St. Petersburg, Russia | Cruise Speaker Tip and Thoughts

I would have never dreamed this possible.

What?

I grew up during the Cold War. I remember doing bomb raid
drills in school where we all hid under our desks in case of
a Russian nuclear attack -- as if your desk would protect
you!

Any of you remember this?

I remember hearing stories of how as a young airman my
father guarded grounded B-52's that sat at the ready, crews
onboard and jet's fired just waiting to retaliate during the
Cuban missile crisis.

During my formative years my culture communicated that
Soviet Russia was bad and should be feared.

The Berlin wall was torn down in 1989 but I was already a
young adult by then and my impressions of Russia and
Communism were fully formed.

That's why as I departed the ship yesterday in St.
Petersburg Russia I was 'uneasy'. I would never have
imagined actually visiting Russia as a child or even young
adult but yet here I was.

All because of my ability (which I want to impart to you) to
speak on cruise ships. The skills my program "Speak on
Cruise Ships: 8 Easy Steps to a Lifetime of FREE Luxury
Cruises" teaches can literally take you around the world --> http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html

We had a great time in St. Petersburg and actually spent
most of the time touring the Hermitage. The Hermitage is a
world class art museum second only the Louvre. However, we
made side stops at St. Isaac's Cathedral, the war ship
Aurora (which fired the shot that signaled the beginning of
the Bolshevik Revolution), the church of the Spilled Blood
(see video) which is actually reminiscent of St. Basil's in
Moscow (the domed church they show on TV when the news
refers to the Kremlin).

In any event, I was impressed by how modern and frankly
European St. Petersburg is. This is in large part due to
post Soviet economic reforms and to the building edicts of
Peter the Great who imported most of the talent to build his
capital from Europe.

On the bus ride back to the ship yesterday I asked our tour
guide to compare and contrast life now as compared to the
Soviet days. BTW the Soviet regime only lasted 73 years of
Russia's long history, she reminded us.

She said in many ways life was much easier in the USSR. She
said everything was provided: your education, your job, your
apartment, your food, etc.. She also said you really did
not have to worry about anything.

On the other hand, she said, you had very little freedom.
You could not express your opinion about your government.
You could not worship in church or synagogue. You could not
really buy anything because there was nothing in the stores
to buy. But she said the biggest problem (and she thought
the problem most responsible for taking down the Soviet
system) was the fact that the system gave no incentive to
work.

In other words, workers got the benefits of the welfare
state whether or not they were a good workers. She implied
that workers went to great lengths to do as little work as
possible.

And why not? Everyone was paid about the same wage.

Economic theory is really a study of the incentives which
induce behavior. Consequently, a system such as that
described by our guide could not last very long.

The whole experience has been eye opening to say the least.
In fact, with each new port I experience (on this and every
cruise I take), my perspectives and attitudes change. And
truth be known, that is the real reason I love cruise ship
speaking so much. It allows me to see and experience so
many new and wonderful things. Each one enriches my life
and
opens new thoughts and new opportunities.

I hope you will give yourself this gift:
http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html

We are spending two days in St. Petersburg and today we are
touring the canals and waterways.

I am less apprehensive today and my eyes, ears and mind are
open.

I will update you soon. In the meantime, let me help you
cruise the world just for flapping your jaws. There is no
guesswork and you can even get my help personally.

Lots of my students are doing it (just Google me for tons of
video testimonials) plus there are a bunch more on the sales
page (http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html ).

Enjoy the videos...

Stockholm Sweden - A Day Made In Heaven

It was an idyllic day in Stockholm Sweden. I mean I was
planning on it being "brisk" like it was in Germany. But
the sun was out and the skies were blue and the temperature
was a perfect 77 degrees.

Anthony and I did two tours. One independently where we
took the excellent public transportation to the Vassa Museum
(see video tip) and the other through an organized tour to
the Royal Palace and the Old Town. See the video of our
most excellent tour guide, Carola, telling the story of the
statue of St. George and how he killed the dragon.

