Acceptance speeches improved by strong openings

"Why didn't I lose that 20 pounds?" ~ Robert Stromberg, accepting the Academy Award for Art Direction: Alice in Wonderland.

As I believe most bloggers who write about the Academy Awards acceptance speeches today are writing about speeches as a whole, I've decided to focus on speech openings. (And yes, I'm more than a little tickled that the Best Picture Oscar went to a movie about public speaking!)

As I mentioned in my blog post "More tips for better acceptance speeches," a winner has 45 seconds to speak, and less flexibility to go over that time as the evening goes on and the show starts to run long. Why waste precious seconds with apologies and fillers?

Last night, very few of the winners jumped right into their speeches without several seconds of "Wow!" "Holy cow!" "Oh my gosh!" "Is this real?" "This is unbelievable!" and similar exclamations of surprise.

I'm not saying an outburst of emotion is inappropriate for this type of speech (that would make me pretty cold-hearted, wouldn't it?), but there was so much time-wasting that speakers frequently got the "goodbye music" while they were still in the middle of their speeches. I'm sure that, for many of the award recipients, these outbursts were used to kill some time while they gathered their thoughts and their breath and tried to remember what they were going to say. But they were time-wasters nonetheless.

Beyond the outburst of emotion which, when brief, is acceptable, I have another theory about some of the more extended expressions of disbelief.

Is it possible that some winners were actually playing up their surprise in fear of coming across as egotistical? After all, if you just walk up, keep your cool, and start talking, you might look as though you expected to win all along. And that would be bad, right? Some of the winners seemed genuinely surprised while others seemed to be putting on a big show. I won't name names...

I can't pretend to understand what's going through the nominees' heads as they prepare their speeches, wait for their names to be called and then take the stage upon winning, all the while worrying about saying the right thing and dealing with Hollywood politics. But there is an awful lot of time-wasting on stage that could very easily be avoided.

Here's just one example of how taking out the fillers can make a huge difference in the opening punch of a speech.

Most speech-watchers have agreed that David Seidler's (winner for Original Screenplay, The King's Speech) was among the best last night. And it could have been even better with this one tweak:

Instead of beginning with "The writer's speech. This is terrifying..." he could have left that out and started with his next line: "My father always said to me I'd be a late bloomer." It got a huge laugh, as Seidler is 73 years old. What a way to kick off a speech!

That being said, here are some openings that I found effective for their humor or thoughtfulness, and while they still may have been time-killers while the recipients gathered their thoughts, they were much better than the "Holy cow" extended fillers.

"I should have gotten a haircut." ~ Luke Matheny (sporting an enormous pouf of hair), accepting the Oscar for Best Live Action Short

"Forgive me. I must start by pointing out that three years after our horrific financial crisis caused by massive fraud, not a single financial executive has gone to jail. And that's wrong." ~ Charles Ferguson, Best Documentary: Inside Job

"It feels like that top is still spinning." ~ Paul Franklin, Visual Effects: Inception

"I have a feeling my career's just peaked." ~ Colin Firth, accepting the Oscar for Best Actor. (His entire speech was a winner, one of the few. His warning of "stirrings somewhere in the upper abdominals which are threatening to form themselves into dance moves" had a touch of absurdity about it while creating a humorous mental image.)

"I'm very grateful for this, and surprised. My percentages aren't great. I’ve been nominated 20 times and this is the 2nd time I've won." ~ Randy Newman, Best Original Song: Toy Story 3 (He goes on to explain, in his entertaining speech, how nominees were instructed not to take out a list of names to read, because it doesn't make good TV. "I just have to thank these people. I don't want to. I want to be good television so badly, as you can see.")

Congratulations to all the winners, and next year I hope to see a few more acceptance speeches that truly rise to the occasion!

More tips for better acceptance speeches

To follow up on the L.A. Times article on awards season etiquette, I thought I'd mention some of my other acceptance speech tips that didn't make it into the article. Of course, there's never enough room to include all the quotes, but that's what this blog is for, right?

