Recently, the annual Mavericks Surfing Invitation competition was held at Half Moon Bay, CA. This is about an hour south of San Francisco. It was streaming live on the internet all day. Yes, I watched. The big deal here is that the waves can grow to 40 feet high. Really. A 4-story house. This spot on the planet is at the confluence of three major currents and if the stars are right, when storms in the Asian region brew…the swells travel all the way to California.
On January 25th, all “heck” broke loose. The competition was on. After a full day of surfing and dodging the rocky bottom, the winner was “Twiggy” Baker, a 40-year-old from Durban, South Africa. He won the $50,000 first prize. Two perfect rides.
What does all this have to do with speaking on a cruise ship? Let’s use metaphors here. Twiggy had to have supreme confidence to tackle these water monsters. He had fear – but controlled fear. Don’t do anything wrong to become a victim. Mavericks HAS killed people.
A speaker needs confidence to overcome glossophobia – the fear of speaking. Twiggy practices his craft a lot. Speakers need to do the same. Approach the audience as if the swells are building and ready to curl. Hang in there and give it your best. It will be easy if you have rehearsed. Time your pauses, involve the audience. Hang 10. Don’t be a hodad – a fake surfer. Be the real deal. Win first place at your craft.
Surf’s up!
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