Stories from Eric Edmeades’s students

The exercises were so deep and transformational that every single day, we were pushed outside of our comfort zone in ways I did not expect. That really changed everything for me... the public speaking training with Eric didn't just teach me how to become a better speaker, it showed me who I can become.

A couple of months after that training, I got invited to speak on TEDx, and that talk got over 5 million views... I ended up starting my dream passion company around transformational festivals in India, and that company just from speaking events alone generates over $250,000 every year... for someone who grew up in a middle-class family in India, getting to that stage wasn't even a dream before I learned from Eric.

I felt disconnected from myself, as though someone had unplugged the parts of me that carried my power, my clarity, my identity... my voice... I didn't just learn new techniques, I now have a renewed sense of purpose and a deeper calling to help others in ways that hadn't been revealed until I returned home... Today, I speak with more purpose, more presence, more power, and a deeper, more authentic confidence than I have ever experienced in my life!

I didn't have a good answer. So I stood up-and told the truth. The academic struggles. The military service. The hard chapters we don't bring to networking events. My voice shook. My hands trembled. But I didn't run... If your voice feels stuck inside you, you're not broken. You're just untrained. And you can build it.

I was struggling to find this message. Every time I needed to tell a story, I would feel that it wasn't right-that it wasn't it yet... I felt more authentic. I felt like I had found my message... My communication with my team improved a lot since then. I learned how to deliver my strategy and vision in a way that inspires others.

I could never have given an interview or spoken in front of a camera before this, but now it's no problem... I saw classmates who were literally nervous, with knees shaking, on the first day. By the end of the program, they were giving speeches with confidence.

I've stepped it up a few notches, so now I have no problem if someone asks me to get on stage to speak... What I experienced was probably the biggest transformation I've had in five years... at the end of five days, every single person was able to get up and give a speech they had prepared. In some cases, like mine, I gave an unprepared speech. Everyone had the confidence and conviction to do that.

I had a fear of public speaking, probably more than I had admitted to myself. It had a huge impact on me, but what was interesting is that after joining the program with Eric, I realized that my public speaking skills were not up to par for what I needed in my job and what I wanted to do. I saw Eric speak at a…

I realized that I used to be one of the best in a small pond, but now I understand that the ocean is the limit, and I can be one of the best speakers in the world... Now, every time I take the stage, I have crowds coming up to me-taking pictures, telling me how much they enjoyed the content.

I've been able to be on several stages internationally and also in my home country, Estonia, sharing the stage with people that I could only dream of sharing the stage with.

After the Speaking Academy, my whole world of speaking has opened up. I spoke at around eight conferences, and just recently, I gave my first TEDx talk. This has been a dream of mine for a long time, and I clearly attribute it to the Speaking Academy.

From a strategic standpoint, understanding how to build a presentation using stories has been a huge learning experience... I realized I sometimes prevent myself from shining... I love how Eric emphasizes that most of us have experienced this, where we're told to stop talking or that speaking too much is bad. That's where we start dimming our light and not using our voices as much as we should.