I’ve been blessed to see the world because of speaking. I’ve spoken on three continents traveling to international destinations like Rome, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Greece, Canada, The Yucatan, and Jamaica – for little or no cost. There are several ways to get international speaking opportunities.
Speak on Cruise Ships
One way to travel and see the world is by speaking on cruise ships. Some might think it sounds easy, but it’s not. You must audition. It is one of the most challenging speaker opportunities to get because a lot of people want to do it. Typically, you get to cruise for free, bring a companion, and go on excursions for free. Other than getting to the cruise line everything else is free. It is great! You don’t even work that hard because you only speak on the days you are out at sea. For example, on a 10-day cruise, you might be out to sea for only three of the ten days. The rest of the time you can play and enjoy the amenities on the ship and the shore excursions.
Two Types of Cruise Line Speakers
There are two types of cruise line speakers: destination speakers and enrichment speakers.
A Destination Speaker – this means that you are familiar with the destination where the cruise is going and can provide some insights about the location. For example, if the cruise is going through Panama Canal, a destination speaker would talk about the history of the canal.
An Enrichment Speaker – this is the type of speaker that I have been. An enrichment speaker gives multiple speeches on multiple topics – but you cannot sell. They expect the talk to be educational and fun. Each talk is approximately one hour long and given on days when the ship is out at sea.
Several years ago, I was fortunate to speak on an eleven-day Caribbean cruise on a high-end cruise ship called the Celebrity Solstice. On this eleven-day cruise, I was contracted to speak four times for an hour each on the days we were out to sea. The payment I received for these talks was the cruise, food, excursions, and new friends. I didn’t have to pay a dime on board. I got to visit many places that I would not have otherwise seen such as the Island of Capri, and Pompei. I went places I would have never gone in one trip because typically I don’t take eleven days to go on vacation in multiple places. So, it was really a trip of a lifetime.
Planning Enrichment Topics
To help me plan my speaking topics for the cruise, I hired a coach who specialized in speaking on cruise ships. I couldn’t give my typical signature business talk. He recommended I look up the bestselling books on Amazon to help me decide. I picked books that had to do with speaking and communication. I found this great book, a New York Times Best Seller, titled Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High (by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, and Al Switzler) and Gary Chapman’s, 5 Love Languages. Two of my talks were inspired by these best sellers, and then I spoke about networking on the ship and making lifelong friends. The fourth talk I gave was on Feng Shui as I was a feng shui practitioner at the time. I talked about how to feng shui your cabin and make money while you cruise. All my topics were a big hit.
The key to developing these new speeches was to use my existing resources and expertise and present them in a way that would be of interest to the group of cruisers. I regularly got 50-55 people coming to my presentations and the same people would come over and over. At the end of each speech, I would give away a copy of the book I was speaking about and continue to build my database. I learned an important lesson. People don’t bring business cards on vacation. So, you need to bring 3×5 cards for them to fill in to enter the raffle for your books or other give-a-ways.
Join International Organizations
Another way to speak and travel is to join organizations that hold events and conferences in other countries. Several times I spoke for the Women of Global Change conference and traveled to other countries. As one of their speakers, the conference was complimentary, however, I did pay for my travel and hotel room. Everything else was included, even the offsite excursions. I went ziplining for the first time at the Jamaica conference. I got the opportunity to meet new people and do things that I would never have done if it was simply a vacation.
Attend an Educational Program in a Foreign Country
In February 2023, I’m taking an exclusive group of clients to Puerta Vallarta. During this seven-day Speaker Breakthrough Retreat, there will be speaker training, community building, video recording, and a live event with the goal of becoming an international speaker. Each participant will come away as an experienced international speaker. The trip is all-inclusive (except airfare), which means food, drinks, and activities are included. We will even pick you up at the airport. Join me at my retreat in Puerta Vallarta and you too can become an international speaker.
If you’re interested in being on stage at an international event, schedule a time to speak with me. Becoming an international speaker and traveling is doable. The opportunities are out there. Take on one of the above ideas and I look forward to hearing your stories.