Enjoy the videos and remember if you want to see more,
you've got to leave a comment below...

Also, if you're not cruising free yet (like tons of my Club
members), why not?

Everything you need is right here ==>
http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/

Go now and sign up and come back and watch these videos...

Warnermuende, Germany: Our Next Port Of Call

Warnermuende, Germany

I have a new tip for you. This time from Warnermuende
Germany.

Warnermuende is the Baltic port city (actually a part of
Rostock Germany) that used to be a part of former East
Germany. For the cruise industry it is the port that
services Berlin. However, the train from Warnermuende to
Berlin is 3-hours one-way.

In any event, I applied one of the techniques I teach to
Speakers Cruise Free Club Members to get a free shore
excursion to Rostock and its surrounding area. I wanted to
go to Berlin but did not want to spend 6 hours of my day on
a train.

I will say we had a blast in Rostock. By the way, on this
cruise I have taken my 22 year old son, Anthony.

Why don't you join me in this lifestyle?

You know you'd like to travel the world as a speaker... when
and where and for however long you want. So why don't you
just do it?

I have the training all laid out at
http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html

And for an investment of only $97 to get educated and $29.97
per month to get my ongoing help in which you literally get
to plug into my already existing network of cruise companies
what else do you need to know?

I'm also all about continuing to provide over the top value
to my Club members. Check out this tip applicable to any
and every speaking event including you talks onboard...



I hope you take the action that results in you getting free
cruises for the rest of you life.

Ya know ya wanna... go
http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html

Roving report from the Red Light District in Amsterdam (of all places.)

I have another tip for you. This time its from the Red
Light District in Amsterdam. No, its not that kind of tip!

Like all speakers you will be expected to perform at your
maximum when you arrive at the engagement (on board the
ship) and if you have a long accross the pond flight this
can be challenging. Watch the video for tips on on to
arrive refreshed and ready to go.

Also, if you haven't yet become a Speakers Cruise Free
Coaching Club member go do it now, Why? Read below the
video for the details...



============================================================

Stop! Read this NOW!

Want to leverage your book to propel you to superstar
status?

Want to write a book that changes lives and also makes you
bushelfuls cash?

Yes? Then you must attend Mark Victor Hansons Mega Book
event June 5 -7 in Orlando... and (are you listening?) if
you act RIGHT NOW you can go for FREE.

I said it.

Zero

Zilch

Nada

Here's the deal...

If you act right now to get my Speak on Cruise Ships program
so you can cruise free (like I'm doing right now!) and you
are ONE of the FIRST FIVE people to do so you'll get ONE
FREE TICKET to Mark's June 5-7 Mega Book Event!

Go get this deal before someone else snatches it from you...

http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html

Rumors are that this is going to be Mark's best MEGA BOOK
ever! This event will be all about drilling-down to deliver
an immediately actionable plan to explode the success of
your book (whether or not it is written yet)!

By the way, tickets to this event typically run over
$1,000.00 but if you are one of the first 5 to get my "Speak
on Cruise Ships: 8 Easy Steps to a Lifetime of FREE Luxury
Cruises" program you'll also get a MEGA BOOK ticket for the
June 5-7 event free!

Go here now...

http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html

Is that a great deal or what?

Currently, the investment in the Speak on Cruise Ships
program is $97 (which is steal in and of itself) but when
you throw in a ticket to MEGA BOOK it becomes a complete no-
brainer!

This offer is too good to pass up.

My orders are all date & time stamped. So the next 5 of
them to come through will get Speak on Cruise Ships plus a
bonus ticket to Mark Victor Hanson's MEGA BOOK event.

Go! Now!

http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html

Also, remember to leave me a comment along with a valuable
link back to your website if you have one.

P. S. Are you still reading this?

Go jump on this deal. Seriously, I only have 5 tickets
available for new clients and this deal WILL sell out.

http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html

Getting Royalty FREE Images For Your Destination Presentations

As a cruise ship speaker trading your speaking talents for free luxury cruises you may want (or need) to create new destination related presentations. Watch this video to learn where you can get royalty free images, videos and other resources for putting those programs together.




