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I just got off a conference call that led me to get this article out there. The folks that are bringing me in to do a large regional rally (expecting 3000 teens) were suffering form "speaker paranoia". They wanted to make sure I was not going to do some of the negative things "the previous speaker" did. "Speaker Paranoia" is directly related to a previous bad experience with a former speaker. I call these phenomena, "Youth Speaker Horror Stories'. The tragedy is that most of these misadventures could be avoided with clear communication prior to the event. Not all the horror stories I hear are the speakers fault. Let's look at some of the most common missteps and how they can be avoided.
"The last speaker went fifteen minutes over his time" I hear this a lot. My response is, "Did you tell him his time? Did you make sure he understood it was important?" If you tell a speaker he has "around an hour" then don't be surprised if he goes 69 minutes. "Around" is a subjective term. It's much better to say, "You have 60 minutes form the end of the intro." Also, remember that speakers travel form culture to culture. I do some events where the sponsor and promoter had no time requirements and some where I'm handed an itinerary that is broken down in seconds. You have to make clear what your expectations are. When things get off schedule (as they often will at youth events) you must communicate specific adjustments to the speaker. You told him a week ago he had an hour, but half way through your program, you are thirty minutes behind schedule and you can't go over because the parent/bus drivers will get upset. You've figured out how much to shave off each speaker/band in order to get back on track. So you ask you speaker to "shave a little off" his presentation. He takes five minute off, you needed fifteen. In his mind he has done what you asked. In your mind, "he went over". Be very clear with time expectations. Most speakers will not go over. Another very simple solution is to have a volunteer with time cards in the front row. The cards go from five minutes to 0. This way the speaker gets a five minute warning. When the last card comes up, he needs to wrap up.
"The last youth speaker we had ran up his expenses." Once again (you will notice a theme here) did you make your expectations clear? Did you use a contract and did that contract spell out what expenses your organization covers? I do not require a rental car, strawberries in the green room, a five star hotel or jelly beans with all the green ones picked out. But I've heard stories. So it's best to ask up front. Travel reimbursement can lead to "horror stories". I book my own tickets and have the host reimburse me. From what I understand, this is a common approach. Why won't most speakers let you buy the tickets for them, hence giving you more control over price? The answer has to do with the way we live. It's a rather nomadic and complicated lifestyle. We string cities and tours together. Our calendars change. If you book your youth speaker a round trip ticket form his home city and he books a show the day before yours, the money you spent has been wasted because he now needs a ticket form the city he will be in, not the city he lives. If you are nervous about how much the ticket will cost, ask your speaker to put a ceiling on it. For those on a tight budget or concerned about flight costs, I put into my contract, "Freedom Entertainment (that's me) will book round trip airfare and will invoice host for reimbursement, ticket costs will not exceed 350.00 (in this example)"
"The last youth speaker we had did/did not do an alter call" Did you make your expectations clear? This is not something that you put on a contract; this is something that you discuss. I work with many different Christian denominations. For some of the organizations that hire me, an alter call is a weekly event, while others have never seen an alter call. I know that now. But I didn't know that when I first started touring nationally. I thought it was a given that I would do an alter call. Unfortunately, on this one, I contributed to the "horror stories" portfolio. If you expect your speaker to do an alter call, share that with him and if you do not want the speaker to do an alter call, share that with him also, preferably before the day of the event.
"The last youth speaker hid in his cabin between presentations" Like the above, this is something that should be discussed. Some youth speakers view their job as speaking and that's it. So if they do a great job speaking multiple times form stage during a camp or retreat, in their mind they are doing a great job. If you expect your youth speaker to eat with the kids, play the games, and make themselves available during "off stage" times, you have to let them know...before you sign the contract. This is the way I roll at camp; I hang out with the kids and often teach apologetics between touch football games. Once a year I come home from youth camp injured, and I've promised my wife, no more "touch" (it always ends up being tackle) football. I'm conformable with this type of intensive ministry. Some very gifted youth speakers aren't. If you let them know you expect them to be "available all weekend", they can decline gracefully. If you don't let them know, you end up with a "horror story".
You should be able to focus your energies on building a life changing Christ centered event. Worrying about what your speaker may your may not do will not be a problem if you communicate expectations in a clear and specific manner. Youth speakers are youth speakers because they feel called by Christ to serve youth. Help them serve Christ and the teens they feel called to minister to by making your expectations obvious prior to the day of the event.
