOR FREE!!

The steps to follow are so simple, so clearly presented. A bit of preparation and in a matter of weeks you could join us as we cruise the oceans - at the cruise companies' expense.

What are you waiting for?

Click HERE now.

Happy cruising - FREE.

Andrew

Monday, March 29, 2010

Signed up?

Have you already signed up to SPEAKERSCRUISEFREE.COM? If not - Why not?

The clue is in the title. Speakers who click HERE really do get to cruise free. What do you have to do?

1) Read and follow Daniel Hall's simple guide to preparing your profile.
2) Use his leads to promote yourself the decision makers in the cruise lines.
3) Follow Daniel's advice to create outstanding talks - based on the things that you enjoy talking about.
4) Enjoy those great free cruises.

So if you are not already cruising free under Daniel Hall's SPEAKERSCRUISEFREE.COM scheme I can only say take the plunge. It won't cost a fortune - and it really can get you cruising free.

Happy Cruising - FREE!!

Click HERE now!

Sunday, March 21, 2010

About Promises

My early years in selling taught me that you only promise what you will actually deliver.


As a result I was amazed to hear a conversation between a lecturer from one of those "pay us €75 a day" speaker agencies and the cruise programme manager. This lady had obviously not learned what SPEAKERSCRUISEFREE.COM teaches us. The lecturer had presented a really impressive list of topics, with a great synopsis on each. But it turned out that these were the topics she'd seen another speaker present on an earlier cruise - and copied the list. She though had not done the research and spoke from memory.


If only she'd signed up with SPEAKERSCRUISEFREE.COM she would have known what is expected of her. She was perfectly capable - just VERY badly advised. As a result she will never work with that cruise line again.


Just a few hours of preparation would have allowed her to create her own topics and presentations - that way she would have built her own reputation, rather than riding on the coat tails of someone who was prepared to do the preparation.


Of course she would also have saved herself €75 a day if she'd signed up with SPEAKERSCRUISEFREE.COM !!


If you are not already cruising free click HERE to find out more.


Happy free cruising


Andrew

Monday, March 15, 2010

Mountains or Molehills?

Or to put it another way "Problems or Opportunities"?

On a New Zealand cruise recently I was the destination speaker. I researched New Zealand itself, history, general geography and of course the highlights of our ports of call. If I say so myself I'd done a really good job - well it was all made so much easier for me because I follow Daniel Hall's advice. His SPEAKERSCRUISEFREE.COM programme gave me all I needed to know about how to structure my talks to this particular audience group.

I got "rave" reviews and was often stopped by passengers to introduce me to friends who wanted to join the audience. By the end of the cruise I had 200 plus at a time - apparently breaking known records. But then other lecturers probably weren't with SPEAKERSCRUISEFREE.COM.

Then came my "problem" - the captain made a point of meeting me at a cocktail party to tell me he wanted me to do bridge lectures (speaking over the ship's PA system) as we cruised through the 3 fjords - the "Sounds" of South Island. As we were not due to stop there I'd only touched on them very lightly in my preparation. So no point being phased!! I asked our contact, the cruise program manager, for some internet time and quickly put together a host of information. I spoke to the pilot once he joined us to check my info - and he offered me some of his.

You see - flexibility - one of the first lessons I learned from my contacts with SPEAKERSCRUISEFREE.COM.

The captain was so impressed he asked me to return a few days later to talk through Volcanic White Island - and for this I did a little research on the Pacific Ring of Fire. In truth Kathy did about half the work. So once again our teamwork paid off. I recognised that my "molehill" was not a mountain and turned a potential problem into a real opportunity. And the outcome was one very satisfied captain - AND a VERY positive report back to the cruise company HQ. I got a thank you phone call soon after we returned home and a request to do an extra cruise. That relationship is getting even stronger.

Don't make mountains out of molehills - and do turn problems into opportunities. :-)

If you are not already cruising free I can only ask "why not?". You must realise what a great opportunity you are missing. That's NOT a problem you see!!?

To find out more click HERE now.

Happy cruising - - - FREE!!!