Here are a few more things I would say to the nominees as they're preparing for their big night.

Practice

If you want to keep it together onstage no matter how emotional you become, you'll need to practice. There are those who believe an actor, who's trained to memorize a script, shouldn't ever use notes. I won't go so far as to say you shouldn't use notes, because if that helps you feel comfortable when you win the award, then by all means do what you need to do. We already know you can act. You don't have to prove anything.

But this doesn't mean you don't practice. Some reasons for practicing: To remember critical people you want to thank; to remember any stories or quotes you want to use; and to make sure you stay within the time limit.

And a note about that. If you practice your speech at home and it goes the full 45 seconds, it's too long. In the heat of the moment, once you get on stage in front of an audience, your speech will likely take longer to start and longer to finish. And award winners at the beginning of the evening tend to get a little more freedom than those toward the end when the show is running over. So give yourself a little time cushion while practicing and you won't get played off by the orchestra!

Be cool when your name is mentioned

When nominees are mentioned before the award is given, oftentimes actors start to freak out. They look away, they nervously talk to their neighbor, they mug for the camera, pretend fake surprise or roll their eyes.

Be cool. Smile, nod graciously, and accept the compliment of the nomination. You may feel uncomfortable, but this is your moment to show your stature as a respected member of your community and profession. Live up to it!

Get grounded

It's a nervewracking experience (I can only imagine), sitting in the audience, waiting to find out if you've won the award you were nominated for. In the swirl of emotions, applause, music, kisses, hugs, and just finding your way to the stage without tripping on your dress, it's easy to become overwhelmed by the moment.

Once you reach the stage, take a few seconds to breathe, smile, make eye contact with a few people, feel your feet on the ground, relax your knees and your shoulders, wait for the applause to die down... and THEN begin your speech.

It only takes a few seconds, but it could be the difference between fumbling and stumbling blindly through your words and the eloquent, articulate delivery you so carefully prepared. You might even remember what you said.

Never apologize

Time and again, award-winning, trained, experienced actors, singers and musicians (and other celebrities with less training and experience) stand up on the award show stage and blurt out, "I'm so nervous!" or "I'm terrible at speeches." I know they're trying to get the audience's sympathy. I know they're trying to get rid of some jitters by acknowledging their nervousness.

But besides the fact that they are drawing attention to something the audience wouldn't notice anyway, they are wasting precious seconds as the time ticks by. With only 45 seconds or so for an acceptance speech, you don't want to waste any time with nonsense that no one cares about.

Use humor

Some of my favorite speeches from awards shows are the ones that incorporate humor, such as Jane Lynch's, "I'm nothing if not falsely humble," and Tina Fey's, "I want to thank my parents for somehow raising me to have confidence that is disproportionate with my looks and abilities."

James Spader tickled my funny bone with, "I feel like I just stole a pile of money from the mob, and they're all sitting right over there," (referring to his win for best actor in a drama series over "The Sopranos" James Gandolfini).

And Jon Cryer's speech included a little twist on awards show humility: "I used to think that awards were just tokens of momentary popularity. But now I realize they are the only true measure of a person's real worth as a human being. So, thank you."

There's no need to yuk it up, but a short, sweet humorous line warms up the audience and brings an element of surprise to the typically predictable acceptance speech.

Speak from the heart

I know this sounds like a cliché, but the audience loves nothing more than a sincere, emotionally-driven speech. When a celebrity comes across as real and human, it helps the audience relate to them and like them -- which can't hurt in ticket sales. A tear or two is even better.

America Ferrara brought audience members to tears with her humble and moving speech that included this statement, "It's such an honor to play a role that I hear from young girls on a daily basis how it makes them feel worthy and lovable and they have more to offer the world than they thought."