So why don't you discover how to cruise free? It all starts with my program "Speak on Cruise Ships: 8 Easy Steps to a Lifetime of FREE Luxury Cruises" and you can (and should) get started here: http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html

Baltic Bound

Heading off to the Baltic now. Just video recorded my first tip for you. As soon as its uploaded to YouTube (and I land again) I'll post here... God bless and happy cruising.

Join me cruising the world free. It all starts here http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/

Daniel

Crafts, Swine Flu & Mexico - Oh My!!!

My husband Jeff and I recently returned from our first cruise (and our first FREE cruise) aboard Royal Caribbean’s amazing Mariner of the Seas. I’m happy to share my experiences from a strictly arts & crafts perspective.

I was skeptical early on that one could get a free cruise doing arts and crafts but decided to give it a try.

I was fortunate to get samples of my crafts included in the gift bag Daniel put together for attendees at his cocktail party during a major convention of cruise lines in Miami (abrilliant idea!). Daniel followed up with those who expressed interest and several months later got me booked on RC’s April 26th sailing out of Los Angeles (a 7 day cruise to the Mexican Riviera) and one that I had requested.

Per her instructions, I sent the Enrichment Specialist with
RC samples of the crafts I proposed teaching early in 2009.
She sent her approval and let me know what other information
I needed to provide (exactly what Daniel instructed for all
RC speakers shortly thereafter). I received my contract via
email exactly one week before we sailed. She indicated in
her message that they no longer use booking numbers and that
I should just bring the contract with me.

At the L.A. Cruise Terminal a porter immediately approached
us and requested our paperwork. I explained the situation
and he took off with my contract. Shortly thereafter he
returned and showed us our stateroom number, which he had
written on the contract, and took our bags. We headed for
the registration area and were frequently asked for our
"Sail Away" sheet --- but it always worked to just explain
who we were, show the contract, and keep moving on through
the process. Once through Security we were directed to the
regular line. It took me a while to spot the Pier Supervisor
desk and by that time we decided just to stay in line since
we were early and it was short. Once at the desk we
explained things again and the person helping us went to the
Pier Supervisor, returned with our paperwork and gave us our
"Sea Pass" cards and boarding number... we were official!

Here I am going on board --- I made a point of wearing some of my origami earrings hoping they might catch someone’s attention and give me a lead-in to promote my classes.

Daniel had warned that RC does very little to promote their enrichment events, and he was definitely right about that!

You get a very brief one-liner in the Daily Planner so it is up to you to make your short titles sell and to find other
ways to get your "blurbs" in front of people. Knowing that
folks tend to get excited about my classes if they see the
actual crafts, I created special cards twice the size of a
regular business card which I then folded in half. On the
front I extended an invitation to my classes using my
"umbrella" headline ("Easy, Entertaining Origami You Can
Use") and providing some small photos of my most appealing
samples. Inside I listed the class topics with my catchy
blurbs, and left space so that I could fill in the class
place and time once they were scheduled. On the back I
provided more pictures. We did everything we could to
maximize the number of people we met and chatted with,
including having dinner at larger tables, joining existing
groups at events like "Name That Tune" or "Trivia", etc. We
handed the cards out whenever we were able to introduce the
topic in conversation... if people showed interest. Those
we spoke to were often intrigued (crafters got very
excited!) and grateful to receive the card.

When we first got to our stateroom there was indeed a letter from our contact, Julia, an "Activities Administrator". She welcomed us on behalf of the Activities Manager and the Cruise Director, and said she would call me once the ship had set sail. She also said that my classes were scheduled and she listed them in the letter. I was startled to see that not only did I have classes as expected on the three sea days, but I also had a fourth class scheduled for the morning we arrived in Cabo San Lucas. I had submitted a fourth class as backup in case of a change in the ship’s schedule, and I was very happy that I had put an equal amount of work and preparation into that class as into the others.

