Speaker scams spread like the flu

By DAVE LIEBER

Fort Worth Star-Telegram Columnist/NSA North Texas

www.YankeeCowboy.com

Speakers always want their name in the newspaper.  And as a longtime newspaper columnist, I am here to pass on a surefire way to get attention.  Nobody has ever thought of this before, but it works.

Get scammed.

It worked quite well for two co-chapter members, Eloise Owens and Karen Cortell Reisman, of NSA/North Texas.

Both appeared recently in my Star-Telegram column.  They got their names in the paper.  Big time.

Actually, it was quite awful.

Eloise Owens’ column was headlined: “Beware the grandparents scam.”

The column was about how her 85-year-old mother in California got a call from Eloise’s son.  Or so she thought.

Actually, it was a scammer pretending to be him.  When the scammer was done, Eloise’s mom had wired $6,000 to Canada.  She never saw the money again.

Eloise believes the scammer may have learned about her family on the Internet, from her wedding program or from her wedding Web site.  Now, she’s a lot more careful about what she puts out on the ‘net.

A few weeks later, chapter member Gary Rifkin alerted me to another problem.  He had received an alarming Facebook email from chapter member Karen Cortell Reisman stating that she was in London and had been mugged at gunpoint.  She needed him to send money so she could get home.  Gary didn’t fall for it.  He copied the transcript and sent it to me.

For the next two days, Karen had to deal with the hijacking of her Facebook account, her friends’ concerned calls and emails and unknown fears caused by this web identity theft.

The column about Karen was headlined: “Take steps to protect yourself on Facebook.”

(Thanks to Gary for alerting me to this story.  Here is the story about Eloise Owens, and here’s the one about Karen Cortell Reisman.)

All of this comes on the heels of other speakers scams.  Linda Swindling alerted me to a former NSA member who takes URL names and adds an ’S’ to them and tries to scam speakers out of money.  When you call him, he tries to extort money from you.

A speaker friend from California was offered a chance to appear in a New York City comedy club, but he had to help the promoter set up the event by putting some of his own money up.  Turns out the promoter took the money, there was no event, and the speaker never heard from him again.

And then we heard from NSA Executive Vice President Stacy Tetschner, who warned us to watch out for a London “company” that contacts you to fill in for a speaker who has cancelled and asks for money to help for processing the paperwork to get you there.

Recently, I was a victim, too.  One meeting planner gave me a check that bounced.  Turns out he was scamming everyone.  I organized the others and we went to the district attorney to file charges.

So this can happen to anyone.

Even you, the speaker.

So remember the words of Police Sergeant Phil Esterhaus on the TV show, Hill Street Blues:

Hey, let’s be careful out there.

Dave Lieber is a columnist for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.  Last month, his book, Dave Lieber’s Watchdog Nation: Bite Back When Businesses and Scammers Do You Wrong, won its second national book award — The 2009 National Best Books Award for Social Change

Former North Texas chapter member wins reality TV show

By Dave Lieber
YankeeCowboy.com

This is the start of my 5th year as a NSA/North Texas member. My only regret is I didn’t join 20 years sooner.
I can’t say we’re the best chapter because I’ve never been to another chapter’s meetings. But I can say I’ve never had more fun with a group of folks than you.
You never know who you are going to meet.

A couple of years ago — as a member of the Joe Charbonneau Academy (I liked it so much I did it twice!) — I met Melissa, who was also enrolled. We lived near each other and had a bit in common.

Melissa D'Arabian

She and her husband had moved to Keller, Texas because of her his job. Their small kids were adjusting. She was wading into the speaking profession at NSA.
She was active in her new community, too. She had decided to use her business background to volunteer for Keller’s economic development board.

When I gave her background on Keller’s failures in this regard (the biggest retail name in town is some guy named “For Lease”), she smiled and said, “Well, it’s a new day. Let’s see how I can help them.”
She was genuine and direct. Her bright eyes and smile were welcoming. She was a natural.
Maybe you know who I’m talking about. Her full name is Melissa d’Arabian. She became a national celebrity in August when she won the reality TV show, The Next Food Network Star, in which contestants show off their culinary skills.
Just as important, they have to show off their abilities to talk on camera. She must have been good. Of the 10 contestants, she was the only one without professional cooking experience.
Now she gets her own 6-week show on the network — Ten Dollar Dinners With Melissa d’Arabian — shown Sunday mornings.
And NSA/North Texas gets another brag. She’s one of ours! This adorable, good-natured former North Texas mom (the family recently moved to the West Coast for hubby’s job again) won because she was so authentic the judges fell in love.
You had to see her on camera. She looks through the lens right into your heart. Her words about her background and her family caused goose bumps in viewers across America.
Ed Peters, her former dean at our Charboneau Academy, said her people skills were obvious from the start.
“We’ve always known as speakers that the key to success with an audience is ‘connecting’ with them,” Peters says. “I’ve always referred to that connection as ‘It’s not about you; It’s about them.’
“No one personifies that idea as much as my former student in the academy. Melissa d’Arabian. Melissa figured out very quickly that making her ‘performance’ about her audience, and not about her, would be her competitive advantage. It worked. It always does.”