Jeff Probst actually managed to include a quote in his speech when he said, "I also want to share this with anybody who has a dream, because I am living my dream right here in this moment. If you have a dream, dream big; pursue it with a passion. In the words of the great storyteller Joseph Campbell, 'The adventure you're ready for is the one you get.' Life is short -- go for it!"

Thank the right people

I was quoted on this in the L.A. Times article, and I wanted to expand just a bit. When award winners start thanking a long list of people that the movie-going public has never heard of, we get bored. Our eyes glaze over. We yawn.

Now you may feel that, politically, you will earn brownie points for mentioning these important names, so feel free to include a couple. But don't forget: Your audience is not just the few hundred Hollywood insiders inside the Kodak Theater. Your audience includes the millions of fans who pay to see your movies or buy your music. Do you really want to ignore them?

You may thank said fans (which we always enjoy, unless it sounds insincere), or you may just give them something to sink their teeth into, like the emotional or humorous stories as mentioned above. You may even decide to thank some invisible (to us) crew members like hairdressers and wardrobe people, if they really impacted your experience making the record, film or TV show.

What's important is to give sincere gratitude to people who have truly influenced and paved the way for your accomplishments. Don't throw away this moment on a grocery list.

Work around superstitions

Apparently, many nominees are superstitious, and believe that preparing and practicing an acceptance speech will jinx them and cause them to lose out. If you are one of these, I don't understand how preparing will make you lose, but listen up: You should still prepare something.

Whether it's a meaningful quote you love, a brief story about your director, or something you've always wanted to say to your mom, just have something in your pocket ready to go. If you really don't believe in preparing an acceptance speech, I probably won't change your mind. But don't let your superstitions be a letdown for your audience. (And especially for your mom, or spouse, or that person who really deserves your acknowledgment.)

I know "it's an honor just to be nominated," but if winning the award is important and meaningful to you, show your audience and fans how you really feel. Be real, be sincere, and (try to) have a good time. Now go get 'em, tiger!

Oscars acceptance speeches: Interview in L.A. Times

Last week, I was interviewed by Rebecca Keegan at the L.A. Times about how to give an effective acceptance speech, for an article on celebrity awards season etiquette.

Two of my quotes made it into the article, along with great comments from a media trainer, a photographer, and an etiquette expert. Read it here: Nominees need to be as polished as Oscar himself.

Thank you, Rebecca!

** Mention this article when you contact me for coaching, and I'll give you 20% off your next coaching package! This offer is only available through March 15, so get in touch ASAP!

For some of my previous posts on awards shows and acceptance speeches, look here:

What can you say in 45 seconds? (Academy Awards '10)

The mistake that everyone notices (Jeff Bridges)

Katherine Heigl apology

Golden Globes speeches ('07)

A golden T-Bone (what nominees do when their names are called...)

Emmys speeches ('07)

Notes on the Emmys ('09)

Use notes... don't use notes... again

When nobody cares if you go long (Al Pacino)

What's confidence and how do I get some? (Tina Fey)

Awkward (Kristin Stewart)

Training vs. experience

Last week I was a judge in a student speech contest. It was a bit nostalgic for me, as I was on the speech team in high school (when they still had speech teams), and I could see my former so-earnest self in these students.

What stood out the most to me, besides the fact that these students were more articulate than most adult speakers, was the glaring contrast between training and experience. These are not the first high school student speakers I've ever encountered, but they were among the most trained, and it was enlightening to watch.

Each student gave a five- to ten-minute speech on the same topic. They were referred to only as speaker #1, #2 and #3, so the judges wouldn't be swayed by any possible personal connections. There were no introductions before the contest.

Once everyone had spoken and judging ballots turned in for tallying, the students were introduced, given certificates of participation and small scholarship checks.

Here's when things got more interesting. The students hadn't been told that they would be expected to say a few words at this point. They were not prepared.

The students' speeches had been highly choregraphed and mostly memorized, although at this level of the competition, they were allowed to read from notes. Their notes appeared to be written out word-for-word. Facial expressions, gestures and vocal inflections had all been rehearsed (the students are all aspiring actors, coached by an acting teacher).