`We had an inside stateroom which was surprisingly roomy and quite brilliantly designed to maximize living and storage space. As first-time cruisers we were a bit overwhelmed both by the ship itself and by the number of things going on, not to mention trying to learn our way around 15 decks.

The multi-story main Promenade was lined with shops, cafes and bars, and used for events and parades. It was hard to imagine that anyone would find my little craft class the very first day out! All the classes were to be held in the martini bar on the 14th deck in an area called the "Royal Crown," encircled by windows with a terrific wraparound view of pools and decks and the ocean. It was a very popular
place, making it both a great spot and a challenging place to hold classes!

Julia and I connected by phone after dinner and confirmed
the schedule and what I needed for the classes (basically
just space for people to work on --- the most challenging
commodity of all). I had decided to forego PowerPoint slides
and instead spent my time creating thorough, original
instructions. The first class was scheduled for 2 pm the
first day out; we arrived around 1:30 and started trying to
carve out some space. I was lucky that my husband got
totally into the whole project and was there to help out
every step of the way. While he tried to snag unoccupied
chairs and tables, I set one table on the small stage area
and arranged on it samples not only of that day’s crafts but
of the others we would be doing in subsequent classes. That
was a great attention-getter and people (in the class and
onlookers) would often get intrigued by a particular project
and ask when we would be doing that --- a perfect
opportunity to hand out cards! I kept plenty on hand and
made sure they were easily accessible during the class.

Julia met us about 15 minutes before the class was to start;
we chatted and she remarked on my samples and seemed pleased
with them. I showed her my cards when she asked about a
particular craft and she was happy to take one with her.
Shortly after she left, four brave souls showed up for the
class! They were a small but enthusiastic group of crafters
and we had a great time. I had scheduled one of my most
popular items for the first class and was a little
disappointed to have such a small group (though impressed
anyone found us at all!). However, they loved the project
and made a point of spreading the word and bringing others
to subsequent classes, so that turned out to be a very good
thing. I had brought plain papers for learning and
practicing during the class, and nicer origami and scrapbook
papers for people to use to make their finished product once
they had learned the technique. It meant carrying extra
supplies but people loved it -- they had a great time
choosing papers and working with them there if time allowed,
or taking them after class. It was great fun when someone
would approach me on the ship and tell me very excitedly
that they had completed a project on their own with their
instructions and special papers.

Our second class was scheduled for the next morning at 9,
just as we pulled into Cabo San Lucas. Julia met us
beforehand and said that if no one showed up we should feel
free to leave early. The martini bar was busy with excited
people all anxious to see the view and watch as we entered
the port. To my pleasure and surprise 7 people showed up for
class. We were doing a craft that had several stages to it,
so anyone who didn’t want to complete all the steps right
then could still enjoy the satisfaction of having completed
a project. Several people were happy to be able to learn
the techniques and take their instructions and additional
papers to work on later, and not stress about getting
finished in time to get to the tender to go ashore.

We had a great day of kayaking and beach fun in Cabo. Back
on board at the end of the day, before the Captain even made
the announcement, I had a message from Julia indicating that
the ship had had a change in itinerary and that I would need
to switch my Friday class to the following day, Wednesday.

The Swine Flu scare had caused the cancellation of all
further ports in Mexico, and we would now be at sea the next
two days headed for San Francisco! This was an ironic turn
of events since we live very close to SF but we took it in
stride, as did the rest of the ship. I was even glad to get
to demonstrate my flexibility and total willingness to help
out wherever. Wednesday’s class was held at 12:30 and with
the change in itinerary, high winds blowing across the
decks, and more time for the word to spread, our attendance
jumped to 25 very enthusiastic folks. We were doing a
simple, fun and colorful craft and it was a very big hit.
Many were disappointed that they had not been to earlier
classes since they could see the samples of what they had
missed. We got through the basics of that day’s craft
fairly quickly, so I gave folks the option of continuing to
work on it there or to spend remaining class time reviewing
one of the previous crafts. A lot of them jumped at that
chance! It was a fun class and people were very
appreciative. Many were anxious to have another class the
following day and I did talk with Julia later and offered to
do that. However, one of their staff members was scheduled
to do a craft class called "Ribbons to Roses" and she told
me to just take the day off and enjoy...