Dave Lieber, one of America’s last remaining crusading newspaper columnists, runs WatchdogNation.com which helps Americans protect themselves against evildoers of all stripes.

Email Scam Targeting Professional Speakers

Recently an NSA member was contacted about a speaking engagement in London by a man by the name of Pastor Mark Graham Smith, claiming to be from the London Youth Conference. The scam revolves around the insistence of Pastor Mark Graham Smith, who required her to get a work permit before he would send her a deposit and airline tickets.

After discussing the proposal with a speaker from London and other NSA members she learned it was a scam. To help other NSA members avoid such scams the email messages to the NSA member from Pastor Mark Graham Smith are below in their original form. No grammar or spelling has been changed other than the name of the NSA member to protect her privacy.

If you have experienced a scam you’d like to inform other NSA members about please write a message about it in the comments section.

————————————————————————————-

From: london conference [mailto:londonyouthconf@gmail.com]

Sent: Wednesday, July 15, 2009 9:50 AM

To: email Subject: YOUTH BUSINESS FORUM

Dear Last Name First Name,

My Name is Pastor Mark Graham from the London Youth Community Here in London UK. We want you to be our guest speaker at this Year LONDON YOUTH CONFERENCE which will take place here in UK. We are writing to invite and confirm your booking to be our Speaker at these year LONDON YOUTH CONFERENCE. The Venue as follows: Friends House Hall(London) Hospitality Friends House 173 Euston Road London NW1 2BJ Expected audience: 2500 people Duration of speech per speaker: 1 Hour Name of Church/Organization: LONDON YOUTH COMMUNITY Tel Phone: + 44 7077-087-949 Topic: BUSINESS MANAGEMENT Date:19th of August 2009-23rd of August 2009 We came across your profile we say it’s up to standard and we will be very glad to have such an outstanding personality in our mist for these overwhelming gathering. With your multi talented speech more lives will come close to GOD, Sorry about our late invitation it is due to the fact that our Speaker had back out because of her sudden illness. Arrangements to welcome you here will be discussed as soon as you honor our invitation. If you have any more publicity material, please do not hesitate to contact me. A formal Letter of invitation would be sent to you as soon as you honor our invitation. We are taking care of your traveling and Hotel Accommodation expenses including your Speaker fees. Stay Blessed Mark Graham LONDON YOUTH CONFERENCE

————————————————————————————-

From: london conference [mailto:londonyouthconf@gmail.com]

Sent: Thursday, July 16, 2009 7:15 AM To: email

Subject: CONTRACT AGREEMENT AND LETTER OF INVITATION

Dear First Name,

 Thanks for indicating your interest to be our Guest Speaker at this year LONDON YOUTH CONFERENCE. We are very excited and happy to have such a wonderful personality in our mist. Sorry for contacting you late . We the event organizing committee had a meeting earlier today to deliberate on getting you available here within a short period of time. We believe we serve the lord of possibilities. Arrangements are stated below. We have agreed to buy you flight ticket and to pay your Hotel accommodation expenses . Also your Speaking fee is to deposit is to be paid as soon as you procure all relevant travel documents so as to avoid any dissapointment.You are informed to get accross your Work Permit to us so your deposit can be approved according to our mandated rules and regulation. You are advised by the Event Organizing committee to immediately contact the BRITISH HIGH COMMISSION to procure your UK Work Permit as soon as possible This will enable us to proceed with all arrangements to welcome you here in London. Contact the British High Commission officer information below. BRITISH HIGH COMMISSION Name…Dr Darren David Email…Britshhighc@britpost.com or darrendavid@britpost.com Please confirm to us the closest Airport to your location so we can start making arrangements to buy your flight tickets .Understand that you need to expedite action because of the short notice. Feel free to ask any question We have attached a formal Letter of Invitation and contract agreement.Please reconfirm to us your office Address for our perusal and further action.Note you are meant to arrive a day before the commencement of the event. Please return a signed copy of the contract agreeement for proper documentation.You can also reach me on my mobile number for more update Tel:+4470-240-698-26 We await your earliest response Pastor Mark Graham Smith LONDON YOUTH CONFERENCE

————————————————————————————-

Dear First Name,

Thanks for your mail, you can contact me immediately on these number +447024069826. You can speak on EMPOWERMENT AND CHANGE i think that will suit you. Your husband can accompany you, we wil be paying for all his flight expenses and hotle accomodations, you stated in your previous mail that he is inevitable and must come with you so all that will be taken care of. Hope you have contacted the BRITISH HIGH COMMISSION for your work permit because it is very mandatory.

