Who do you think you are?

Hey, Grant here—

I hear this all the time:

“I am afraid that they won’t let me speak if I ask to get paid.”

This just might be the #1 roadblock that keeps people from pursuing their dream of speaking professionally.

And it’s completely normal.

For one thing, you get a ton of external pressure to speak for free when you’re just starting out.

Event planners drag out a million excuses:

“We’re a small organization. We don’t have a budget for speakers.”

“It’s for a really good cause!”

“You’ll get great exposure.”

And then there’s the raging battle with… yourself.

Call it imposter syndrome, insecurity, self-doubt.

It’s the little voice inside you that whispers, “I’m a nobody. I don’t deserve to get paid.”

I fought these same doubts myself from day 1…

I wondered, would anyone really PAY to hear me speak?

Even when I landed my first paid gig, I could hardly believe it.

They handed me a check  for $1,000, and I remember escaping to my car and just breaking down. Tears of joy streaming down my cheeks.

How did I manage to land a paid engagement so quickly, when a lot of people who dream of this never seem to make the leap from FREE to PAID?

Well, I had two things working in my favor that most speakers don’t.

First of all, I had some “insider info.”

In college, I spent some time working with a professional speaker. It wasn’t glamorous—mostly clerical work, helping out with scheduling and booking his events.

But I picked up a lot of details that might have taken me years to discover on my own, like how to get clients to pay for travel, who to approach about booking gigs and what to say to them.

Thanks to this know-how, I wasn’t floundering around on my own.

I had a gameplan, and that gave me confidence.

Second, I had a community to support me.

I’d developed relationships with successful professional speakers who were “in the trenches”—and who were willing to share their experience with me.

Because of this little network, I knew all the going rates.

I also knew that 90% of getting paid is just asking for the check.

That helped me keep a straight face when I quoted a $1,000 fee to the event planner—even though it seemed like a stupid-high rate to me at the time.

Here’s the thing…

Without a good gameplan and the backing from a  community of my peers, I probably would have never made it as a speaker.

Those two factors were crucial to my success.

Now you might be thinking, “That’s great, Grant, but it doesn’t help me.”

Well just hang in there, because in a couple of days I’m going to have a major announcement for you…

I’ll show you how you can get a leg up for your speaking career just like I did.

You’ll see how you can get your hands on a proven blueprint like I had—and how you can connect and compare notes with dozens of people who are making it as professional speakers.

But while you’re waiting…

I want to hear more about you.

Where are you on your journey as a paid speaker?

Maybe you’re like Dianne, who left a comment yesterday to say: “I make the audience laugh, but I have done this for free. How do I get a paid gig? Where do I start?”

Or maybe you can identify with Darryl, another commenter, who bravely admitted that what’s holding him back is a lack of commitment and needing to take that leap of faith.

Or you’ve mustered the courage to reach out, only to get slapped with a rejection.

Leave a comment below and tell me all about it.

Whatever it is, remember…

You’re awesome!

Grant

P.S. This is a rare chance to get a little no-cost coaching from me. (I normally charge $500 an hour for this kind of access.)

Don’t pass this opportunity up—let me hear from you below!