Monday, March 08, 2010

Lemonade From Lemons

Hi Everyone --

I am happy to say that I received lots of emails from happy customers of my Speak on Cruise Ships program. If you want to get started cruising free you can check out this site: http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/

In any event, once in awhile I like to publish these emails (with permission) especially when they have value to new folks looking to cruise free.

Thus, the below post come from an email sent by Phil Calkins. Phil tells the story of how he made lemonade from lemons -- and still got to cruise free! I think his note is instructive not just a cruise speaker stand point but for any time you are asked to speak and something goes wrong...

Hi Daniel,


We just returned from the Explorer of the Seas, 9-night cruise out of Bayonne, NJ, and wanted to share an “the show must go on” experience. Since we had an early flight out of Nashville, TN the morning of Feb. 5, we drove down the night before. I still had a few e-mails to send out and read and when I was finished I shut down my laptop and packed it in the case. The afternoon of the 5th, while waiting for the muster drill I pulled out my laptop, plugged it in, and it was head as last week’s mackerel! It showed no power coming in at all. I removed the battery and still nothing. So I called guest relations, introduced myself as the enrichment speaker and they promptly sent up an electrician to check the outlet. He explained I was getting power from the outlet to the charger but nothing from the charger into the computer. I thought I must have twisted a wire or something, so when I met Nicky, the Cruise Activities Director, following the muster drill, I explained my plight and that I would do the talks without the PowerPoint. As it turned out, it was a great move. Let me explain.


All of my 5 talks were scheduled at 2PM (ship’s time) each of the 5 days at sea. The staff promoted each talk over the ship’s intercom as well as the Daily Compass, and I set up the day 1 attendees with a list of the up-coming talks and asked them to come back each day. I had about 60% repeat attendees each day plus new ones and averaged around 25-30 per talk (Day 2 was best at slight over 50!). At the conclusion of the last talk, people hung around talking and asking questions and taking my business card with my contact info. It reminded me of the end of the semester when the students leave but the bond was still their between them and me. Because of the computer crash, I made the talks even more interactive and engaged them by asking them to envision some of the scenes the slides portrayed.


I’ll still plan on PowerPoint for the future but it just shows that good prep and flexibility can still make lemonade out of lemons!


As I mentioned above, having the talks the same time, each day, at the same conference room was a big plus. Even though I didn’t need the projector, the cruise staff came by about 15 minutes early each day to check on any needs I might have, and stayed around mixing with the attendees and our warm up chats. I’m sure they reported the excellent repore’ shared by all.


I did record the first 12 minutes of my first talk on high def video and I’ll get that to you to forward to Celebrity ASAP. If it looks like I was gripping the podium for stability, I was! We went from a Cat. 2, hurricane strength storm about 5AM that morning and still had force 9 gale winds by early afternoon.


Thanks again for all your support and representation,


Phil Calkins, M.S., CFP



Image: Suat Eman / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Sunday, March 07, 2010

Freedom



Have you discovered the freedom of FREE cruising?


With SpeakersCruiseFree.com you could be travelling the world on board luxury cruise liners - with your cruise paid for by the cruise companies!!


Cruise companies need well prepared interesting speakers who can contribute to their passengers' experience. They call us "Enrichment Lecturers". We usually speak for up to an hour on subjects that we enjoy - lots of us choose topics that are a part of our lives anyway. And the best part is we only speak on the occasional day at sea.


So what's the catch? That is a good question!! And so far I haven't found one.


Since I visited SpeakersCruiseFree.com Kathy & I have enjoyed over $15,000 of cruises. And we didn't pay for them!!


It's true. I talk about things I enjoy, backed up by PowerPoint presentations. And in return we get free cruises - over 8 weeks in the last year alone!!


And it really is so much easier than you might expect. How? Well just contact Daniel Hall HERE and follow his simple advice. Daniel has all the essential tips - and the introductions.


Why wait visit SpeakersCruiseFree.com NOW!!!


Why throw away the opportunity for vacation freedom. Click HERE NOW!!!
Happy cruising FREE.




Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Consequences

As children we used to play a game known as "Consequences". In essence it made us think of the likely results of certain actions - and what might happen if we didn't take those actions.



We played the game with our own children as they grew up. And now I see that our older son is playing Consequences with his youngsters.



So let me ask you - "What would be the consequenes of visiting speakerscruisefree.com?"



I'll save you some time! If you click here now you could be on free cruises starting in a matter of weeks, if you are available. If you will not be available until later your free cruising can start then. You see it's in your hands! One simple visit to SpeakersCruiseFree.com and you will be on your way.



Right. So that's the consequence of visiting Daniel Hall's site. But what happens if you don't?



This one is just as easy! If you don't take that first step, that one CLICK you'll never know what you will miss. But let me give you some clues.

Firstly you will miss the leadership of the man himself - Daniel Hall.

Secondly you will miss the suport of the amazing community of folks like you, who enthuse at the opportunity to help other SpeakersCruiseFree.

But most of all you will miss the opportunity to reward yourself with FREE cruises!!



What have you got to loose?

That's easy too. If you don't visit SpeakersCruiseFree.com you will loose the opportunity to cruise the world at someone else's expense.

If you do click HERE you could loose a major part of your vacation expense - because the cruise companies will pay for their speakers' cruises.



YES it really is so simple.



Click HERE now to find out more



Happy FREE cruising,



Andrew

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Saying Thank You

I'm sure we were all well brought up - taught to say "please" and "thank you" etc. But in business settings it's all too easy to forget to say "thank you". And yet that one phrase can make all the difference to the person who's been helping you.


So I want to say a big "THANK YOU" to Daniel Hall. When I first visited speakerscruisefree.com I could not have imagined where it might lead me.


And today I say thank you regularly for the oportunities that have come from that speculative click. To find out more now click here.


And I recognise the value of an occasional pat on the back, so I make a point of saying "thank you" to our cruise company contacts when they fix us up for a cruise, when the contract arrives, when the cruise is complete - even if they have to make changes.


The result is that whenever I phone or email I always get their attention and I always get a response. Just two small words.


If you are not already cruising free give yourself something to say "thank you" for. Meet Daniel now here.
While you're at it read about my life in the sun. It's one big "thank you" click here.
And finally thank you for reading this. Don't miss the opportunity of a lifetime. Click here now.
Happy cruising - FREE
Andrew


Sunday, February 14, 2010

The Deal With Cruise Speaker Agents


I recently received an excellent email question related to using agents and my Speakers Cruise Free Program. I thought you might benefit from the information as well so I decided to post the question and my response here.

--------------------------------------------------------


I answer within the body of the email...


Hi Daniel, Let me see if I understand you correctly. Once I have been approved by one cruise line, I'm accepted on others.


(Daniel’s Response) ******** No, once you are approved by one line you continue to be approved by that SAME line as long as you continue to receive good reviews from both passengers and cruise director’s staff.

You don't mention agent fees.??? I have worked on Norwegian and Royal Caribbean for years by paying agent fees I have met others who say they don't pay an agent. So, that is what I am trying to find out about.--how do I get accepted without having to go through an agent.


(Daniel’s Response) ******** My system and way of doing things is all about booking direct with cruise lines and thereby circumventing agent fees. A caveat: working with agencies is great as long as you make an informed decision about using them. What I mean is that not only do you have to pay an agency fee but once an agency books you into one line you cannot later book direct with that same line. In other words, you are locked into using that agency for that particular cruise line. Thus, you would not in the future be able to book through Royal Caribbean and NCL; you would need to continue using the agency that first booked you. One other thing. The last time I checked you cannot book directly with NCL – they only use one agency.

I would appreciate any advice you can give me. Thanks.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Would you like to get started cruising free here: http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/

Friday, February 12, 2010

Good Fortune

Whenever I say how lucky we are a good friend of mine reminds me that "luck is when preparation meets opportunity".