Stay Blessed

Pastor Mark

Some speakers need to “chillax”

You know the kind I mean… the ones who are soooo concerned with looking the part, wearing the “right” clothes, telling the most engaging stories, and being, well, impressive. Now, don’t get me wrong. Looking  professional and speaking with authority is what it’s all about in this business. The question is – how authentic are some of these speakers?

As NSA members, we attend chapter meetings to learn, to embrace our profession, and to improve our platform skills. But to what purpose? Certainly not to become clones of other, more successful speakers, but to become who we truly are, in our own unique skins.

Gaining confidence and a sense of comfort in front of an audience is the ideal place to be. But maybe some of us need to “chillax” a bit in the process. When we develop our own style and look, as well as our own way of telling stories and engaging audiences, we can really allow our personal brands to flourish and become our authentic selves as speakers.

What do you think? Do you believe that you have developed your personal brand and style as a speaker?

Best Blogging Contest Raises Awareness of Coaching Coaches and For One Blog – Introverts

Best Blogging Contest Raises Awareness of Coaching Coaches and for One Blog – Introverts

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SPECIAL INVITATION AND OFFER FROM JEFFREY GITOMER

SPECIAL INVITATION AND OFFER FOR ALL NSA MEMBERS!

Join best-selling author and speaker JEFFREY GITOMER at any of his public seminars and receive $20 off your tickets.

In addition, Jeffrey will meet with NSA members, the morning of his public seminars, for a private coaching session where he will share his presentation skills and story-telling techniques.

Go to his PUBLIC SEMINAR SCHEDULE http://www.gitomer.com/seminars/Public-Seminars.html and select which seminar city works best for you. Type in the PROMO CODE  NSAUSA  to receive your ticket discount.

For questions or to take part in the private sessions with Jeffrey, please purchase your ticket using the Promo Code NSAUSA  and contact Sara Riggenbach at sara@gitomer.com or call 800.242.5388.

We look forward to serving you soon!

Speech Transitions Need TLC

By Dave Lieber

NSA/North Texas

Fort Worth Star-Telegram Columnist

www.YankeeCowboy.com

The most edited parts of my newspaper column, aside from obvious mistakes, are my transition paragraphs linking major sections or scenes.  Mine are rough, but my editor is a transition expert.

Speech transitions are even more important.  A reader may skip through a badly written paragraph to get to the meat.  An audience member listening to a bad transition in an uncomfortable hotel chair will, in a second, lose interest and check his watch.

Transitions are like “establishing shots” in a movie.  They also act like a propeller, launching you from one scene to the next.

I spent a long time tinkering with the key transition in my new keynote - Agonized over each word for the perfect tone.  It’s only 15 words.

First comes my opening story, sort of like the overture in an opera.  The orchestra is playing, but the curtain is down.  This playful warm-up lets the audience know I have a pulse … and a sense of humor. ‘Tis transition time.

I pause, think about the meaning behind the words, and then say with conviction the following:

Just like you, I was brought up to believe the world was a good place.

Sometimes, my voice cracks.  I feel the sentence come from within.

Let’s look at how each word was chosen:

Just – My least favorite word.  Usually, it can be struck from any sentence without harm.  But here, it works.  Better than saying “Like you …”  This word serves as an opening drumbeat to set the rhythm of the rest of the sentence.  Lets you know something is about to happen;

Like – One of the most underrated words … one beat short of love, the very best word;

You – The money word in our biz;

I – This combination of you and I, separated by a comma/pause, establishes an immediate connection between the audience and speaker.  We are now together;

Was – By not using ‘is’ and not putting the audience in the moment, which is also a very good word/technique to use, ‘was’ means you are about to tell a story from the past.  The brain likes to hear that;

Brought up – Raised or brought up?  Brought up wins because it evokes the idea that your parents nurtured you in a safer bygone world;

To Believe – The word ‘believe’ strikes a universal cord with everyone because we all believe in things both true and untrue;

The World – This isn’t about neighborhood or even state, but global, even universal; and

Was A Good Place – An expression of purity, evoking in the simplest phrasing everyone’s personal image of his or her own highest ideal.

This transition does its job, helping the audience cross the bridge from overture to Act 1, by using connection-building words to evoke personal ideals and creating curiosity for what comes next.

It doesn’t take a lot of words, JUST the right ones.

Check out the bizarro world Dave created at

http://www.watchdognation.com

OK, I take it back..

Back in March, I posted a brief essay on this NSA member blog claiming that Obama is really NSA Man. Well, last week I listened to a speech of his and he told THE DARN STARFISH STORY! So, uh, I take it all back.

