So I don’t know why I haven’t talked about the wine guy Gary Vaynerchuk before, but here goes.  You can see him waxing passionate about wine here: http://tv.winelibrary.com/.  And you can see him on Web 2.0 giving a talk on following your bliss and social media here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhqZ0RU95d4. 

Either way, you have to agree:  you can’t take your eyes off this guy.  Why?  Three simple reasons.  In honor of the Wine Guy, I’ll call them Gary Vaynerchuk’s 3 Rules for Success in Public Speaking.

1.  Be absolutely passionate about what you’re doing.  Gary’s passion spills out all over the set, the stage, the audience.  He’s taking no prisoners, and the result is captivating.  It covers the many little ways in which he breaks some perfectly good rules of public speaking.  For example, in the Web 2.0 talk, he’s constantly pacing back and forth.  He only comes to a halt occasionally, and if the talk had gone on much longer, it would have become distracting, and ultimately wearying for the audience.  In small doses, it’s fine.  And of course, on his show, he’s behind a table for the most part drinking wine, so his energy goes into his face and his commentary, where it belongs. 

2.  Be absolutely authentic about what you’re doing.   Gary’s geekiness and occasional clumsiness are endearing because they reinforce his authenticity.  Authenticity is the single most important quality for speakers today.  Historically speaking, that’s because of the current mood in the country (and the world) thanks to AIG, bank bailouts, rampant hypocrisy in high places, 9-11 and probably Watergate too.  Whatever the precise reason, we are drawn to people who are authentic because we’re tired of being spun, lied to, conned, and generally abused by authorities.  I go into the need for authenticity (and how to achieve it) in my new book, Trust Me:  Four Steps to Authenticity and Charisma. 

3.  Maintain a sense of humor about yourself.   If you follow rules # 1 and #2, you’ll get noticed.  But if you don’t have a sense of humor about yourself – and occasionally let it out for air – people will quickly tire of you.  Gary’s saving grace is that he’s funny about his passion and doesn’t take himself too seriously in the end. 

Study Gary for his inner qualities, not for his mastery of the technical detail of public speaking.  He's not a polished speaker, but he’s the real deal, and he’s absolutely wonderful to watch. 

Comments

[Doug Vanisky]

Ha! Nick, how do we get the fake speakers to sit down and shut up? If you can figure out a way to make that happen, you'll have made the world a much better place.

[Patrick Sargent]

Great Post Nick! As an avid follower of Gary I think you pointed out several of the things that have led him to massive success and an even bigger following. He's authentic and when he speaks people listen. We should all take something from Gary about speaking.

[nick morgan]

Doug --

Thanks for the great comment. You're right, of course -- people have always prized authenticity, just never more so than now. And there have been eras where showiness has trumped truth....But never for very long. Bottom line: if you can't be authentic as a speaker or any kind of public figure, you should sit down and shut up.

[Doug Vanisky]

Nick, thanks for the review on Gary.

Historically speaking, I think people have always been attracted to authenticity. Aside from the many good reasons you mention, I think authenticity is prized today because people in the modern world are subjected to a constant storm of messaging that's always trying to sell them or spin them on something. While most people are instinctively adverse to contrived approaches, this over saturation has made people even more jaded and skeptical.

The web allowed people to circumvent older mediums and find refreshingly honest examples, like Gary. People generally accept that other people are out there working to make a buck, but they want honesty and accountability in the approach.

I think the three rules you've hit on here apply not only to success in public speaking, but all communications. I could make the same argument for your latest book.