While the speakers demonstrated some real feeling and occasional humor, I didn't experience much emotional response to the speeches or the speakers, even though the topic was somewhat "loaded" and controversial.

When it came time to talk about themselves, for just a few moments, two out of the three students were uncomfortable and clearly at a loss, and the third gave as brief a statement as he could.

They were reluctant, flustered, a little embarrassed, and had no idea what to say about themselves. One girl, in particular, was a completely different person than the one who had just given the speech -- ten times brighter, livelier and more personable than when she was giving her speech. But far less articulate, and I then understood the incongruous nature of her presentation. It was coming from a version of herself that was not authentic. It was like night and day watching these formerly eloquent and seemingly confident teens attempt a few impromptu sentences.

These students have all been trained to give a speech -- or memorize a script -- but not to connect with an audience: two very different things. We frequently see this disconnect on awards shows, when a highly trained actor is at a loss for words upon receiving the Emmy or Oscar, because speaking from the heart has been superseded by memorizing dialogue.

These students are still young, and still learning, and they have plenty of opportunities ahead of them to learn how to connect authentically with an audience and speak freely from the heart, no matter the topic or venue.

But I want to pass this message along to the adult speakers out there who focus solely on the planning, scripting, choreographing and memorizing of speeches: Training on techniques and rehearsing the words is not enough.

1. You must learn to engage emotionally with your material in order to engage emotionally with your audience.

2. You must make opportunities to speak in front of a wide variety of audiences.

3. You must allow yourself to be human and real, to be the same person onstage that you are offstage.

4. You must take every opportunity to speak off the cuff when the occasion warrants it.

5. You must learn to speak to audience members as individuals, as though having a one-on-one conversation with each person.

6. You must be willing to throw away the parts of your "script" that aren't working and just be with your audience.

Only through many varied experiences (both good and bad), will you fully develop as a speaker, as someone confident enough to stand up and talk freely, articulately and comfortably about yourself for two minutes with no preparation.

What would you add to this list?

Public speaking for financial advisors

I was interviewed this week for a two-part series on public speaking for financial advisors in the Canadian magazine Investment Executive.

Here's part 1: Seven steps to more compelling presentations

And part 2: How to structure a winning presentation

Thanks to Fiona Collie for an article full of great tips, and for some of the most accurate quotations I've ever read from a journalist!

Are you ready for coaching? Ask yourself these questions...

You're finding yourself responsible for more and more presentations at work. Your company would like to see you representing them more often as an expert at conferences. You'd like to get out in your community more and promote your business.

Facing new demands on your public speaking skills and more visibility for your company, you've been thinking about pursuing public speaking coaching, but you're not sure if it's the right avenue for you.

Here are some questions to ask yourself to determine if you're ready for coaching.

1. Am I willing to invest time and money into attending regular coaching sessions with full attention and no distractions?

2. Am I willing to take responsibility for my own learning and to do homework in between our sessions?

3. Am I willing to be straightforward about what is working and not working for me, and what are areas of most concern?

4. Am I willing to move beyond my comfort zone and try new things, implementing new practices and concepts we've discussed in our sessions?

5. Am I willing to actively change my thinking from negative to positive when it comes to my mental self-talk and attitude about the audience?

6. Am I open to hearing honest feedback?

7. Am I willing to find and make speaking opportunities for myself after we've completed coaching so that I can stay current with my new skills?

8. Am I willing to acknowledge the possibility of personal growth, confidence and pride in my abilities?

If you answered "yes" to all of these questions, you're ready for coaching! Let's get started today!

The king's real speech

The BBC archives have posted this recording of King George VI's 1939 speech that was recreated in the movie "The King's Speech." Can't embed, though, so go here to listen.