Are You In Need of Inspiration?

Are You In Need of Inspiration?

 

What inspires you?  Perhaps for you, it’s architecture, nature, or maybe other people.  This past month I had the honor of having a new NSA member approach me and tell me that I inspired them… Me!  Can you believe it?  My immediate question back to them was “In what ways?”  (Darn that coaching background!  I couldn’t just accept the compliment.) They told me that I inspired them because I am always positive, upbeat and that they just enjoyed hearing my story and being around me (Again, I had to ask myself if they were really talking about me?)

 

I tell this story not to brag, although it is pretty cool huh?  Instead, I tell it because inspiration is all around us at NSA!  Let’s face the facts… This can be a pretty lonely business existence. The majority of us are solopreneurs where we work by ourselves, for ourselves.   Furthermore, telling your story can bring you to areas of the country that you never imagined (Can you tell me what I was doing in Fargo, North Dakota in December?) and stay in hotels that boggle the hospitality mentality (The front desk was appreciative that I actually took the time to bring them the 1970’s pair of Hush Puppy shoes that were under the bed!) Something has got to keep you going, and that something for me is our members. 

 

So if you’re like me and find inspiration in other people, odds are that there is an NSA member that has a story to tell that will inspire you.  Whether it’s talking to someone that’s climbed to the top of Mount Everest (There is an NSA Sammy Speaker-Palooza Membership Desk setup at base camp!) or someone who works in the poorest parts of Washington DC)  This month I followed-up with a guy that inspires me.  His name is Omekongo Dibinga, and I met him in Orlando at the NSA Winter Meeting (Check him out at www.omekongo.com).  He’s not a CPAE, nor does he have the CSP designation.  But what he does have is vision.  Here’s why this guy’s vision inspires me… When I first met him, he said that “My sole purpose is to change the world!”  This set the tone and raised the bar for me throughout the entire meeting.  I was, and still am inspired by him (Again, this guy’s sole purpose is to CHANGE THE WORLD!) 

 

So what inspires you?  The odds are that there is someone you could reach out to that is an NSA member.  Because you’re a member, you have access to such inspiration right at your fingertips.  I encourage you to go to the web, find that person and reach out today!  Inspiration is closer than you think…

 

From the NSA NTX Membership Desk,

 

 

Sam Palazzolo, MBA, CPLP

Pathos Leadership Group

www.PathosLeadershipGroup.com

Is the Expense of NSA Membership a Waste?

Sam Palazzolo, MBA, CPLP

NSA North TX

I recently took the advice of Seth Godin (author of “Tribes,” “Purple Cow” and “Permission Marketing,” to name a few).  He recently said that right now, in order to weather the current economic storm, businesses must look at each of their expenses and cut out the wasteful ones.  So I sat down and analyzed my business, one painful expenditure at a time.  I ultimately came to the NSA and NSA North Texas expenses.  I looked at these expenses and, like Seth suggested, asked myself if this was truly a waste.  I came up with two conclusions.

 

First, I just returned from the NSA Winter Convention in Orlando, so the expenses were still fresh on my mind.  (They’ll have a little more “sting” when the bill arrives next month!)  The convention was a great opportunity to see old friends, meet new ones, bring my kids with me (my daughter celebrated her 8th birthday there.  She celebrated with Mickey; I celebrated my 8th birthday with my Uncle Mike… but that’s a different story!)  and to learn new ways to take my business to the next level.  I set a goal for myself to leave with no less than six $10,000 ideas.  I left the first day with nine, thanks to Jeff Magee, CSP!  Was this expense worth it?

 

Second, I reviewed the NSA North Texas expenses associated with the meetings and sitting on the board.  Even though I purchased a “Value Pass,” the membership and meeting expenses are high in comparison to the other associations of which I’m a member.  (But I do get to attend a special session later this year!)  I reviewed my notes from each of the presenters who have presented thus far: Michael Port, Scott Halford, Jill Konrath, Chris Clark-Epstein, etc.  What value did I receive from each that directly impacted my business bottom line?  I also looked at my time spent on the board.  This is time away from my clients, students at the university where I instruct and my family.  Was this expense worth it?

 

I had a conversation with a “prospect” or potential member of the group, which cleared up all the analysis that I was trying to perform.  She asked, “What is the best part of being a member of NSA?”  I told her the answer was simple for me, it’s a place where you can learn how to best structure your business because everybody shares!  So whether you take Seth’s advice or mine, determine if the expense of your membership is truly bringing value to your business bottom line.  If you’re like me, this is a no-brainer!

 

 

From the Membership Desk at NSA North Texas…

Sam Palazzolo, MBA, CPLP

President & Chief Influence Officer

Pathos Leadership Group – Home of the Influential Edge!

www.PathosLeadershipGroup.com