I prepare for every cruise, well researched lectures with great PowerPoint presentations - and Daniel Hall presents the opportunities - pop now to www.CruiseImprove.Com/FREE

But best of all, after my first few cruises I had built up a stock of great, well illustrated talks, which I can easily adapt for future itineraries. So when I was invited to speak on a Mediterranean cruise in a few weeks time I spent a morning making a few adaptions and was ready to go. Everything you need to know is there waiting for you at www.CruiseImprove.Com/FREE

If you are not yet cruising free, you are not getting all the fortune that's awaiting you. There are 4 simple steps to follow - 1) visit www.CruiseImprove.Com/FREE 2) Prepare as Daniel will advise you 3) Get booked on appropriate itineraries and the 4) Put your talks and illustrations together.

Prepare now to be lucky - visit www.CruiseImprove.Com/FREE

And check out my book about life at Mediterranean pace at http://www.figleaf.org/

Happy cruising - FREE!!

Andrew

Wednesday, February 03, 2010

7 Awesome Tips for First Time Destination Guest Lecturers

TIP 1
Check whether you are required to be the Port Destination Lecturer or Enrichment Destination Lecturer.These are two different types of presenters and passengers expect the Port first and Enrichment second. Qualify this with your organizer, prior to preparation.

Group 1 – Enrichment Destination – Princess Cruise Lines - Please note: often our ships have Port Lecturers that have been recruited by our Shore Excursion Department. These lecturers talk specifically about each port from a “tour guide” or “local man on the ground” point of view, talking in detail about what to do and things to see in each port. Destination speakers should try to give a broader overview of cities or countries or entire regions to avoid overlap or repetitiveness (as suggested above), although some overlap will be unavoidable. Occasionally, when we are missing a Port Lecturer, we will request the Destination speaker function more like a Port Lecturer.

TIP 2
Use a hand held microphone or lectern rather than headset, which may not fit your head properly.

TIP 3
To prepare a lecture that caters to ALL cultures, limit humor, interaction, jargon and slow your pace of speech.

TIP 4
Success with your presentation will depend on your preparation. To suit all personality groups I suggest a power point slide with a graphic on one side and a statistic or fact on the side of the slide. Alternatively a full graphic slide or words in no smaller than 20 point font. This suits both personality styles and will suit all your audience members.

TIP 5
Take the time to research the passenger’s expectations AND the cruise ships expectations from the organizer. These should match.

TIP 6
A lecture style presentation is preferred for destination topics. Limit your interaction with your audience.

None is better than too much and fewer chances of mistakes.

TIP 7
Use facts in your information. EG.A large number of migrants emigrated from Greece after the war, is too general. The year and the number is what the passengers like to hear. In 1948 60,000 immigrants from Greece migrated to Australia.

Supplied by Janice Davies ASM, Professional Speaker, Business Trainer, Success Coach & Author
www.attitudespecialist.co.nz

----------------------------------------------------------------

Note From Daniel: Thank you Janice for your great tips! Now if you want to want to get started cruising free as a speaker -- get on over to http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/ and dip a toe with a free special report.

Tuesday, February 02, 2010

Tax free bonus



When I was a thurusting young executive I was often amazed that I could command the income that I was earning. And I was always rather disappointed that I had to shell out 50% (or more) on my declarations to the revenue.
Well now I get regular bonus travel - and no money changes hands. Visit www.cruiseimprove.com/FREE
Thanks to Daniel Hall's "Speakers Cruise Free" system we and many other forunate, and well motivated, speakers cruise the world for free.
Fancy the South Pacific? - visit www.cruiseimprove.com/FREE
Always wanted to cruise through the Panama Canal? - visit www.cruiseimprove.com/FREE
Want to see Alaska? - visit it www.cruiseimprove.com/FREE
Get the idea?
Those of us in the know use this system to travel the world - Australia, Greece, the Baltic, the China Seas, the Atlantic Islands, New England in the Fall - and so much more.
If you're not yet cruising for free do yourself a favour now - visit www.cruiseimprove.com/FREE
And to learn about the fun and trials of moving to the latin speaking world read my book "Under Latin Skies", available at http://www.figleaf.org/

Happy cruising (for free!),

Andrew

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

The Time of My Life

While sitting on the beach last week in Princess Cays, Bahamas, I turned to my mother (my guest for the cruise) and said, "Dreams really do come true."

