March 2005 -- Question: I am aware that you and your business partner, Jim Loehr, have made professional presentations for many years throughout the world. As a person who wants to improve his speaking skills and present at conventions like our USPTA World Conference, what tips do you have?
Answer: Your question is definitely worthwhile to discuss in this column, but due to its broad nature, I will use a few columns to provide a response.
The first question I always ask is, “Why do you want to speak professionally?” Specifically, you need to ask yourself why you want to speak at the World Conference. There is no right or wrong answer; it’s just that you must have your purpose in mind before you begin any preparation. Do you want to persuade others of a technique in which you believe, do you want to share a new technology, are you trying to increase someone else’s depth and breadth of knowledge, are you trying to sell a product, or what? Your response is very important because the ability to speak clearly and convincingly about your topic precedes the ability to move others to action.
What makes a smoothly flowing, yet spectacular presentation? It begins with your passion and purpose as an expert on your subject. Communicating should be an adventure, a journey sometimes into the unknown. Try to bring that spirit of adventure into your presentation. But, be careful that you don’t go off on tangents during your speaking “adventure” – the greater your knowledge and the more you want to say, the more structure you need.
Being a good presenter is much like being a good tennis coach; it is both an art and a science. As far back as 1894, it is documented that one-half of all lost business sales could be attributed to salespeoples’ failure to communicate effectively. That’s why it’s necessary to study (which is the science of it) and thoroughly know your topic. But, that’s also why it’s important to practice your presentation (which is where the art comes in).
Giving a good presentation is hard work! Your heart rate may not go high, but it’s hard work nonetheless. After giving your all in a presentation, it is likely you will be emotionally and mentally exhausted. So, you must train to present, just like you must train to compete in tennis. Anyone can learn to expand his or her speaking capacity. It’s very much like training a muscle. Create stress, evaluate how you did and prepare again, create a little more stress, again evaluate your performance, a little more stress, and it goes on. The stress could be the size of the audience or the knowledge of the audience. Start small. If you have never made a formal presentation, begin by presenting to a small group of people you know well and whom you know will not crucify you when you are finished. You want their feedback, but, in the beginning, you need gentle feedback. The tough stuff will come later, believe me.
Build your speech like you would build a house – on a firm foundation. Plan your presentation with a solid attention-getting introduction, significant information in the body, and a powerful closing. To do all this, be sure your message is well-researched and positioned. Basically, you should be able to answer the following questions:
What are your focal points? What is your exact position on the issue you are presenting? How do you want to be perceived by your audience? What are their expectations? Will your audience believe you? Will your talk move them to some sort of action?
Make sure you are ready when the day arrives for your presentation. You may be an expert in your field and your expertise may be assumed by the audience, but it means nothing in the heat of the moment. I have seen very highly credentialed people fail miserably from the platform as speakers. And, although your message represents you, the person, it is the message that will be the impression you leave. People may say, “Did you hear that talk today? It was fantastic.” Or, they will say it wasn’t so good. So, prepare, prepare, prepare.
In my next column, I will discuss the mechanics of actually making the presentation.
Send questions to jgroppel@LGEPerformance.com.
