CPD Speaker Helps PGA Pro onto TrackMan Stage!

In his own words, here’s how PGA Fellow Professional, Andy Traynor, went from speaking novice to three-time conference speaker on both sides of the pond, with the help of a well known CPD Speaker.

“As a PGA Professional my ability to communicate is absolutely essential! From coaching on the range with clients to managing my assistants, being able to converse naturally and with confidence is a must – this is something I’m sure all my fellow pros will agree with. However, a few years ago when I applied to become a PGA Coaching Tutor & Assessor my first real experience ‘presenting’ came to a fore. I loved the experience but knew I needed to improve. But, like our clients say to us on the range, I never found time to do anything about it – I never practised!

“Fast forward a few years and I find myself on stage at The Teaching and Coaching Conference (TCC) in Harrogate and I’m the warm-up to the keynote speaker, Dave Pelz! My remit: a 20-minute presentation on ‘How I use Technology’ in coaching – sounds simple enough, right? I practised and practised and consulted a friend whose job involves (a lot of) high-pressured presenting. I headed to show with confidence and thought to myself “cometh the hour cometh the man”. I arrived, checked-in, did a practice run and got mic’d up - easy. Then it was time; I walked onto the stage and begun “Ladies and Gentlemen, Good Afternoon”… my voice immediately echoed around the room and I have never felt so nervous in all my life. It was at that point I realised I had never spoken in a room that big, and to that many people. It threw me for a few minutes but I got through and received much praise from peers – but I knew I could do A LOT better and, if I was going to go anywhere as a presenter, I needed help!

“Roll forward six months my daughter is getting married in October and one my coaching idols, Jim Hardy, rings up and asks me to come to the states to deliver at The Plane Truth Instructor Summit. Time to get help.

“I started researching public speaking online and watched as many tutorials and TED talks as possible. I recognised the different speaking styles, the different gestures, and soon after, realised I was doing what so many golfers do online – I was listening to a mixed array of top tips and not enlisting the direct help of a communications expert - sound familiar? At that point I headed onto the PGA website and up came Lorna Sheldon. I googled Lorna and was very impressed with what I saw…I got on the phone straight away and arranged a one-to-one session.

“On meeting Lorna it was obvious she knew what she was doing! Her approach was unbelievably thorough towards the upcoming conference – room size, room shape, amount of listeners, purpose of the presentation, length of the presentation, you name it she asked it. Then we started the drills and I left with lots to practise and assured it was money well spent. When I returned home I immediately presented to my wife who was amazed in the difference - in one day I had gone from someone who was very much an amateur to someone who in my wife’s words, “people would pay to listen to you speak”.

“Suffice to say, my daughter’s wedding went fantastically well and the following week I headed to the US to deliver in front of an international audience of golf coaches and the famed instructor I admire above all others. I can honestly say that without Lorna I would have struggled to speak for 40 minutes let alone 90 minutes whilst holding the attention of all audience members. The training from Lorna, and the subsequent conferences, has resulted in me delivering for TrackMan and I have recently been asked to produce sessions for both The PGA of Belgium and The PGA of France.  

“If you are a PGA Professional with aspirations to deliver presentations/workshops or you just want to improve your communication skills for lessons, meetings and/or daily operations a session or workshop with Lorna is 100% worth it. I cannot thank her enough and I now consider her my communications coach just the same way someone sees me as their golf coach!”

Lorna is delivering her ‘Presentations to Persuade and Influence’ at The PGA National Training Academy on September 29 2016. To book your place call the Member Education Dept. on 01675 470 333 or email cpd@pga.org.uk.

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