Do the same old clichés motivate your audience?

How does your audience respond to the same old clichés? Are you finding fresh ways to make your points and persuade them to act, or are you relying on decades-old (or older) concepts?

I received a marketing e-mail today with the following excerpt:

"I'm excited to offer you a full year of "Magazine" for just $1 per issue. Click here to snap up this limited-time bargain today!

For less than the price of a cup of coffee per month, you can join our circle of friends ...."

I was using this coffee appeal 20 years ago when I worked in nonprofits writing fundraising letters. Is there really nothing more current or relevant that can take the place of this old-timey reference? And does anyone resonate with this any more? Even if you do buy coffee every day (or even once a month, which seems to be what the magazine is getting at), it seems that we've heard this one so many times that it's lost all meaning.

I like to hold up a concept like this to the Heath brothers' SUCCESs model, from the book Made to Stick, to see how likely this idea is to "stick" in the audience's mind.

Is it simple? Yes.

Is it unexpected? No.

Is it concrete? Yes.

Is it credible? I suppose so, although I don't know how much people are pay for coffee around the country.

Is it emotional? No.

Does it tell a story? No.

So this idea of spending less per month on this magazine than what you spend on a cup of coffee meets three of the Heath brothers' criteria. Unfortunately, it meets the three least emotional criteria. That is, it has no shock factor, no story, no emotional engagement. If you're going to use a clichéd appeal like this one, it should at least have some emotional claws to it.

I'm no marketing genius, and I honestly don't know if there's a better way to say this, but I'd love to hear what you all think.

Is there a more original cost per month idea that could be used instead, like "for less than the cost of a manicure" or "for less than the cost of a fast food meal"? What else might work here in place of the tired cup of coffee?

And what are you doing to ensure that your audiences are not subject to the same old meaningless clichés that they've heard a million times?

How close is too close?

I attended a networking event last week where several people I spoke to were what the Seinfeld TV show would have classified as "close talkers." These people have a smaller personal space "bubble" than the average person and feel comfortable standing very close to the person they're talking to.

Because each of us has our own perception of how big our bubble should be, having someone "invade" our personal space is uncomfortable. This intimate zone, up to about 18 inches, is typically reserved for loved ones, close friends, and your doctor. And in a networking situation, where you're trying to meet new people, it can add an additional level of anxiety to a situation that's already stressful for many.

In addition to the personal space bubble, we each have different levels of comfort with touching. Even a light touch on the arm or shoulder can feel too intimate when it comes from a stranger.

For example, a colleague of mine at the networking meeting walked up and put his arm around me as a greeting -- then stood there with his arm around my shoulders as the group's conversation continued. I was a little uncomfortable with this, but would have felt more awkward pulling myself away. My husband, standing in the same group, was amused.

There are also other factors that play into personal space comfort level, such as gender, degree of acquaintance (stranger vs. friend) and culture. Studies have found that Americans prefer more personal space than people in Mediterranean and Latin American cultures, for example.

So what is one to do when feeling cornered by a close-talking touchy-feely stranger at a networking event? Or what if you find the person you're talking to backing away?

If you're the one feeling cornered...

First of all, realize that the close talker is not trying to intimidate or come onto you. His personal space bubble is smaller than yours, and he is unconsciously moving into the space that's comfortable.

Is there more space around you to move into? Feel free to move. That doesn't mean the close talker will stay where they are, however, but if you move, the other person may sense your discomfort and become aware of the space issue. If you are crammed up against a table (as I was last week) or wall, tell the person you need more space, and move into a different area of the room where you won't feel as cornered.

Most importantly, be willing to accept that everyone has a different bubble, and in our increasingly multicultural and crowded environment, we may sometimes have to suck it up and deal with someone else's small bubble.

If you're the one people are backing away from...

Realize that it's not personal; it's not about you, it's about your bubble! If you see people backing away as you're talking, make a conscious effort not to follow them. Personal space is a strong instinct, and we are very likely to keep moving until we feel comfortable, but we can also be aware of this movement and others' discomfort.