Friday cold and rainy day in San Francisco. I made a point
of visiting my favorite little chocolate shop where I bought
truffles to put in a hand-crafted gift bag for Julia at the
end of the cruise (very much appreciated!).

My final class was scheduled for Saturday at 2 pm. People
were now hungry for onboard activities and we ended up with
a crowd of about 45. There was a heavy fog outside so the
bar was not quite as crowded with people there for the view.
It took some doing to find chairs and table space for so
many people, but it was a fun problem to have. Jeff was an
invaluable assistant, arranging and rearranging furniture
and helping people who got stuck working on the craft. I was
doing my gift bag class -- one that is very popular but also
a little more complex than the others. The class ran fairly
smoothly (Julia stopped in part way through it and gave me a
big thumbs-up and commented on the "good crowd") but I could
definitely have used a microphone with that many people (and
the blender running frequently at the bar). I also made a
newbie mistake (I’ve given lots of workshops before but
never one with so many people and limited working space) and
allowed myself to get so caught up in the class logistics
that I totally forgot to pass around my e-mail sign-up
sheet. Too bad that was my biggest class I won’t make that
mistake if I get to do it again!

People seemed very happy with the class and many stayed for
quite a while afterwards to work with the extra papers and
embellishments I had brought along. I’m hoping they
mentioned their enthusiasm on the survey at the end of the
cruise, as I also forgot to ask this group to do that!
In the future I would

* Request a microphone and a flip chart and have my name,
the class topic and my e-mail in big letters on the front
of the flip chart;

* Carefully consider the level of difficulty of each class
project and keep it simple;

* Test any project I think may be too difficult and adjust
accordingly. I made a last-minute substitution in one class
topic and I am very grateful I did!

* Set a timer/reminder on my watch so I am aware when we
reach the last 10-15 minutes of the class and don’t forget
to cover critical topics while everyone is there;

* Have something to sell! I had intended to make kits
available in the ship store but ran out of time to get them
completed and approved. With the additional sea day and
inclement weather I think they could have been quite
popular, as would a book & dvd set.

* Explore additional ways to promote classes and communicate
their quality (fliers available in the Guest
Relations/Activities area? a short, pre-prepared video that
might play on ship tv? Of course, if larger audiences were
attracted there would also be a need for more space.)

* Always be totally prepared to do that backup class and
possibly have an extra in my back pocket to offer in the
event of schedule changes, inclement weather and restless
guests...

* Always submit my class topics in the order I want to do
them, in case they’re already scheduled when I get on board
and it may not be possible to change the first day’s class
topic.

HAPPY CRUISING!

Nancy Jenks

Note from Daniel: Thanks Nancy for your very helpful and thorough post! Excellent suggestions! Now if you are reading this and haven't signed up for all the fun you can check out my program "Speak on Cruise Ships: 8 Easy Steps to a Lifetime of FREE Luxury Cruises" and get started pronto at http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html

Alaska on Royal Caribbean

Dear Daniel,

Thanks for the fabulous trip! We are sailing on Royal Caribbean to Alaska. My husband was skeptical but not anymore! I have just finished my second presentation; both audiences were between 250-300 people. The food, the service, and the fun can’t be beat! You have made it possible for me to take my kids on an awesome cruise for quality one on one time! You have made me very popular in my house. You rock Daniel!

Thanks Daniel,

Holly K. Rauser
www.consideretiquette.com

Note From Daniel...

Thanks, Holly. But truth be known, you are the one that rocks. You followed the system I laid out. You took the action necessary to make free cruising a reality in your life! The credit goes to you. I'm glad I can help in the process!

