It's so easy to grab a photo off the Internet

It's so easy to use your favorite song as background music while you run up on the stage.

It's so easy to share that inspiring story you heard.

But it's that easy to get in a lot of trouble.

Even if they're freely accessible on the web, those photos, recordings, and stories are almost certainly owned by someone.

Unless you have permission to use them, you're violating someone's copyright.

And this can expose you and even your clients to expensive lawsuits.

Ouch!

So what are the alternatives?

If you need images, get them from a royalty-free image site like pixabay.com, pexels.com, or dreamstime.com. A search for “royalty-free images” will turn up all sorts of options.

Likewise, a search for “royalty-free music” will turn up plenty of sound files in a variety of musical styles.

As for stories, why risk telling ones that other speakers are using?

A friend of mine heard the speaker who presented before her tell HER story on stage! What was she supposed to do after that?

Though you may not be a graphic designer or a composer of music, originality is a basic element of spoken content. If you want to deliver someone else's message, get licensed and certified by them to deliver their content. Otherwise, mine your life for stories and lessons and use your unique content to enlighten your audiences.

No one else can do it quite the way you can.