​Commitment is the fuel that turns goals into reality. We all need commitment at some level if we are to succeed. Without it, it's just wishful thinking.

When's the best time to commit? Now.

• Sign up for the next race when you're dripping wet with sweat after today's race.
• Start planning your vacation when you finish this year's trip.
• Start working on the next project as you wrap up the current project.
• Start writing your next blog post after you've completed today's post.

When you push yourself to commit, you automatically set in motion the momentum and the creativity to get things done.

Do it now.

wesbleed.com | twitter: @wesbleed

If you're trying to contribute to the conversation online, hoping to connect with an audience and share your expertise, you need to be creating content. Content can be text, images, videos or any combination.

The struggle many of us face is creating content on a consistent basis. What that typically boils down to is time. We don't make or take the time to write that blog post or create the graphic to post to Instagram. What we need is a plan for what I call Rapid Content Creation (#RCC).

The secret to creating content quickly is to do it with a strategy. Have a plan. Don't just wake up in the morning hoping that inspiration will strike.

It's also important to have a tool or program to create your material. I use (believe it or not) the good old fashioned Notepad that comes with any Windows PC. Really. It's handy. It's sitting in my task bar. I just click and start to write. I also use the LogoCreator for many of my graphics, including the one for this post. It's amazingly fast and effective.

Templates are also a good idea. If something worked once, don't reinvent the wheel. Bring it up again, save it under a new name and start to tweak it with your new content. 

So, there you have three ideas to get your content out to the world better and faster. The key is to experiment and see what works for you.

wesbleed.com | twitter: @wesbleed

You probably know how tricky it is trying to create your own graphics. Maybe you've thought about hiring a designer, but it’s just too time consuming - or expensive - trying to find the right one. Maybe you've tried Photoshop or Paint, but couldn't think of what to create. 

That's why I want to tell you about “The Logo Creator” by Laughingbird Software. It's amazing! It comes with a ton of templates that helped me create a bunch of great graphics, like my logo, YouTube banners and video thumbnails. 
​
Check it out!

This is part two of a three-part series on the goal of any public speaker. Read part one here. ​The second goal of any speaker is to educate the audience about the subject the speaker has been asked to address. 

Now, there's a big difference between educate and inform. You don't really need to inform, because we can all look it up on Google. Educating is another matter.

To educate is to enlighten, offer new perspective and turn on the light bulbs over the heads of the audience members. Education is highlighting important trends and trying to explain what's happening. Education is interacting with the audience to make sure attendees are grasping what the speaker has to say.

The true litmus test of whether a speech was successful is whether the speaker did one important thing: Did he or she have an impact?

The impact could be made with the insights they shared.

It could have come from the stories they told.

It might have been from the challenge they issued.

This is a 3-part series designed to give speakers and presenters the foundation for all effective presentations. In other words, get this right and your chances of success go up dramatically. Get it wrong, and you'll be more likely to leave your audience confused and disappointed.

All speakers essentially have the same three goals when they reach the platform. If they can accomplish all three, they will succeed. If they accomplish one or two, they will still have some success, but maybe not as much as they would hope.

If you've done any public speaking in your life you have likely dealt with something you might call the speaker's resistance. It's the inner voice that tells us we're no good or that we don't have the authority to be up in front of a crowd. Watch this video for some tips on overcoming this serious challenge.

Here's the link: https://youtu.be/-k5WWOEDw80

Are you a motivational speaker? Chances are you're not, or wouldn't consider yourself one even if you do speak in public.

In reality, however, we all can be motivational speakers in our daily conversations. No kidding.

Motivation is helping someone move from where they are to where they'd like to be. Motivational speakers do it from the platform at meetings and conferences. They do it before large crowds.

We can each do it one-on-one through motivational conversation. How?

If you want to connect with an audience, really have an impact, make it more than a bunch of statistics or random stories that might be amusing and even entertaining.

A presentation to have real impact must be personal. It must be about you, the speaker and your interaction with the trends and studies and information you are presenting.

So, think M.I.P. -- make it personal. How?