In December 2008, I couldn't stop thinking about my desire to travel.

As luck would have it, a good friend had just recently met Daniel Hall. She shared his contact information with me and I downloaded his ebook about cruising for free a few days later.

I followed Daniel's directions and before I knew it I was approved to sail with Princess.

By May 2009, I had my trip scheduled!



What a fabulous experience. Everything about the ship and the crew exceeded all my expectations. And besides that, except for port excursions, cocktails and add-on services, my cruise was free.

Below I have included some tips for anyone cruising with Princess:

1. Speakers are housed in staterooms or in captain's quarters (with crew). If you do find yourself in the crew area, it is important to understand you will not have the typical "stateroom" amenities like soap, shampoo conditioner and/or blow dryer. Because you will not know your assignment until boarding, it is suggested you pack with the assumption you will be with the crew.



My mother and I were assigned a room with the crew.

2. If you are assigned a crew's cabin and have any difficulties with your keys, you must visit the Crew Supervisor (not Passenger Services).

3. Be prepared to speak in large venues. Although they do have smaller conference rooms, on my cruise the smaller rooms were occupied by card players. I spoke in the theater (holds 800) and then in one of the clubs (holds 400), even though audiences for scholarship programs (as they call them) are typically less than 100.

4. Bring an up-to-date laptop with you and a remote. If you have problems with your equipment, they have one on board (at least they did on the Emerald). Also make a backup copy of your presentation (on CD or memory stick) just incase you have to use their equipment.


5. Site all your photos and sources. Good practice for any presentation you make!

6. If you need pencils or pens, this request will need to be made to the Cruise Director staff. Your contact, the person assigned to you on the first day, can help you with "special" requests like this.

7. Recommend taking 50 copies for handouts. I ran out of handouts for one presentation. It's possible to ask for more or have them available at Passenger Services (later), if you run out during the presentation.

8. Practice, practice, practice. You do not want to use your cruise time rehearsing! Preparing destination lectures is time intensive. Give yourself plenty of time to create detailed, as well as entertaining slides. Use pictures, maps and other attention-getting additions to your PowerPoint slides.

9. If you have never used a microphone (hand held or headset), you might want to find a way to practice doing so before you step foot on board. Unless you are placed in a small conference room, you will need a microphone.
10. Be aware of the schedule. You might have events booked immediately ahead or behind you. Understand the time limits you have and make adjustments. For example, during one lecture, I was given 40 minutes (due to set up time). The lecture could have gone on for one hour. The night before, I cut slides and made adjustments. If you have an event booked in front of you,take your equipment early so that the technician can set up when it's convenient for him or her.

Personally, I can't wait to get back on board! Thanks for creating your program, Daniel. It works!

Allyn Evans

Monday, January 18, 2010

The Log From The Sea of Cortez

I just completed a week aboard Cruise West’s Spirit of Endeavor as the onboard speaker for this Steinbeck themed cruise. This was a TOUGH gig folks because it takes so much prep to get ready to speak on any themed cruise as the theme expert.












John Steinbeck was a Nobel laureate novelist with books and movies ranging from Grapes of Wrath to East of Eden. In 1941 he jumped on a sardine boat with marine biologist friend Ed Rickets and sampled the marine wildlife in an alcoholic frolic in northern Mexico.












The reason this speaking engagement was so tough is that it was billed as a Steinbeck cruise.











There were about 80 high net worth passengers.












Speaking Tip: So the lesson here is that if you are going to tackle onboard speaking on a small ship take it really seriously. Also try to make sure that the cruise line communicates to the passengers your credentials before the cruise. Best get them to put your photo and information on the website on the days you will talk.












Small cruise speaking is not a free cruise on the first time do to the massive amount of preparation involved. It is an opportunity to really shine as an advanced speaker. It is also an opportunity to make solid connections with extremely solid people out there in the world.