Even in the virtual community Second Life, studies of personal interactions have shown that users position their avatars as in real life, moving away or averting their eyes when too close to another.

Just as with other public speaking skills, understanding and managing personal space takes practice. It's about awareness of your own and sensitivity to others' comfort levels. Do your best to read the other person's body language and act accordingly.

And go easy on the garlic.

What have been your experiences with personal space in networking environments?

Public speaking role models -- all under 20

I've been meaning to show you these three young speakers for some time, and finally realized I should put them all into one post!

I've written about two of them before on this blog, Graeme here and Alec here.

All three share some things in common.

1. They were all under the age of 20 at the time of these videos.

2. Their impassioned speeches come from the heart and have real emotion behind them.

3. They express deep conviction for their beliefs, while understanding and accepting the controversy behind these beliefs.

4. They each demonstrate calmness, poise and confidence.

While interviewing Zach Wahls, Ellen Degeneres said, "You didn't come off as nervous at all."

Zach's response was, "I was shaking. I'm shaking now."

Nervous or not, each young man found a way to express himself sincerely, concisely and passionately. Two of the speeches are under 3 minutes; the third is just over 12 minutes. If only every speaker was able to convey so much meaning, so articulately, and in such a short amount of time!

Watch these three speeches and tell me what you get from them. My only question: Where are the girls?

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Zach Wahls - 19

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Alec Loorz - 15

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Graeme Taylor - 14



Watch Graeme's interview with Ellen Degeneres, where he talks about coming out of the closet -- literally.

Tell me how to win your heart, for I haven't got a clue...

Stefano Langone, a contestant on the current season of American Idol, has it all, according to the judges: a great voice, great pitch, great range, great control.

But he is missing one thing: audience connection. When he sings, it's almost as though he's singing to himself. Jennifer Lopez, one of the judges, made this observation on Wednesday night, in response to his performance of Lionel Richie's "Hello:"

"Fine? Check. Sing like crazy? Check. You have that... When we're saying open your eyes and do those types of things, it's because we want you to connect....

I don't want the intensity to come from you wanting to do well, I want the intensity to come from because your heart is breaking."

Randy Jackson added, "You definitely have the pipes; you can sing.... You sounded good, but there was no real connection.... There was no real emotion for us."

And Jennifer Lopez' final comment was, ""When you start feeling it from your heart, you watch how your phrasing's going to change as well."

Stefano, technically proficient as a singer, ended up in the bottom three during the results show, most likely because the audience responded to his performance as the judges did.

You can have all the right techniques as a speaker. You can have all the right gestures, the right movements, the right vocal variety. You can have good content, a powerful opening, and all the other things we talk about here.

But if you're speaking just to hear the sound of your own fabulous voice; or offering false emotion and karaoke-style rock star intensity; or kicking back emotionally because you think business presentations are all facts and logic, you will not make your desired impression on your audience. They will walk away cold, thinking, "That guy had some good stuff to say, but he just didn't do it for me."

"Do what?" you ask... Connect! Be present with the audience. Have a conversation, like it's just you and the guy in the second row. And the woman in the third row. And the guy in the first row, eighth seat from the left.

If the audience doesn't feel emotionally connected to you, they will not follow through on your call to action. They won't feel inspired to call you, hire you, or buy from you.

For more on connecting, read this post: Only connect! 9 ways to do it.

And take a look at Stefano for yourself. What do you think?

How to tell a story in 90 seconds

I finally got around to watching Inglourious Basterds over the weekend. My husband had already watched it, and fast-forwarded through the disturbing and gory parts. What a guy.

It reminded me that I had been wanting to show you Christoph Waltz' awards show acceptance speeches (he won just about every award he was nominated for, for his portrayal of the Nazi "Jew hunter" Hans Landa).

In each speech (each one under 90 seconds), he tells a story with a clear theme and a beginning, a middle and an end -- and manages to thank people, too, by weaving them into his story.

Many actors don't even write a speech or practice it, so when I see a performer who clearly went to the trouble to create something interesting and cohesive, and that still manages to take care of Hollywood politics, I'm impressed!

