How the SPEAK Framework™ Helped Me Build A 7-Figure Speaking Career

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Hi, I’m Grant Baldwin, founder of The Speaker Lab.

Despite starting my speaking career with no audience, no following, and no network, I’ve earned over $2+ million from 500+ paid engagements all over the world. I’ve done everything from closed-door workshops to keynotes in front of 13,000 people. And I did all of that without using traditional booking agents or speaker bureaus.

The Speaker Lab is the resource I wish I had when I began my speaking journey. We help aspiring speakers get consistently booked and paid to speak through our SPEAK Framework™, or the “business” side of speaking.

Not familiar with the SPEAK Framework™? Here’s a quick overview: 

Select a Problem to Solve
Prepare Your Talk
Establish Yourself as an Expert
Acquire Paid Speaking Gigs
Know When to Scale

Let’s unpack that more.

Select a Problem to Solve:

Whether you’re just getting started or have been speaking for years, zeroing in on the right problem to solve for the right audience and industry will make a dramatic difference in how much (and how frequently) you’re paid to speak.

This step will prevent you from spending years fighting an impossible battle trying to get booked for topics that don’t have an existing (or paying) market.

Prepare Your Talk

It’s obvious that delivering an outstanding talk can go a long way in getting you more paid opportunities. But how do you actually create one?

What specific actions can you take to fine-tune an existing presentation that’s “pretty good” and transform it into something unforgettable?

This step will teach you how to create keynotes, workshops, and seminars that will captivate your audience and inspire event organizers to give you referrals and repeat bookings.

Establish Yourself as an Expert

You do NOT have to be the world’s leading expert in your field in order to get paid to speak.

You do, however, need to demonstrate some level of expertise. And as long as you know enough about your topic to deliver presentations that engage your audience, trust me—you have more than enough expertise.

But none of that will matter if you don’t know how to properly communicate your expertise to decision makers. And the two biggest pieces you need in order to do that are a rock-solid website and a compelling demo video. This step will show you exactly how to create both (or improve your existing ones).

Acquire Paid Speaking Gigs

If you’re like most speakers, this is the part that feels the murkiest to you—finding the best paid opportunities and taking concrete steps to actually book them.

Even seasoned speakers who feel 100% confident and comfortable on stage often feel at a loss when it comes to reaching out and winning over decision makers. You don’t want to say the wrong thing. You don’t want to come off overly salesy. And to top it off, you don’t even know where to look.

This step is designed to equip speakers with the right information needed to feel confident in their ability to land more paid gigs.

Know When to Scale

Learning how to consistently booked paid gigs is one thing…but how do you build a healthy, thriving business around yourself as a speaker once momentum starts to grow?

Whether you want to speak full time or on the side, understanding how to scale as your success increases will help you build a sustainable revenue engine without getting overwhelmed or burned out.

Get a Free Copy of The Successful Speaker!

Learn the exact system TSL founder Grant Baldwin used to build a 7-figure speaking career and help THOUSANDS of other speakers Get Booked and Paid to Speak™ on a consistent basis.

The Successful Speaker will show you how thousands of speakers in every industry are using the SPEAK Framework™ to build thriving speaking businesses and get paid to share their message with the world.

Related Resources

Here are a few other resources you might find helpful. 

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How to Set and Meet Goals for your Speaking Business
Introduction There’s no simple method for how to set and meet goals for your speaking business. It’s a multi-faceted challenge that requires a lot of upfront work when you launch your speaking career and consistent...
3 Lessons From Shane Sams on How to Prepare A Killer Talk
Recently, Shane Sams sat down with Grant Baldwin on The Speaker Lab Podcast to discuss the art of preparing a killer talk. Here are the top 3 takeaways from their conversation: Start With a Framework...
How to Create a Vision for your Speaking Business
Introduction Last week, we walked you through how to write a mission statement for your speaking business. So it’s no surprise that today we’re covering how to create a vision for your speaking business. Beginner...
How to Write a Mission Statement for your Speaking Business
Introduction For good reason, many aspiring speakers are excited about the fun, glamorous parts of becoming a professional speaker. But the “fun” cannot come without the fundamentals. Certain elements of your business, such as your...
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Introduction  If you’ve just decided to start a speaking business, you have a lot of ducks to get in a row. We recommend a simple 5-step process to speaking success: our SPEAK framework that informs...
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Introduction Finding a realistic job that offers flexibility to mothers is no easy task. For a while during COVID, remote work opened up new arrangements of balancing childcare with earning an income. But now, many...
How to Make Money as a Faith-Based Speaker
Introduction Many successful speakers started their speaking career in Christian ministry. (Our very own founder Grant Baldwin was a youth pastor!) Other speakers start out in other fields and later turn their talents toward church...
What is ESG? (And how does it Impact the Speaking Industry?)
Introduction ESG issues are hot topics these days. And if you’re thinking “ESG? What is ESG? That wasn’t in The Successful Speaker…” keep reading, we’ve got answers.  As an aspiring or established speaker, you have...
Why Speaking is the Best Second Career
Introduction The idea of switching careers after a decade or more in one field is by no means a new one. As new industries enter the arena and the economy causes others to wane, you...
Want to know exactly what to say to land more paid speaking gigs?

We’ll send you the exact three emails you can send to conference planners and event organizers that Grant Baldwin (our founder) used to book over $2M in speaking gigs.