If you are (1) a top speaker … not a beginner or intermediate speaker and (2) trying to expand your repertoire and (3) very charismatic and able to be very unbiased for hours and days on end than this can be a fantastic opportunity for you to progress!

Prof. Scott Brown, Ph.D.

Professor of Finance, University of Puerto Rico

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Where in the World

Where in the World would you travel if your meals, accommodation and travelling around were paid by someone else? Last year we spent 10 weeks on board luxury cruise ships - all paid for by the cruise lines. To find out how click here - www.cruiseimprove.com/FREE.


We have visited Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal, the Canary Islands, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Estonia, Finland, Russia and the UK - all in one year. And the cruises were all free! See here - www.cruiseimprove.com/FREE.


All I have to do is talk to folks about the things I love - and that's all prepared and ready to go. This year we will be cruising the Caribbean, the Eastern seaboard in summer, New England in the fall and Southern Europe in Spring. All these cruises are free. If you are not already cruising free with us click now to join us. www.cruiseimprove.com/FREE. We will all make you very welcome! :-)


And if you'd like to read about the thrills and spills of moving to the Latin world check out my book "Under Latin Skies" at http://www.figleaf.org/.


Happy cruising,


Andrew

Wednesday, January 06, 2010

Living like Kings

Today is known here in Spain as "Three Kings", the Catholic celebration of the arrival of the three wise men.


A couple of years ago we met one very wise man who introduced us to free cruising - all over the globe! Daniel Hall has devised an outstanding system that easily allows us and many others to talk about the things we enjoy, while travelling at someone else's expense to places we want to visit.


Check out www.CruiseImprove.Com/FREE to find out how easy it is.


Each year we make a list of the places we want to cruise (last year we took 5 separate cruises visiting 4 continents). Then we use Daniel's contacts, tips and his system to book cruises that match a number of those places.


We travel like kings. You can too. Just visit www.CruiseImprove.Com/FREE.


It is so easy - and you too could travel and live like kings.


Just click this link - www.CruiseImprove.Com/FREE


ENJOY your majesties............

On A Boat In The Sea of Cortez






I am about to cruise for free in the Sea of Cortez. I’ll be speaking on John Steinbeck, marine ecology,

and the political economy of Mexico. This is my fifth free cruise in 12 months after joining Daniel Hall’s Speaker’s Cruise Free club 18 months ago.

http://www.cruisewest.com/mexico-cruises-whales?mexico-cruises













I’ll be posting photos and speaking trips as the club roving reporter. This is a very advanced onboard speaking challenge so stay tuned. The speaking preparation took 5 hours per day for over a month!

I joined Speakers Cruise Free after having problems collecting the trip insurance on a cruise with my moth and step father. He had prostate problems and we had to cancel a cruise here in the Caribbean.

Here’s what my family has saved in trip costs:

Cruise

Line

Savings X 2

Brazil 7 Days

Royal Caribbean

$ 1,598.46

Argentina 7 Days

Royal Caribbean

$ 1,708.24

Mediteranean 14 Days

Royal Caribbean

$ 5,179.36

Mediteranean 14 Days

Royal Caribbean

$ 5,178.54

Sea of Cortez

Cruise West

$ 6,579.05

12 Month Travel Savings:

$20,243.65

So if you ask me if Daniel’s program works the only thing we can do is scream YESSS!!! … With a great big family smile!










And…my wife, Marisol, was wondering if there was a way to not only cruise for free AND make some money on the side. Daniel explained to me how effective his new program Travel Making Money is.

http://www.travelmakingmoney.com/main.html

I joined immediately when I got his launch e-mail. It took me a small investment of time and energy to get on the VIP onboard speaking list for two major cruise lines following exactly what Daniel taught me in Speakers Cruise Free (http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/ ) so I’m digging in like a tick on this new course to integrate everything into my new sideline as a onboard expert speaker on luxury cruise lines.

If you have any questions or doubts about how fantastic Daniels travel programs are you can contact me through him.

-Scott (Doc Brown)

www.WorryFreeWealth.com