The Speakers Conservatory
Where the Skill of Public Speaking is Elevated to an Art Form
Speak Well and Prosper
ABOUT
Meet Your Instructor and Coach
Richard Williams
Hello and welcome. I am Richard Williams, the Founder and Principal of the Speakers Conservatory.
I have been involved in public speaking from a young age. I inherited my love of speaking from my mother. Everywhere we went she seemed to know someone or simply struck up a conversation. I decided I wanted to be like her and be able to do the same. That desire and my outgoing, classic class A personality took me on the journey that has led me to where I am today, an accomplished speaker and educator.
With over forty years of experience, I have developed a unique combination of being an accomplished speaker and educator. This allows me to efficiently pass my knowledge and skills as a speaker on to others.
My formal training began during my service in the Air Force when I applied to be a Field Training Instructor for the F-15. I graduated with honors from the Air Force Technical Instructor School and then spent the next five years refining my skills as a speaker and instructor, while continuing my education in the field. I eventually earned my Master Instructor rating and have been teaching and speaking in one form or another ever since.
Certifications:
I am not in the business of handing out certifications. I am in the business of creating outstanding speakers who can go out into the world and make a highly memorable impression. Speakers who will be in demand and, most importantly, be effective. Becoming a Subject Matter Expert is up to you; turning you into the kind of speaker who can deliver that knowledge in a powerful and memorable way is where I come in.
The certification I hold is that of US Air Force Master Instructor. This is one of the most difficult speaking and teaching certifications to obtain in the world. It has been emulated by military and civilian organizations worldwide. Very few people ever have the opportunity, much less obtain this rating.
US Air Force Master Instructor:
To those who have not been through the process of becoming an Air Force Master Instructor, its meaning will be a mystery. So let me break it down for you.
To start, 50% of those who apply to be instructors are rejected, 50% of those accepted will not complete the instructor school, and of those who go on to be instructors, fewer than 10% will reach the status of Master Instructor.
Once accepted, you attend the technical or academic Instructor School. The school is six weeks long. Your days consist of eight hours of classroom instruction, presenting, and evaluations. At least four hours each evening are spent preparing for the following day, and approximately six hours on Saturday and four on Sunday are spent preparing for the following week. This breaks down to 240 classroom hours and approximately 420 hours of total time invested.
To put this in perspective, it requires 120 credit hours to earn a bachelor's degree. The classroom time alone for the Instructor school is 25% greater than that.
Once you have managed to make it through the instructor school, you will spend four to five years refining your skills through teaching and formal speaking engagements, constant evaluations, hundreds of hours of continued training, and annual performance reviews. All evaluations and performance reviews must be rated as excellent or outstanding.
The additional training consists of courses such as Curriculum Development, Instructional Systems Design, Psychology, Counseling, Classroom Management, and additional speaking courses, and most are college-level. Each college course has to be passed with a minimum GPA of 3.5.
The last hurdle is being recommended by your commanding officer and passing a board of review. The board would be composed of your peers, Master Instructors, and senior staff officers. This is a grueling event lasting an hour or more. Once you pass the board, you become a member of an elite group of Air Force Master Instructors.
Allow me to bring my years of experience as a speaker and educator, and the precision and attention to detail of military training, to your journey to becoming the best speaker possible. It is your career, your success, and your decision. Choose wisely.
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