Motivational Speaker Legend DeLores Pressley

Written by dabney on Monday, February 13th, 2012 with 0 comments

Today’s interview is with DeLores Pressley, a spunky public speaker who encourages audiences to improve their lives and tackle their biggest problems. DeLores’ recipe for success comes from years of exuding positive energy and optimism. She founded a modeling agency for plus-sized women, and spent years teaching children how to unlock their inner potential. Truly, teaching discouraged people how to overcome obstacles and believe in their inner power is something that comes naturally to DeLores.

In her public speaking career, DeLores has reached out to over 100,000 people across the world, and has even appeared on Oprah and Entertainment Tonight. Her success stems from her optimistic message paired with her can-do attitude. With DeLores’ infectious energy, it’s hard not to get pulled into her presentations and feel the emotional impact of her message.

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You definitely have a lot of positive energy when you speak. How would you characterize your unique speaking style?

I love being on stage—it completely energizes me. I never want to be a status-quo speaker. Sometimes I go on stage and do not say a word for 30 seconds. It seems like eternity but it can be very effective at gaining the crowd’s attention. Silence can be golden. Other times I sing during a speech. It is no longer enough to be a motivational speaker.

Additionally, I believe that I am unique because I teach people “the how of life.” It is not enough to be on the platform telling people what to do, but when they leave the event, they have no idea how to make it happen. I will do brief exercises from the platform, even during a keynote speech. Most of the exercises provide for some kind of accountability either to yourself, a buddy you met during the event, or with me following the event.

One of my reviews said “Move over Tony Robbins, there’s a new speaker in town.”  It is such an honor to be compared to one of best speakers on the planet.

 

Have you learned any life lessons from your young students?

I don’t think we have enough time to tell you what I learned from my students. I can share my top three lessons:

1. Never stop learning. You can learn from everyone including children.

2. Every person needs to schedule time for themselves. I want people to literally write their names on their calendar and make an appointment with themselves. As teacher, I was so nurturing and always putting everyone else before myself. We must take care of ourselves first. Only then can we effectively care for others.

3. Push past your fears. The majority of fears do not come to fruition. Have the courage to take a risk beyond the fear. This lesson has helped me achieve tremendous success.

 

Going from teaching kids to being a motivational speaker for huge audiences is a pretty big step. How did you make the transition?

It was a huge step; however, I have always had an entrepreneurial spirit. After all, I was one of the top sellers in my Girl Scout Troop.

I always got in trouble at school for talking too much. I think I recognized my gift of voice as a young girl. In 1986, I started my first business; Dimensions Plus Size Model Agency. I was often invited to be a guest expert on shows like Jerry Springer and Maury Povich (this was before they changed their show format). So as a frequent media guest, I was speaking a lot about how women should love themselves no matter what. I was not an advocate of obesity, but I believe that we use our power to love ourselves at all times. Yes, we may need to make changes, but love yourself through the change.

 

Of all of the topics that you chose to speak on, why did you pursue the topic of helping people achieve their full potential?

So often, I was denied the opportunity to achieve my full potential. As a child, I had such a strong determination to be a ballerina that I dreamed about it every night. When I heard a dance troupe was coming to my school I begged my mother to sign me up for ballet lessons. Much to my surprise informed me that she signed me up for tap dance instead of ballet. I was devastated and could not understand how she could do that to me. At that time she explained the dance instructor thought I was better suited for tap, not ballet. It wasn’t until later in life she revealed the truth that she spared me from the pain of the dance instructor telling her I was too big for ballet.

My mother spoke confidence into me by constantly telling me how beautiful I was and how I could achieve anything. Once I found this out it was a turning point for me… I decided I would never allow anyone to rob me of my power.

As an adult I had a similar experience. I wanted to be a model, but every agency I turned to told me “you are too big, too fat.” It took me back to my childhood years and I could hear that dance instructor telling my mother the same thing. This time I took action, bound and determined to prove them wrong. I mustered my confidence and started the Dimensions Plus Model Agency. I had the agency for 18 years and our models worked for Glamour, Essence, and Saks Fifth Avenue to name a few.

