I have a service business and know that speaking to groups could get me more business. But I am not very good at talking in large, or even small, groups. How can I overcome my fear of public speaking?
Although some people have psychological barriers to speaking in front of groups, for most of us the problem is that we just don't practice enough to overcome our fears and become comfortable.
For general conversational improvement, books may offer all the help you need. Check your library or the bookstore for titles that cover conversational skills and selling techniques. Audio and video instructional tapes are also excellent teaching tools.
If you want to advance beyond the conversational stage and give speeches to groups of people, enroll in a public speaking course. Check with the continuing education department at a local college for a list of courses. Or join a Toastmasters International group in your area. To find a group near you, link to the Toastmasters International site.
The key to developing your speaking and interaction skills is practice. Join social groups like the chamber of commerce or other small business groups. If you're committed to improving your speaking skills, make it a goal to attend at least one group function every week. As you become more comfortable speaking in small groups, start volunteering to act as a meeting leader or join round table discussions. Before long, you might even find that you feel comfortable enough to participate as a speaker in short seminars.
Start small. Build your ability and comfort level. You'll find that speaking in front of 100 people is not much different than having a personal conversation with a close business associate. All it takes is some practice.
I have developed brochures, information pieces, reports and evaluation
programs for my business. How can I protect these printed materials from
being copied by someone?
To announce to the world that you created and own these materials, you'll need to copyright them. Copyright is the right of authors to control the reproduction and use of their creative expressions which have been fixed in tangible forms, such as written materials and recordings.
It's important to preserve your rights by placing a copyright notice on all of the materials. To do this, simply place the copyright symbol (©), your name and the year the document was created on each piece of printed material. You don't have to register your copyright to use the symbol.
To get the greatest amount of protection, register with the U.S. Copyright Office. You'll pay $20 for registering the materials. But in return, you'll receive more rights and recourse against anyone who infringes on your copyright.
As you can imagine, copyright laws can be complex. To get more information, contact the Copyright Office at (202) 707-3000. On the Internet, you can access the U.S. Copyright Office at http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/. You'll find all the copyright information you need, including application forms and filing instructions. You can also request NASE's booklet Avoiding Patent, Trademark & Copyright Problems. It's free to NASE Members.
Whether you actually file with the U.S. Copyright Office or not, it's still important to know how to protect your materials. Spending a little time to understand the copyright process could prevent someone else from capitalizing on your great ideas.
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