Getting read for open coaching w/ members. Join us by investing in yourself http://ping.fm/qYYh2

If you are a coach or are curious about the benefits of creating an additional $100,000+ income by adding a coaching income stream in your business .

Daniel and Carolyn hangin' on Venice Beach brainstorming (obviously we share a penchant for fun). . .

Carolyn McCormick has generously offered to reveal some insider secrets about what really launched legends Tony Robbins, Stephen Covey, Bob Proctor, John Gray -- and we will give you a hint...it wasn’t their books or speaking.

On this call you will learn:

How to make an additional $100,000 working only 3 days a week and never leaving

home.

How Carolyn went from $30K in debt to becoming debt free and building her dream home in just 9 1/2 months.

How Carolyn “accidentally” discovered the real secrets behind what made the best-selling speakers and authors household names -- and why no one else is telling you this.

3 big myths about the self-help & personal development industry -- if you don’t know these, it is costing you being the leading expert in your field and hundreds of thousands of dollars each year!!!!

4 Indisputable facts WHY every speaker and author MUST have their own coaching program-- and the fastest way to get it started.

To register for this value-packed call and get a preview to Carolyn’s upcoming

“Grab Your Dreams” Coach the Coach Certification training visit:

http://successcoachforlife.com/grabyourdreamscoaching.html

Call Details:

Thursday, May 14th

5 pm pacific / 8 pm eastern

Bill Barnett - Tips From 10-Night Panama Canal Cruise

Good Morning Daniel:

Kris and I just got back from our 10 day Royal Caribbean
Panama Canal Cruise and it was FANTASTIC!


I’ve been a speaker/trainer for 8 years but this was my first FREE cruise. And it only took a few weeks to get booked.

Since this was my first FREE speaking cruise Kris and I were looking at what we could do to make this cruise and our future cruises even better. Your video dashboard advised us to do a LOT of self promotion since the line may not do a lot of speaker promotion. Once again your information was right on. Once we saw the daily announcements, we realized we would have to do a lot of networking to be able to get folks to our event.

First, we had a blast eating at a table of 8. Normally I would hate this, but now it was different and it became fun. Dinner became a natural networking spot.

Secondly we went to other functions on the ship, for instance we collect art work and had previously purchased several pieces from David, the same art auctioneer that was on this cruise. Not only did we get to reconnect with David but, we were able to promote the art auctions and David was more than willing to do the same for us.

Next we went to the piano bar, something we love to do on
cruises anyway and met entertainer Tony B. We plugged
Tony’s entertainment and not only did he introduce us to the
group in the piano bar and plug our event, he came to 2 of
the presentations himself.

These are just of couple of things we did along with
promoting ourselves on our shore excursions and of course
POOLSIDE! It’s a tough job but somebody’s got to do it.

Earning My Keep!

Note From Daniel: Thanks Bill for such an excellent post. Congrats on a job well-done on your first cruise as a speaker. Thanks too for your video (below) about my program! It is very much appreciated.

Go get started NOW!

Truthfully, I book speakers in the Speakers Cruise Free Coaching Club almost everyday. Are you ready to sign-on?

Tips from long-time speaker but first time cruiser

I’m Madisen Harper and I just finished a Royal Caribbean - Sydney, Australia to Honolulu, United States cruise and thought I’d share my experience with you from a cruise newcomer perspective.

It was just 2 months from the time I joined Daniel’s coaching program to the time I got booked AND I got my first choice cruise. I got the good news on February 14^th and sailed on April 13^th. In my case it happened quickly, so I’ve got to say, I’m impressed with Daniel’s program.

I was booked on a 16 night cruise which encompassed 9 sea days so I had the opportunity to do 9 talks (5 destination and 4 general interest). 7 out of the 10 topics were aligned with my ‘platform’ which is self development, this included 2 of the destination talks which I focused on the spirituality of Hawaii. Daniel’s right, take what you know and look for opportunities to apply it, even for destination topics.