Do not let others determine your self-worth. Your power to change your beliefs gives you the power to change your circumstances.

As a little girl, I don’t think I knew what full-potential meant, but what I knew was that I would not let people rob me of my dreams and I was determined to live them in spite of what others thought. Subsequently, my life mission is to help people be undeniably powerful and live life beyond their potential.

 

If you could tell one thing to every woman on earth, what would it be?

Believe in Yourself – Have a positive mindset. Our thoughts can create our reality. Our mindset is simply the attitude we take towards life – how we think in the world around us. For me, mindset is foundational to everything we do in life and in business. It shapes the way we see the world and how we act in it.  Mindset determines our success.

 

What do you think one of the most common problems people have that limits their potential?

Overcoming Fears – I think fear comes in many forms, including fear of success.

Below are four keys that can help overcome fear

1.  Bring fear out into the light of day and acknowledge it. Be honest, tell the truth and be real about the fear you hold. When we hide our fear, we give it life. When we deny that it exists, we allow it more power that it should hold. When we shine a light on fear and talk it through, we often find that it was not nearly as scary as we thought.

Honestly admitting our fear gives us the needed breathing room to deal with it. It opens the door to moving beyond.

2. Own the fear. Take responsibility for your fear. Own up to the fact that it is your problem. This is because too often we tend to want to blame others or “circumstances beyond our control” for the fear we are experiencing.

By taking responsibility for our fears we begin to own the fact that we are the only ones who can change them. When we realize this truth, we are on the path to moving beyond fear.

3. Let it out. Do not repress your fear. Speak, write, journal, run, hit something (not someone), scream – do something to let fear out of your body. When we express our emotions with intensity they begin to move through us. When we truly “feel the fear,” we start the process of lessening it’s power and hold over us.

4. Take action. Overcoming fear is not a spectator sport. If you want to let go of and move beyond your fear, you have to be in the game and not on the sideline.

 

What’s the best way to keep a crowd energized and engaged during a speech?

1. Be a better-than-good speaker. Be phenomenal – hone your craft and have excellent platform skills and a powerful message. Don’t walk on stage and start off your speech by thanking the meeting planner.

2. Silence can be golden on stage.

3. Relationships are everything – Connect with your audience. Ask the meeting planner for names of individuals you can connect with prior to the event. Send them an email or make a call and introduce yourself and ask questions about what they would like to “take-away from the event.”

On the day of the event go out into the audience and talk with them. Be sure to shake hands and give plenty of smiles.

People do business with people whom they like and trust. Identifying with your listeners is essential to building a relationship with them. In the short-term, you will gain an expected trust in your message, and in the long-term you will generate business.

 

What are your favorite and least favorite speaking moments?

I cannot think of a least favorite moment because I love to speak. If I had to choose one, it would be getting in trouble in school for “taking too much” and disturbing the class and my teachers. They did not know that it was my training ground for being a professional speaker.

I have so many wonderful experiences on the platform that it would be difficult to pick one favorite. If I must it would be speaking for Athena International in Rotherham, UK.  Having the opportunity to be helping people worldwide to motivate and move themselves to action was an incredible experience for me.

There were lords and dignitaries in the audience and it was such an honor to be invited to speak in England.

 

What advice do you have for aspiring speakers?

Be an expert at what you do and hone your craft. It is no longer enough to be a motivational speaker. These days being called a motivational speaker isn’t as clear as it used to be. There were only a handful of us 10 plus years ago when I got started… now there are thousands. When you consider the term motivational speaker is the number one keyword people use to search for speakers, I am listed as a motivational speaker.  The meeting planner searching for a speaker may not think to search on personal power expert or confidence expert. And speakers must be experts in their field. I think Jerry Garcia said it best when he said, “You do not merely want to be considered just the best of the best. You want to be considered the only one who does what you do.”

I remember in my early days of speaking, I made the same mistake as many of my colleagues; “speaking on every topic.” Doing that is one of the quickest ways to insure that you will not reach your greatest potential as a speaker.