Ep 89: From Silence in the Room to Standing Ovations - Michael Crossland on the Breakthrough Every Speaker Needs

September 15, 2025

89: From Silence in the Room to Standing Ovations – Michael Crossland on the Breakthrough Every Speaker Needs

In this unforgettable conversation, Michael Crossland – international speaker, humanitarian, and survivor against all odds – reveals the mindset, positioning, and strategy shifts that transformed his speaking career from seven years of nothing to global impact alongside Richard Branson and Tony Robbins.

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What if the one thing holding back your speaking career… is the very thing you’re chasing the hardest?

In this unforgettable conversation, Michael Crossland – international speaker, humanitarian, and survivor against all odds – reveals the mindset, positioning, and strategy shifts that transformed his speaking career from seven years of nothing to global impact alongside Richard Branson and Tony Robbins.

This is not another episode about hacks, tricks, or Instagram-worthy soundbites. It’s about building a speaking career that matters. Michael brings clarity, conviction, and hard-won wisdom on what it really takes to:

  • Why the 1% Mindset is the difference between applause and bookings (09:30)
  • The shift from performance to purpose that unlocked global momentum (18:32)
  • How to turn personal adversity into audience transformation without centering yourself (23:45)
  • Service-led visibility vs self-promotion: the smarter way to grow your reach (36:49)
  • What makes a message stick across industries, audiences, and stages (49:38)
  • Why redefining success is the only way to build a sustainable speaking career (55:25)

If you’re chasing stages but still not breaking through, then listen to this conversation. Michael shows you how to flip the script so you can build a speaking career that resonates, gets booked, and actually makes an impact.

QUOTES

“It’s what you do when no one’s watching that ultimately determines the heights of our success.” – Michael Crossland

“Everybody has a story. Everyone in the room has some sort of battle, some sort of darkness, some sort of pain. When you share yours like you’re the only one, people disconnect.” – Michael Crossland

“Give the best of you. You don’t have time to give all of you, but give the best of you.” – Jacqueline Brooker

“I thought the busier I got, the more money I would make. But when I started chasing aggressive impact, everything else took care of itself.” – Michael Crossland

“You’re as old as you’ve ever been, but as young as you’ll ever be. Don’t wait until tomorrow to do something you should have done yesterday.” – Michael Crossland

RESOURCES

ABOUT MICHAEL CROSSLAND

In the last five years, he has presented to over a million people from all walks of life around the world.  

Despite spending nearly a quarter of his life in hospital, he has forged a highly successful career in the corporate world, represented Australia in his chosen sport, features regularly across all forms of media and also runs a school and orphanage in Haiti.

His first tell-all autobiography is now a best seller across 6 different countries, was one of the queens baton bearers for the commonwealth games, has shared the stage with the likes of Sir Richard Branson and the Dalai Lama & his online videos have been viewed by more than 150 million people.

WHERE TO FIND MICHAEL CROSSLAND

WHERE TO FIND JACQUELINE BROOKER

To connect and learn more about creating a Speaker Driven Business connect with Jacqueline on LinkedIn. You can also follow Jacqueline on Instagram or join the private Facebook group

Join the Speak More Collective.