There were 3 other enrichment speakers on board. A gentleman who did all destination lectures and was in the main theater which meant his talks were videotaped and replayed on Royal Caribbean’s in-house TV system. Another woman focused on numerology, and her friend, who was also an enrichment lecturer, focused on psychology. They did a topic series eg Psychology of Money, Psychology of Parenting, Your Name and Numerology, Numerology and your Birthday etc.

I was excited to get in front of 9 audiences as well as record my talks which I plan to turn into products that I can sell, use for video marketing on YouTube and the like and build content on my website.

My sessions had between 40 – 100 attendees. As time went on and people got to know me, there were 80 – 100 people at each session.

I’ve put together a few observations and tips from my experience. I’ve been a speaker for almost a decade but the cruise process was slightly different to what I’m used to, so hopefully I can provide some insight.

** Before You Leave **

Listen to as many podcasts on Daniel’s Speakers Cruise Free member site as possible – especially the Dashboard videos he has put together. Everything he outlined in the Dashboard videos happened EXACTLY as he said.

Check out the cruise line’s website, it will answer a number of questions

For example, with Royal Caribbean I found out about my ship’s, Rhapsody of the Sea, meeting room equipment which allowed me to know what I had to bring.

I checked what visas I had to have for the various countries I was visiting.

Because I was bringing electrical equipment from both Australia and the U.S. I checked out the power on the ship.

I also wanted to access the Internet and learned about the ship’s WIFI access.

** Tools of the Trade **

The audio visual (AV) equipment on the ship doesn’t appear to be as comprehensive as when you speak at a hotel venue. So I prepared the following:

Laptop with PowerPoint and Printed Notes

I had all my presentations in PowerPoint and also did a printout – just in case.

Make sure your laptop is only a few years old as older laptops can be problematic when connecting to the ship’s video projector. In fact I had a Dell that was just over 2 years old and the projector connected but my presentation didn’t appear on my laptop’s screen, just the audience’s screen. I prefer to glance at the laptop every so often than turn my back on the audience and refer to the big screen. Thankfully we had my husband’s Dell as well which is less than a year old that worked perfectly.

Don’t rely on your presentation too much; I basically use mine to keep my flow. I was presenting in a large space and my audience often couldn’t see the screen clearly. So keep that in mind when designing your presentations – don’t jam pack slides with too many words.

Video Editing Software

I bought video editing software called PowerDirector 7 Ultra so I could edit my talks to turn them into products. I also did a course on how to use it before I left home. I chose this product because it was affordable (US$79 – I used a 20% off coupon from the review site) and the product reviews were excellent.

USB Presenter

I purchased a USB presenter so I could remotely change my PowerPoint slides, change the screen to black (so people listen to me and are not reading a slide), adjust the volume of music I had playing and had a discreet timer that vibrated to warn me when I was nearing the end of the presentation. I would highly recommend this – the ship did not have one and the AV guy said he was thinking of buying one for speakers.

Wireless Microphone

I also got a wireless microphone to improve the sound quality of my video recording. Fortunately, I was in a great, large space, so the AV guy hooked me up with the cruise ship’s wireless microphone. Don’t rely on this, it was the only one he had!!

Video Recorder

I already had a Sony Handycam, tapes, tripod and my husband to do the recording. I will probably buy another video camera that records directly to a hard drive in the near future. My video expert suggested a few models that I’ll look into purchasing.

Whiteboard Pens

I’ve presented a number of times where I’ve gone up to the whiteboard or flipchart only to discover there were no pens at all or they were as dry as the desert and virtually unusable.

Business Cards and Notepad

I carry a notepad to collect people’s details and write down what they wanted from me e.g. a list of resources emailed to them, notification of when my book comes out, to be added to my email list.

** My Top Tips **

1. Ensure your lecture titles sell because they are all the Cruise Compass lists (Royal Caribbean’s daily newsletter that tells passengers what’s on the following day). One of my titles was: “eBook Evolution – how to research, write, publish and promote your own eBook”. In the Compass it was just listed as “eBook Evolution” which doesn’t outline the benefit of the session, so in future, I’d probably be less ‘creative’ with the title and just get to the point.

