
What it Takes to Win Hearts, Minds, and Speaking Awards with Adele Bates - 324
The Speaking Club: Mastering the Art of Public SpeakingShow Notes
I first came across Adele Bates when I was judging the Storytelling category at the Speaker Awards—and her talk really stood out and grabbed my attention. It was powerful, authentic, challenging and captivating. She didn't just tell the story. She performed it. Her talk built drama and connected emotionally to the audience, leading you to see a new perspective. Based on that performance and the fact that she went on to win the award for best storyteller, I knew I had to get her on the show. Not only did I want her to unpack the craft behind that talk, but I also wanted to dig into the powerful work she's doing at the intersection of education, leadership, and human behaviour. Adele has over 20 years' experience working in some of the most challenging educational environments—mainstream, special, and alternative provision. Her journey has taken her from classrooms where she's had juice poured over her head and skateboards hurled at her… to research trips across the globe… to keynote stages and international recognition. She is the author of "Miss, I Don't Give A Sh*t: Engaging with Challenging Behaviour in Schools. And today she and her team also work with organisations and leaders to tackle challenging dynamics in the workplace. Whether you're a speaker, leader, educator or changemaker, Adele's stories and insights will challenge your thinking, stir your empathy, and give you practical tools for connection and communication. What You'll Discover: What triggered Adele to set off on a quest to discover a different way of approaching dealing with challenging behaviour. The key values that guide Adele's work with both students and corporate leaders. How to hold high expectations and compassion without burning out. The real disconnect between behaviour policies and lived experience in schools. The surprise career Adele had before she became a teacher and how she made the transition from educator to paid keynote speaker. The big mistake she made with a speaking client that she would never make again. Why it doesn't matter if you are introverted or extroverted to be successful as a speaker. How she developed the award-winning storytelling section of her talk. The single piece of feedback that transformed her speaking presence. All things Adele: Website: adelebateseducation.co.uk LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adele-bates-03b566208/ Books & Resources*: Wild Power by Alexandra Pope and Sjanie Hugo Wurlitzer Speaking Resources: Grab Your From Blank Page to Stage Guide and Nail the Topic for a Client Winning Talk Want to get better at finding and sharing your stories then check out our FREE Five Day Snackable Story Challenge Thanks for listening! To share your thoughts: Share this show on X, Facebook or LinkedIn. To help the show out: Leave an honest review at https://www.ratethispodcast.com/tsc Your ratings and reviews really help get the word out and I read each one. Subscribe on iTunes. *(please note if you use my link I get a small commission, but this does not affect your payment)
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Many speakers think that the sexiest part of their story for the audience is the before and after. They're wrong. The most valuable bit is often missed entirely or not given the space it deserves in your talk. In this episode, I'm covering what that missing part is, what leaving it out is costing you and why you might feel resistance to including it in your signature story. If you've ever felt your story isn't quite landing with your audience, or not getting you the results you want when you speak this episode might explain why ... and completely change the way you tell it. What you'll discover: • The storytelling mistake Sarah spotted happening judging this year's Speaker Awards • What The Odyssey can teach you about telling a memorable signature story • Why audiences care less about your success than you might think • The missing piece of your story that undermines trust • Why sharing your failures can make you more credible, not less • The reason audiences often admire your transformation but don't believe they can achieve it themselves • How expert blindness can sabotage your story • The simple questions that help you uncover the lessons hidden inside your story • How to include the struggle, even if you've only got a short speaking slot • Why the decisions you made matter more than the destination you reached • What caterpillars, butterflies and chicken recipes have to do with great storytelling Enjoy! If you'd like to watch the video of the episode, you can do that here>> Speaking Resources: Grab Your From Blank Page to Stage Guide and Nail the Topic for a Client Winning Talk: https://saraharcher.co.uk/newguide-tsc Episode 194, Storytelling. The Long and Short of It: https://thespeakingclub.com/episodes/tsc/194 Want to get better at finding and sharing your stories then check out our FREE Five Day Snackable Story Challenge: https://www.saraharcher.co.uk/challenge To share your thoughts: · leave a comment below. · Share this show on Facebook or LinkedIn. To help the show out: · Leave an honest review at https://www.ratethispodcast.com/tsc Your ratings and reviews really help get the word out and I read each one. *(please note if you use my link I get a small commission, but this does not affect your payment)