Oscar-nominated Colin Firth did a masterful job reproducing both the speech impediments and the speech patterns of the king. If you haven't yet seen the movie, here's my blog post about it. Don't miss it!

Outshine your slides with proper lighting

While attending a presentation a couple of weeks ago, I noticed the A/V guy walk into the room and stand at the back, watching. The speaker was speaking, the audience was listening, everything was going smoothly.

Then the A/V guy decided that something wasn't right. He lowered the lighting so the screen showing the PowerPoint was brighter. And the speaker was dimmer. Satisfied, he left the room.

I'm not going make the assumption that all A/V guys (or gals) only care about the technology in the room, but it was certainly the case with this man. He only saw the screen; it was all that mattered to him. The speaker in the dark? Who needs a speaker when you have a PowerPoint on the screen?

This is, unfortunately, a common occurrence. Don't let it happen to you! Take charge of the lighting in the room the way you take charge of the room layout and non-technological aspects of your presentation. You may not have many options for lighting, but still check it in advance, set it the way you want and if someone tries to change it, intervene.

The audience must clearly see the speaker; that's where the presentation is happening. Ideally, they can see your slides, too, and the lighting should work for both the speaker and the screen.

But think of it this way: If your computer broke down and you didn't have your slides, would you still be able to give your presentation? The answer should be "Yes, of course!" The slides are peripheral to your presentation, they are not THE presentation. Don't let an A/V guy (or anyone else) make your slides the star.

Intention vs. perception: Christina Aguilera and "oversouling"

I enjoyed this article about "oversouling" on Huffington Post, referring to the vocal style demonstrated by Christina Aguilera during her performance of the national anthem, that is currently popular among many singers. Here are a couple of quotes:

"Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston are relatively minor offenders, but singers like Aguilera -- who admittedly possesses a great instrument -- just don't seem to know when to stop, turning each song into an Olympic sport as they drain it of its implicit soul, as if running through the entire scale on every single word was somehow a token of sincerity."

"The great Jerry Wexler -- who produced both Ray and Aretha -- coined a great term for it: 'oversouling.' He described it as 'the gratuitous and confected melisma' that hollows out a song and drains it of meaning. Wexler, who knew more about soul than any producer before or since, said:

'Time and again I have found that flagrantly artificial attempts at melisma are either a substitute for real fire and passion or a cover-up for not knowing the melody... Please, learn the song first, and then sing it from the heart.'"

But what really caught my eye were some commenters' opinions that Christina Aguilera not only "oversouled" the Star-Spangled Banner, but did it with the intention of showing off her vocal prowess, rather than performing for the benefit of the audience. Here are a couple of excerpts:

"...singers like Christina Aguilara are extradordi­nary talented and would be even more so if they relaxed a little, trusted their skills, and allowed themselves to delve into the music itself rather than self-consc­iously trying to outdo their competitor­s through technique."

"This woman was on an ego trip."

"Kinda like a ventriloqu­ist showing he can gargle water while talking through his dummy."

"...sh­e was making the moment all about her..."

I don't know Christina Aguilera's intentions. I'm sure the pressure to sing the national anthem -- on live TV -- in front of millions of people, must be overwhelming, even for a seasoned pro. And it's possible that her oversinging was simply a result of wanting to give the song something "extra special," which was warranted by the occasion. And probably a little adrenaline as well.

But what's important here is the audience's perception, not the singer's (speaker's) intention.

Getting carried away by the moment, by your own role in a larger-than-life event, can be hard to control. But you still need to practice. You still need to prepare. You still need to come from a place of truth and authenticity. And you still need to remember that it's all about the audience and what value you're giving them.

Making it all about you, your cleverness, your talent, your brilliance (your amazing vocal range) is never going to satisfy the audience. It's only going to turn them against you, no matter how pure your intentions.

Can audience introductions work?

Here's an example of something that shouldn't have worked in an hour-long presentation, but it did.

The topic was connecting regional food buyers with sellers, and the speaker was unveiling and demoing a site that will facilitate this process.

