In the early years of my business, I was on calls with a bunch of ideal clients to gain information for a program I was developing. After a few calls, I noticed something: almost every single one of my clients had either been a teacher or wanted to be a teacher when they were young. It was fascinating! My people were educators at heart.

It was fascinating but also odd because I, personally, never wanted to be a teacher! And here I am today, 5+ years into homeschooling my two kids. Wild, right?! But now, I love it so much. It’s not easy, but it’s worth it.

Homeschooling my kids has taught me so much about my kids, myself, the art of teaching, and yes, even speaking. Here’s what I’ve learned below.

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RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

Understand different learning styles

During the first few years of homeschooling, I had a lot of learning (and unlearning) to do. They were a little rocky, to say the least.

If you went to a traditional school like me, you probably remember “school” as long days broken into five to seven periods, all focused on different subjects or activities. Let me tell you, that’s not the best format for homeschooling! And it’s actually a benefit of homeschooling. You can meet your child where they are in structure and curriculum.

I tried an online program with Chloe, my oldest. She hated it. She didn’t want to be on the computer all day! And I also tried to touch on every subject every day, just like a traditional school would. Big fail.

Now, almost all our core subjects are textbook-based. And we aim to cover two or three subjects a day, so we can dive deeper into each, beyond the lessons in our textbooks. It leaves room for discussion, application, projects, and more. Chloe is so much happier because her experience is based on how she prefers to learn.

Take this as a reminder that the audiences you speak to are filled with people who vary when it comes to learning preferences and abilities. You’ve got to present your information in ways that meet your audience where they are, whether that means using slides, giving more examples, taking breaks for questions, and so on.

Remember what it’s like to be a beginner

It’s so easy to forget what it’s like to be a beginner! Think about the last new skill you learned or the last hobby you took on. Did you give up at the beginning? Did it take multiple tries to stick with it?

I want you to remember that “curse of genius” when speaking to your audience. Remember that most of them are not at the level you are. That’s why they’re looking to you for advice! You’re the subject matter expert that they can learn from.

Put yourself in your audience’s shoes and look at your presentation from their perspective. What do they already know? What are they looking to learn? How can they learn that information, and what examples are most relevant to them now?

Take how I teach math with Chloe, for example. When we learn about fractions, I always reference slices of pizza. Because who doesn’t love pizza? And also, it helps her easily visualize the math itself. It’s more effective than telling her to use shapes, grids, or charts because pizza is an everyday thing she already knows.

Help someone find the answer on their own

If you’ve been a teacher or wanted to be a teacher at some point, I’m betting you already know this, but it’s something I learned while homeschooling my kids. Helping someone find the answer on their own — rather than giving the answer — is a much more effective way to teach.

Chloe gets mad if you tell her the answer to a problem. I’m talking “I’m so mad I’m seeing red” type of mad! She wants to figure it out, but she needs help. This has taught me to be a better teacher and guide without solving the problem. It’s taught me to ask better questions that help her come to the answer rather than skipping to the end and simply giving it to her.

In fact, she used to say it wasn’t fair that I was her Language Arts teacher because I’m a speaking coach, and that I was too critical grading her papers. Now, instead of pointing out her mistakes, I let her edit her copies. And after she’s made those edits by herself, we review them together.

As a speaker, you need to take a step back and ask yourself how you can help connect the dots for your audience in your presentation. Figure out what questions to ask or examples to give. How can you show and not tell? How will they come to the answer on their own?

Find a new way to do an old thing

One last thing that I want you to take away from my homeschooling experiences. If your audience is not responding to the way you’re delivering your content…shake things up! Try something new.

Take learning the alphabet, for example. Not just reciting the letters in the song, but knowing the sounds in words, recognizing both uppercase and lowercase letters…it can be hard for little ones! My youngest, Wade, had a tough time until we discovered what worked: Alphabet BINGO.

There are a lot of ways to play this game, but basically, you get a BINGO card filled with the letters of the alphabet. Say a letter, and your student marks off the letter on the board until they get BINGO! This has been a hit in our house because it’s interactive and fun — more so than just repeating the alphabet over and over, right?

So, if it feels like your audience gets bored at some point in your presentation, switch it up. Ask questions or tell a joke. Change your example or visual aid. There is always a new way to do an old thing!

Embrace your inner educator

While you don’t have to literally be a teacher to be a speaker, I ask you to embrace your inner educator. Lean into those skills that teachers use all the time. That means:

Including different learning styles for your audience, whether it’s visual, auditory, or kinesthetic
Put yourself in their shoes and approach your presentation from that perspective
Show, don’t tell; it’s a more effective and rewarding way to teach
Get creative with your content

Trust me, embracing your inner teacher is going to help you make a bigger impact on your audience and your biz.