2. Invite people to interact with you. At the end of each session, after the question period, I’d say something like, “Feel free to chat to me if you see me around the ship or if you have any questions. If you’d like my details just come up and I’ll give you my card.” I had dozens of people take me up on my offer. A number of audience members would say to my husband, “Your wife’s message is fascinating. I’d love some time with her.” Attendees are often embarrassed to ask you directly for your time. So encourage them to talk to you. And if your ‘plus one’ (the lucky ‘freeloader’ who gets to travel with you J) is like my husband, the ultimate networker, he was great at promoting my talk and connecting people with me. During excursions and at meal times, I told people about my talks to get them interested in coming. I’d say 95% of the people I talked to about my sessions ended up attending. You don’t have to say much, just tell them you’re the enrichment speaker and they’ll automatically ask you what you’re talking on.

3. Have a product available for sale. Unfortunately, I didn’t manage to organize anything before I left. There were sales opportunities in most of my personal development sessions as audience members would ask if I had a book. So they were keen to buy. My book isn’t out for another couple of months, but I could have easily developed an information product and put it on DVD if I’d had time (don’t forget to get any products approved by your cruise contact before you step on the ship).

4. Video tape your sessions. I’ll now use what I’ve taped for SEO (search engine optimization) on my site. I will also turn one into a ‘bonus’ for a course I’m developing and sell the other talks as products. Plus I now have samples of my work which can be used to get future speaking engagements (corporate clients often aren’t keen to provide you with the sessions they tape when they hire you).

I also had audience members ask me if my sessions were being taped by the cruise line which then appear on Royal Caribbean’s in-house television. They weren’t, but I told them that segments would be available on my site and if they gave me their details I would let them know and also gave them my business card.

5. Promote your next session. At the end of each session, I’d let the audience know what my next topic was, “Tomorrow, you’ll learn why I think goal setting gets in the way of your success and happiness and my strategy to having it all, now!” As time went on, my audiences got bigger and bigger – up to 100 people. I think this is an advantage of doing a cruise with a lot of sea days, people get to know you and you develop a following.

6. Let the audience know what you do in the ‘real world’. Throughout my talk I’d say things like, “I was working with a corporate client helping them to…”, “I did a podcast on the subject of…” I definitely didn’t push my services, but simply used examples to build awareness around my capabilities. In fact, I had one woman say she would like me to speak at her hospital and she was going to discuss it with the administrators – so fingers crossed. I also told them about some of my free resources on my website, for example, I was discussing the importance of values and told them about my free values identification and prioritization tool – people love that.

7. Gifts go a long way. Be it free resources you can give to your audience or the gift to your cruise contact. I didn’t know whether my on board contact was male or female and I couldn’t think of what to take. So on my last destination which was Lahaina, Hawaii, I bought a gift box of cookies from the Honolulu Cookie Company and left a note and my business card for the Cruise Co-ordinator and Cruise Director. They left a message on my stateroom phone and were grateful for the gesture; I could hear the genuine excitement and thankfulness in their voice.

Freebies for the audience allow you to connect with them well after the cruise is over – remember to get their permission for on-going communication so you’re not SPAMming.

I met a lot of great people doing what I love doing and also achieving one of my ‘life’s ticks’ which was visiting Tahiti.

Hope the above is helpful and happy cruising!

Cheers

Madisen

www.MadisenHarper.com
www.BecomeaManagerNow.com

Note From Daniel: Madisen did a wonderful job speaking and, as I think we can all agree, a wonderful job on this post (thanks Madisen!) .

My question for you is: Are you ready to start cruising?

Let's make it happen in your life and remember once you're approved in an enrichment program generally speaking you are approved for the rest of your life.

So let's get you started.... http://www.speakerscruisefree.com/cruise-free.html