Jake Bailey’s top tips for public speaking
Ten years ago, an 18-year-old Jake Bailey sat in a wheelchair in front of his classmates at Christchurch Boys’ High School and delivered a prizegiving speech that would go viral and be seen by millions.
Days earlier, he’d been diagnosed with Burkitt lymphoma, an aggressive cancer, and given just weeks to live without treatment.
Live he did, and since being announced in remission in 2016, Jake has spoken about resilience to more than 100,000 people, across more than 40 cities, to audiences of three to 3000. His audiences have ranged from elite athletes to kids in outback towns, Fortune 500 CEOs to prison inmates, foreign governments to retirement homes.
Now a full-time public speaker, New Zealand’s youngest #1 bestselling author, and a passionate resilience educator, Jake shares his learnings from countless hours on stage to help nail your next speech.
Public speaking is a skill, not a gift
“Like any other skill, it’s something you develop and hone through practice. I’ve done several thousand hours of it; if I hadn’t improved, I’d be seriously concerned.”
Stuffing up is part of the process
“I’ve mumbled, stumbled, and fumbled my way through plenty of speeches. Any polish you see now is just the result of learning from mistakes.”
Write the way you speak
“The biggest difference between a natural speaker and someone who’s clearly uncomfortable on stage? They’ve written a speech like a piece of prose and are reading it word for word. But we write completely differently to how we speak. If you’re going to script a talk, speak it aloud first, then transcribe it exactly as it comes out of your mouth. Even things like starting a sentence with ‘and’ or pausing mid-thought, help it sound real and make you more relatable.”
Don’t buy into the ‘motivational speaker’ hype
“I stay far away from that term. I’m not trying to be Tony Robbins or David Goggins. I focus on connection, not spectacle – especially in New Zealand, that style just doesn’t land.”
PowerPoint is a tool, not a crutch
“I’ve only recently come to love PowerPoint slides. I spoke professionally for nearly a decade without ever using them. I liked the challenge of holding a room with just my words. But recently, I started integrating visuals and when used well, they can really enhance your message. Don’t fill your slides with dense text or read them word-for-word. Use images, quotes, or prompts that support what you’re saying. And if you’ve got amazing holiday snaps from Antarctica, like I do, PowerPoint lets you show them whether your audience wants to see them or not!”
Jake Bailey’s latest book, The Comeback Code: The power of resilience when the going gets tough, is out now.