At the beginning of the presentation, the speaker asked us to go around the room and introduce ourselves. My first thought was that, in a room of 25 people, this would take way too long and impede the progress of the presentation.

Fortunately, the rambling self-introductions that you typically find when a group gives impromptu intros did not surface. But what was most interesting was when two women sitting next to each other discovered that they were working on compatible projects and exchanged information.

And I realized that, because this seminar was about facilitating connections, it made perfect sense for the food industry audience to know who was in the room.

If you decide to do something like this during a presentation, take some precautions:

1. Figure out in advance how much time you need for the presentation and how much time you're willing to give for introductions. Make sure you have a healthy time cushion so you are able to accomplish both.

2. Be willing to politely interrupt people who are going on too long with their introductions in order to have time for everyone to speak. This group was remarkably concise, but that is not always the case.

Luckily, the speaker didn't encounter any problems and the presentation and introductions went smoothly. As long as you are prepared and willing to take charge of your time, and it's relevant to your situation and topic, audience introductions can work.

Should you trust your inner quitter?

The view takes the edge off the pain...

I've written here before about trusting your gut, especially when your gut is telling you not to do something that might be a big mistake or might be harmful to you.

But what about those times when your gut is telling you to quit or give up, and your gut is wrong?

I had been away from the stadium for almost three weeks, due to a bad chest cold. I finally decided it was time to get back to my workout, knowing it would be difficult to pick up where I had left off, as it always is after a long break. On Tuesday, I completed seven sets of stadium stairs, and while it took a little more time than usual, it didn't kill me.

The next two nights I didn't sleep well and also had to get up early to do trainings, so I was tired and not feeling fully up to my workout, but my schedule was open on Thursday and I knew I had to take advantage.

I don't remember the last time a workout was so hard...but not because the workout was any different from what I usually do. Mentally, I was just not feeling strong.

View from the bottom

With still-sore calves and quads from coming back to the stadium on Tuesday, every set of stairs burned, especially the last 15 steps or so, which are steeper than the rest.

During the first three sets, every time I reached the top, I said to myself, "It's okay if I only do half a workout. Half is better than nothing."

Then I pushed myself to complete the fourth set, and at the top thought, "I'm dying. I can't do any more."

When I got to the top for the fifth time, I said to myself, "Okay, you only have to do one more."

As I dragged myself up for the sixth time, I said, "My legs are about to give out. This is the last one for sure. I absolutely can NOT do any more."

And then I reached the top of the stadium for the seventh time. And it hurt.

And at the top I felt such pride that I was able to override the powerfully negative messages that would have made it SO EASY to quit. Every argument was legitimate: I was tired. My legs did hurt. I didn't have as much energy as usual. Half a workout is better than none.

View from the top: Santa Barbara harbor

But every time I reached the bottom of the steps, took a drink of water and let my heart rate come back down, something happened. I "forgot" the pain of the last set! Once the pain and struggle was over, it seemed completely feasible to climb the stairs one more time.

So instead of listening to the message at the hardest part of the climb, I listened to the message during my recovery. That was the reasonable message, the most truthful message, and the one that was based on fact rather than emotion.

Emotion gives us good clues, and I would never completely ignore the emotional messages my brain is giving me. But in this case, my emotions were attempting to overrule my rational mind, telling me I couldn't do something when in fact, I was completely capable of it.

Now what the heck does this have to do with public speaking? Glad you asked.

Your fear and anxiety about making a mistake, boring the audience, looking like a fool... these fears keep you from taking speaking opportunities and keep you from making progress.

They keep you from seeing your true capability and they keep you from accomplishing what you could be accomplishing.

They are all legitimate concerns; your brain is very clever this way. You might make a mistake, sure. You also might lose the audience's attention from time to time. But these problems are not insurmountable. In fact, they are fixable, and you can still give a great presentation. Or at minimum, connect with your audience and inspire them with your passion.

