Quote of the Week

"It usually takes me more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech."

- Mark Twain

Presence

“When I’m dancing, that’s what I’m doing.”   - Merce Cunningham

How perfect! I recently was exposed to the philosophy and technique of modern dance master Merce Cunningham, and this quote of his grabbed my attention. The suggestion that everything else fades into the background and that he’s immersed and fully present in what he’s doing is instructive for all of us …

Being present when you’re communicating actually involves you and another party – the audience, of course. Being present as a speaker means being willing to “listen dynamically,” with all five senses, to your audience so you can respond, adapt, be relevant, and stay in the moment. And ultimately connect. It means clearing your head of all other noise, including your own ego, in order to be there for and with them.

Rather than thinking about your exact words, all the specific material you want to cover, whether you’re forgetting something, and whether or not you’re going to actually survive (ha, I caught you!), envision being engaged and being present with a person or a group of people. Envision yourself with them; talking to them, maybe even literally talking with them, but definitely not at them. Envision yourself seeing them, sensing their level of receptiveness … without allowing it to be personal and about you (caught you again!). And if that doesn’t help, then at least envision yourself being present enough that you’re open to changing tacks if necessary – e.g. inviting Q&A earlier than planned, turning off the PowerPoint and telling a story, breaking up your talk and asking the audience to reflect back to you what they’re hearing and understanding.

So that when you’re communicating to people – which is, by definition, a two-way street – that’s what you’re doing. And then let everything else fade away …

Vocabulary Word of the Week

ob·tuse/əbˈt(y)o͞os/Adjective

1. Annoyingly insensitive or slow to understand.

2. Difficult to understand.  

Props to Dictionary.com for helping me with this blog post ...

We're all professional audience members, so we've heard the obtuse speaker before. That's the one who leaves us thinking we missed something we probably should have known or picked up? Or we leave thinking s/he spoke in circles but never got anywhere? Or we're frustrated because the s/he spoke over our heads and never bothered to find out or figure out if we were keeping up?

Obtuse speakers are egocentric, not audience-centric. When it's your turn to speak, give more than just superficial thought to your audience. And if you don't know enough about them ahead of time, throw (what you think is correct) protocol out the window and ask them ... ! Yep, just ask. That's right, either open, or take a pause, and solicit input from your audience to gauge their interest or knowledge levels. It will accomplish two things: 1. you will earn big engagement and connection points with your audience; and 2. you will avoid being obtuse. Thankfully.

Prepare Your Plan, but Be Ready to Change It

Adaptability is key. In the May issue of Harvard Business Review, veteran mutual fund executive Robert C. Pozen authored an article on “Extreme Productivity” and in it he addresses 6 principles for greater personal productivity. Principle 4 is “Prepare Your Plan, but Be Ready to Change It” … Amen, Bob!

And I quote from Pozen's Principle 4: “Most executives must give talks to various groups. They often prepare by writing out the full text of their remarks. But that makes them feel compelled to deliver the whole speech even if the audience is not receptive. Speaking is very different from writing. You need a much clearer line of argument, and you have to connect with your listeners at a given time. They may be bored or excited – you won’t know in advance. To prepare for a speaking engagement, you should jot down on one page a list of your four or five key points and a concluding paragraph.”

Nicely put. Less wordsmithing, more dedicated focus on key points. The only part I might take issue with – and those of you who have been through my coaching will smile! – is that I believe four or five key points is too many. Sometimes it’s too many for the speaker to remember, and always it’s too many for an audience to retain. Other than that, Bob nailed it.

You may feel better having prepared a full-text script, rather than putting yourself in a position that feels a lot like ad libbing or winging it. But by being wed to your words, sentences and paragraphs once you're at the front of the room, you risk sacrificing the real-time connection with your audience. So even if you do prefer a full-text script, be sure to also know your key points and promise yourself that you'll remain adaptable … if the audience is fading, be ready and willing to ditch the script.

Thanks for this reinforcement, Bob. As I always say to clients, it’s not all about you, it’s all about them … the Audience!