Dealing with Remote Sites

Yesterday I had a very unique speaking experience. I spoke a a university. I had an audience from 3 different locations. About 27 people were in the room with me, and a hand full of people at two remote sites. One site was on a small TV screen at the back of the room and the other site was on a large projection at the front of the room. Because of the way the room was set up, there was no way to get the site from the large screen at the front and have it project in the back. Even though that was a little distracting for the audience in the room with me, I learned some wonderful new skills. 

One quick tip for anyone who has to give presentations to remote sites: When you're responding to a question from a remote site, be sure to answer the question while looking in the camera. When you look in the camera to respond, it makes them feel more connected to you. It is hard not to look at the screen and respond to their image, but then you would be breaking the rapport that you want to have with your audience. 

Point A to Point B: The Importance of Transitions

Transitions in presentations are often overlooked, and yet they can be one of the magical elements that make a great presentation. In giving business presentations, a professional will have to cover many points. What often happens is the presenter will simply click for the next Power Point slide and use that to signify transitioning to a new point. There is a huge problem with this style.

Our minds need transitions to give us a "heads up" that something new is coming. Without the "heads up" the audience's minds will spend more time than you want playing catch up. Think of it this way. In your presentation, you are wanting the audience to do two things: realize the status quo that you are presenting, and have them leave with a new mindset on the situation. It is like you are pointing out two points on a map. Point A, the status quo. Point B: the new way of thinking. Without transitions in your presentation, you are simply pointing out the two points on the map and leaving it up to the audience to find their way from point A to point B. You are not giving clear directions. 

When I'm in a new town and have to get from point A to point B, I can do one of two things. I can look at a map and try to figure it out myself or ask a person familiar with the area for directions. If I try to figure it out on a map, I may not know the shortcuts through town and I may run into some construction work on my way there. Even though I might arrive to point B, it probably would take me longer to get there than if I asked a local for directions. It the same with your presentations.

Without transitions you are forcing the audience to find their own way to point B. They may reach point B, but they may take the longer route to get there. With transitions you will be guiding your audience quickly and smoothly to point B. It will take them less time to reach to the conclusions you want them to reach. Plus, with clear direction, they are more likely to reach the conclusion you want them to reach. 

Don't underestimate the power of transitions. When you're developing your presentation, be sure to work in smooth transitions so you can lead your audience effectively through your presentation.

Corporate Stories

I'm sure that if you're in a corporate environment and have read my articles and blogs about the importance of storytelling, you've probably asked yourself, "Who does this girl think she is? I can't get up in front of my boss and colleagues and talk about playing little league baseball to make a point about teamwork! That's just silly."

Well if you feel as though you don't want to pull from your personal life-experiences to make a point in your business presentations (which there is a way to do it and do it well, but we'll focus on that another day), I have a few questions that you can answer to find some great stories for your business presentations.

1) Why did you start/join the company?

2) Has anyone in your company taught you a lesson? What was it? What did they say?

3) Have your clients or customers given you some powerful insight?

4) Who has been a good example of great managing? Who has been a poor example?

5) Was there a project that got you excited?

6) When has your team helped you?

7) When did you think you couldn't reach a goal, but then did?

8) Who has motivated you?

9) Who have you seen that puts in extra effort?

10) Who would you like to be like?

As you can see, each of these questions can be answered in many different ways. They will send you down a train of thought that will lead you to a great story to make a great point in your next business presentations.

Presenting to the Big Dog

As a speaker in an upcoming meeting, it is your job to figure out the goals, themes, and outcomes you want for your speech. Presenters in a corporate setting are also faced with a specific task: figure out who they are truly presenting to. You may have to present the work of your team to the rest of the staff, your boss, and your boss's boss. One of your first goals is to know your audience. When you speak to a room of mixed hierarchy, you need to figure out, for yourself, who you truly want to present to. I would bet that you might get more recognition (and possible promotions)  if you craft the message to spark the interest of your boss's boss than if you craft the message to spark the interest of your colleagues. 

Either way, choose who you really want to grab the attention of. Find the message and main points that will capture their interest. 

What an Awesome Idea!