Another spectacular view from the top

Is your gut trying to protect you? Yes, of course! I trust my gut most of the time to keep me out of trouble.

And sometimes your gut is just plain wrong. Your emotions tell you one thing and the facts tell you something else. Only you can decide which way to go.

See what happens when you're not stressing out, when you're not at the height of your anxiety. When you are not struggling, you'll find that your rational brain might give you the more truthful answer.

Don't be a technology dinosaur

I attended a conference last weekend where several speakers had technology issues that could easily have been solved in advance if they had any idea how their technology worked.

One speaker's Skype notification box kept popping up in the middle of his slide show, letting us all know the name of his friend who was online. He approached it with good humor and we all had a laugh... but no one made an effort to turn it off, including the AV guy who was running the show.

Another speaker's computer kept going to sleep -- every minute. She would be in the middle of talking about, or reading from, a web page and the screen would go blank. This went on for probably 20 minutes until finally, several audience members interrupted and gave her instructions for how to change her settings.

This speaker also continually looked down at her computer, pointing to things on her monitor that she wanted us to see, instead of pointing to them on the projection screen. It was very odd. She also asked audience members to read aloud from the screen, which caused problems as they were facing the screen, not the audience, and thus were difficult to hear.

One speaker actually said, when it came time to advance his first slide, "Now how do I do this?"

Seriously, people?

If there's one little technology glitch, the audience can get past it and the speaker can move on. But when there are multiple issues, it becomes very distracting, disturbs the flow of the presentation and frustrates the audience.

Two speakers were showing websites as part of their presentations and had multiple tabs open at the top of the screen -- one had her personal banking tab showing. Because the window was not in full screen mode, a good chunk of space at the top of the screen was taken up with toolbars and tabs. The text on the screen was very small, yet we were expected to be able to read it. And the speaker had to keep scrolling up and down to find the text and images she wanted.

Here are two examples of how I would have made this a better visual for the audience.

1. First, there's the F11 key (this apparently only works on a PC). If you've never used it, find it at the top of your keyboard and press it now. See how it puts your computer into full screen mode? All those tabs and toolbars go away and all you see is the working part of the screen. Now press it again to make your tabs come back. This is a quick and easy way to take away the distractions.

2. But what if you don't need to click on live links at all? Is there any reason to have actual websites open when instead you can use screenshots in PowerPoint and, instead of jumping from tab to tab, just advance your slides? This also makes it easier to highlight parts of the screen you want to show, instead of showing everything.

Here's an example from my computer. First is the screenshot (of Kim and Jason's site -- why not?) the way you would see it if I were presenting using the Web.

Click image to open larger size in a new tab - when you get there, click again for full size

Here's the screenshot after using the F11 key:

Click image to open larger size in a new tab - when you get there, click again for full size

Now here's what it would look like if I just made it into a PowerPoint slide:

Click image to open larger size in a new tab - when you get there, click again for full size

Now I'm able to create exactly the image I want, and advance slides in the order I want instead of having to click tabs and scroll down a web page until I get to the right place on the page.

Mind you, this doesn't solve the problem of the tiny text that the speaker wanted us to read, but that's a whole other story.

If you know you're going to be using PowerPoint; if you know you're going to be demonstrating a website; if you know you're going to be using your own computer, and you have notifications that pop up; please -- for the sake of your audience -- prepare yourself properly. Take the time to understand the technology you're using, and take the time to smooth out the bumps before you get in front of an audience.

That also goes for describing or explaining technology to your audience when you don't understand it. As was the case with one of the speakers trying to explain subscribing to an RSS feed vs. receiving blog posts by e-mail. She didn't know what she was talking about, and audience members had to come to the rescue to clarify.

Not having a grasp of the technology you're using makes you look like an amateur, it makes your presentation less effective, and it interferes with your core message. Technology is a practical and useful tool for modern speakers -- don't be the dinosaur in the room.