Image by Roché Oosthuizen
In This Article:
- How public speaking can elevate your leadership skills and career in business.
- How effective communication helps drive success.
- Understand why public speaking is essential for advancing in leadership roles.
- Explore personal insights on tailoring your public speaking style to your strengths.
- How your intentions and choices shape your impact as a leader.
Raising My Game With Public Speaking
by Stu Crum
When I was chosen by Bridgestone Americas to devise and implement big changes in the company’s game plan, I was required to travel a lot so that I could meet with employees, shop managers, and regional managers. As president of the retail store group, I would oversee more than 2,200 company-owned stores under the brands of Firestone Complete Auto Car, Tire Plus, Hibdon Tires Plus, and Wheel Works.
I was on the road a lot, gathering information while also assessing conditions and attitudes. Before I could make any decisions about personnel, I needed to do what every politician does during a campaign cycle—meet and greet.
Meanwhile, over a four-month period, I was also meeting at headquarters with Bridgestone leadership to create the new vision— called Vision 2020—that would raise our profile and significantly improve profits within our industry sector.
About six months after my arrival, I brought 3,000 teammates together at a national convention to roll out the playbook. I stood before the audience to announce how the plan would work and why success was dependent on reorganization.
Why am I telling you this?
Everything I’ve just described falls under the heading of public speaking.
I can draw a direct line from the success I enjoyed as a businessman to what I learned as a speaker in the FCA organization (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) late in my freshman year at Tulsa. The ability to speak to a group of people, large or small, in an arena or in an auto repair garage, raised my game.
Take note: If you wish to move into senior leadership roles, be ready to put yourself in front of audiences. You’re the leader, and the people want to hear what the leader has to say. Find your voice and trust it.
If public speaking is not your favorite activity, consider it a risk you must take if you wish to advance. And put it in perspective. Is the fear of standing before an audience larger than making important business decisions?
When we designed a new future for Bridgestone, there was a lot at risk. We were making a major shift from the Transactional Customer, who comes in for a set of tires, to the Lifetime Customer, who returns every time they need an auto repair.
Our business models were atypical of our industry and included Starbucks, Apple, Nordstrom, and others. For cars? No, for people. To create devotion, the customer experience needed to be pleasant and respectful, like stopping at your favorite coffee shop or shopping your favorite clothing brand. Could we have fallen flat on our faces? Yes. But standing still was no option.
Learning to speak in public...
Learning to speak in public is a must. Without learning the skill, a young businessperson is possibly reducing his or her chances of raising the game.
Fortunately, there is no one way to present to an audience. Tailor a method that suits your temperament.
The business world has provided a huge platform for me, and I love sharing with hundreds or thousands of people at a time. The topics vary, and sometimes I still work under the FCA umbrella. In any environment, I love having an impact on other people’s lives.
I’m a storyteller, so stories are always the basis for my talks, and I try to bring people into a relaxed, safe place by telling a joke or two. In my experience, the most inspirational speakers are the ones who personalize their message. It’s not a lecture. It’s not statistics and charts that win the day. I’m aiming for the human heart.
What is your intention?
I’m intentionally atypical in my approach to public speaking.
When I was invited to give the commencement speech at the University of Tulsa in 2015—a great honor—I was still chairman and president of Bridgestone Retail Operations, a $4-billion business unit of Bridgestone Americas. Some grads and their families may have expected Mr. Corporate Speaker to stand behind a lectern and deliver a mix of business insights with advice.
Instead, I walked the stage like Chis Rock—without the profanity, of course—and I didn’t carry a mic but wore an ear mic, which gave me the freedom to prowl every corner of the stage to reach every sector of zthe audience. I personalized and physicalized my presentation, pretending to kick a football while sharing my aim-for-the-uprights New York Giants tryout story.
My Tulsa address was an extraordinary opportunity and personally fulfilling. But my methods are the same everywhere I go. My intention is to reveal challenging moments in life as well as triumph. I don’t believe inspiration is all about bright, shiny prizes. Reality. Self-deprecation. The realizations we may experience in our darkest hour. These are all welcome ingredients in my storytelling.
What do you love doing?