Last week I attended my Toastmasters meeting. People often ask me why I'm in Toastmasters if I'm not only a professional speaker, but also a speech and presentation coach! Well, I attend Toastmasters for many reasons, and one of them is what inspired this blog. 

I watch one of our new members give a presentation and afterwards, I pointed out his posture. He spoke well, but he put the majority of his weight on one foot, his shoulders with tilted, and his neck was pushed forward, which was straining his voice. I gave him a few pointers and told him to imagine that a string was attached to the top of his head and it was gently pulling him upwards and getting his body in alignment.

Today I got a great e-mail from him. He said, "I just wanted to let you know I put your advice to work this morning. I had a short presentation this morning and I taped a small piece of string to my notes to remind me to stand up straighter. If I glanced down, it would remind me to take a posture check. Thanks!" What an awesome idea!

Speaking Over the Table

So many of my speeches, coaching sessions, articles, and posts are about speaking in front of groups on a platform of some sort. Today I'd like to take a different look at a type of presentation that we give almost on a daily basis: speaking over the table. We are in different meetings and situations constantly that require us to be our best when speaking over the table. We could be having a chat in the boss's office. We could be meeting with a team we're a part of. We often have casual meetings over coffee in relaxing cafés. And most importantly, we could be sitting across a conference table with a prospect or current client. So many situations in which we need to utilize presentation skills over the table.

Now, if you've read many of my articles and blogs, you've probably noticed that I am not a fan of putting barriers between you and your audience. I have said many times to do away with the lectern. Obviously in normal business settings there are barriers that you will have to work with - the ubiquitous table being one of them. Desks, conference tables, dinner tables, they're everywhere! So what is a business professional to do?

Here are a few tips that you can use at your next "over the table" presentation.

1) Be aware of your body language. You want to sit up straight and relax your shoulders. Also don't shake your leg or tap your feet. Some people have a tendency to shake their leg or wiggle their foot when sitting down. Nerves are the most prominent reason for this, but your colleague may think that you're agitated or bored. And the shaking movement can make the table that you're sharing shake as well, which can be extremely annoying to your colleague. 

2) Don't be afraid to compose your thoughts. If you are asked a question that you're not fully prepared to answer, you can always respond by saying, "Good question. Boy, let me think about that." There's nothing wrong with taking a moment to think through your response. It's much better than babbling through until you come up with something worth saying. (Your listener might think you're trying to hide something or dance around the issue.)

3) Jot down notes.  Sometimes the conversation may take a turn, but you have a question that you want to ask. Instead of breaking the flow of the conversation, simply jot 2 or 3 words down to remind you to ask it when it's the appropriate time. 

Those are just a few tips you can use. Keep reading future blogs to pick up more tips on how you can improve your business presentations!

What Steve Jobs Knows: The Importance of Removing Barriers

I recently watch Steve Jobs' keynote announcing the new technology that Apple is coming out with. Jobs is a fine speaker. Nothing flashy. Fairly comfortable. And he handled an unexpected technical glitch well. And after I watched the keynote, I realized that Jobs was coached very well in one important aspect. There were no barriers.

Jobs came out in a relaxed outfit, just jeans, tennis shoes, and a long-sleeved shirt. He walked out onto the stage, cool and confident, and stood in front of a large screen with the projections behind him. Jobs was facing an audience of thousands all alone - no crutch, nothing to lean on or hold onto, just him and the audience. Very impressive. Jobs continued with his speech, laying out all the main points - following a very simple "tell them what you're going to tell them, tell them, and tell them what you told them" format.

The extremely impressive part was when Jobs demonstrated some of the new technology. He walked over to a small kiosk set up and used the necessary equipment. What was great was that the kiosk was not facing the audience and Jobs was not standing behind it. Instead the kiosk was angled ninety degrees away from the audience, so that when Jobs was using the station he was merely turned sideways to the audience and not hiding behind a barrier. Very impressive. Jobs had a great team of advisors to point out the fact that if he were to demonstrate the technology behind a lectern, then the rapport with the audience would be broken and the energy level would drop. 

Be aware of the barriers you are putting between yourself and your audience. Is there anyway that you can situate the room so that there are no barriers? Don't lose your connection with the audience by stepping behind a podium, lectern, or anything!