Many athletes explore the opportunities involved with public speaking during their career; sharing exciting stories of their professional experiences to supplement their income, and potentially prepare them for a post-competition career in after-dinner speaking or the media industry.As part of its recent Athletes Connect Week, the BAC was delighted to welcome trained actor and public speaking coach, Sean Wilton, for a virtual presentation: ‘Taking Your Story to the Next Level’.You can watch Sean’s full presentation here, and read his step-by-step checklist for a successful speaking engagement below.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYjwVwExKrM

• Preparation: Audience Research; Objective Setting; Think, Feel and Do
• The Middle – Your Timeline, Your Story: Downloading Your Timeline; Building Your Story Archive; Linking Stories to Business Themes; Extra Material and Visuals; Editing; Language
• The Beginning: Attention Grabber; What’s In It For Them; Who You Are and Where You’re Taking Them
• The End: Key Messages (‘Think’); Call to Action (‘Do’); Killer Last Line
• Rehearsal: Rehearse; Rehearse; Rehearse

Sean’s presentation was one of a selection hosted by the BAC during Athletes Connect Week. If you would like to see a focus on another area which you believe would benefit athletes, then please contact the BAC’s Athlete Engagement Manager, Kristian Thomas, at kristian.thomas@britisheliteathletes.org.