I confess: It is fun to be entertaining. If I could tap dance, maybe I’d try that, too, if it would help me relate to my audience or help me to drive home an important point.
Yet none of the speaking I’ve enjoyed in America and internationally — at times to small groups of leadership personnel — would have happened if I had not been invited to the Tulsa campus FCA gatherings. At that point in my young life, I had never given a public speech, although in high school I was plenty vocal in the locker room.
The training I received with the FCA went beyond enriching my understanding of the Bible. Each week I observed a wide range of speakers, each with their own personalities and vocal gifts, and I’d assess—consciously or unconsciously—what was working.
Those opportunities and the impact were a lightning bolt: I loved motivating others.
Put me in, Coach!
Stu Speak:
“We are living in a time when some people care more about winning than about living the truth and having character. Character and integrity matter more to me than making a buck or winning. I love to win—don’t get me wrong—but I only enjoy winning by doing it the right way.”
The Intentional Playbook: Choices
“The only disability in life is a bad attitude.”
—Scott Hamilton, Olympic gold medalist
A strong intention is a choice. Have you ever taken some quiet time to think about the choices you have made in your life? What you might have done differently?
I’ve thought a lot about the choices I have made over my lifetime and the choices that those around me have made and how they have affected my life.
Whether at work or at home, a single choice (or decision) may have a life-altering effect on you and those around you. For instance, if a person chooses to drink and drive, they could put their own life and the lives of others at risk. If a teammate chooses to take a shortcut at work, it could result in a safety incident or unintended accident.
There are so many things in life that we can control with the right choices that will lead to a joyful life. There are just as many things that we can’t control in our life.
My wife, Mia, was diagnosed with breast cancer 17 years ago. It wasn’t her choice. But she made the choice to do every medical procedure the oncologist recommended to prolong her life. Her choice was to be aggressive with the procedures and therapies available to her. She also made the choice to be positive throughout the year-long process, despite losing all her hair.
Every day I make a choice to see the glass as half full. Some might choose half empty. My choice means that I treat people with respect and hope to get the same in return.
I aim to be a person of integrity and a man of character. I choose to be part of the solution and not the problem.
What if you make a commitment to help your supervisor or spouse or child but you don’t follow through? What are the consequences?
Your intentions have the power to . . .
. . . control more of what happens in life than you might think. Don’t be a victim of circumstances. Your choices create your circumstances. We are the players, not the observers of an athletic event.
Own your choices...
Begin thinking about every choice you make and how profoundly the choice creates circumstance.
Then be happy, live well, for you have done your best.
Copyright 2024 by Stu Crum. All Rights Reserved.
Adapted with permission.
Article Source:
BOOK: Aim for the Uprights
Aim for the Uprights: The Intentional Playbook for Success in Faith, Family, and Business
by Stu Crum.
Finally a playbook for harmonizing career aspirations with family time. Put all your aspirations within reach with one simple game plan! Aim for the Uprights proves you don’t need to grow wings to soar. Simple choices, consistency, and a zeal for trusting small steps will take you higher. You may now skip habitually “following” as a method of ascent. To score each day, just answer one question: What is my intention?
For more info and/or to order this book, click here. Also available as a Kindle edition.
About the Author
Stu Crum’s college football heroics put him on the national radar as a model student-athlete. Tagged as a winner with a natural gift for leadership, he made his name internationally in key positions with Texaco, Shell Oil, Jiffy Lube, and Bridgestone, wrangling deals with the likes of activist investor Carl Icahn and other heavy hitters. Developing a simple, dynamic game plan that he calls intentional living, Stu Crum lays out his playbook for success in faith, family, and business in his new book, AIM FOR THE UPRIGHTS The Intentional Playbook for Success in Faith, Family, and Business (July 9, 2024).
Learn more at www.stucrum.com.
Article Recap:
This article highlights the critical role of public speaking in business leadership. Drawing on personal experiences from leading Bridgestone’s retail operations, the article illustrates how effective communication can drive organizational success and help leaders connect with their teams. It also emphasizes the importance of tailoring your public speaking style to your strengths and the impact of intentional communication on leadership. Whether addressing large audiences or small groups, mastering public speaking is a powerful tool for business leaders.