Here's his Golden Globes acceptance speech, with themes of gravitational forces, world, universe and orbit.



And here's his Academy Awards speech with themes of discovery, expedition, navigation and ships.



Blog posts (and additional links within) on successful acceptance speeches here:

Oscars acceptance speeches: Interview in L.A. Times

More tips for better acceptance speeches

5 public speaking lessons from a Vitamix demo

On Saturday, I paid a visit to my local Costco. I walked in for a package of kitchen sponges, and walked out with a Vitamix.

Okay, it wasn't really that simple. I had been eyeing the Vitamix for years, and I knew that Costco regularly held "road shows" for the blender. After the last one, which I didn't have time to watch, I called to find out when they would be in town again and made a point of showing up at Costco to watch the demo.

If you don't know the Vitamix, it's a super-powerful blender with a 2-horsepower motor. It blends, but it also has enough power to heat your concoction to a soup or hot beverage, and it also can freeze your ingredients solid into ice cream or sorbet. It absolutely pulverizes nuts, grains, vegetables and fruits so that your smoothie is completely liquified. And I've wanted one forever. But first, I wanted to see the demo.

I was obviously impressed enough with the demo to finally buy my Vitamix; however, from a public speaking perspective, I was also impressed. I didn't catch the name of the young man doing the demo, so let's call him VitaMan.

1. The demo was relevant and effective.

If you're going to spend a lot of money on a product or service, it helps to see it in action. Testimonials are nice, but ultimately, does the product do what its marketing materials say it does?

VitaMan showed all the relevant aspects of the Vitamix's features. He made hot tortilla soup, he made fruit sorbet, he made pistachio ice cream, he made smoothies with whole apples and lots of spinach. He used the right recipes that both looked and tasted good to a general audience, and seemed easy to make. And, on top of that, he used vegetable broth in the soup and soy milk in the smoothie, so even vegans and vegetarians (like me and my husband, who are clearly a target market), could taste all the samples. Well done.

How can you demo your product or service more effectively during a presentation?

2. VitaMan was flexible as the audience ebbed and flowed.

In a demo setting in the middle of Costco, your audience doesn't stay static. They are passing by on their way from the seafood to the socks, and they may or may not stop (although free food samples are always a big draw). There is no beginning, middle or end, except when VitaMan finishes one recipe and starts another.

VitaMan effortlessly incorporated audience questions as he performed his demo. There was no waiting till the end, and he answered questions comfortably as he continued to explain each recipe he was making and the features of the blender.

At one point, we mentioned that we had missed out on the ice cream demo, so he offered to make another one. It was easy for him to choose which recipe to make on the spot, based on which audience members had just arrived and which ones had already had samples. He was paying attention the whole time.

How flexible are you about tweaking your presentation based on who's in the room and what they're interested in?

3. He knew his subject inside and out.

VitaMan bought his first Vitamix when he was 17. Now 24 years old, he both talked about and demonstrated the machine like an old pro. He stood with the back of the machine to him so the audience could see it from the front. He flipped switches and turned dials, barely looking at the machine, so he could maintain eye contact with his audience.

He's made these recipes so many times and talked about the Vitamix so many times and -- here's the key -- actually been USING the blender for so long, that he knows everything there is to know about it.

How well do you know your topic? How up-to-date are you on new developments and research?

4. He captivated the audience.

I would be curious to know how long an average audience member watches one of these demos, and how long on average a person stands there before they decide to buy. I think we were there for probably ten minutes, and there were several others in the crowd who were there as long as or longer than we were. VitaMan was able to take our attention away from the pool equipment, the giant bags of coffee, the towering piles of peaches, the shiny bikes and the añejo tequila long enough to convince us to buy.

And when I say "us," I don't just mean me and my husband. We watched several people pick up Vitamixes during the demo, including a postal worker on duty who needed to come back and get it after his shift. You might wonder if any of these people were plants, and believe me, I did. But the conversations we were having with others in the group were pretty sincere (and I recognized at least one purchasing couple as locals who talked about how they never use their juicer any more because it's such a mess to clean).

I wasn't just standing there for free samples; I was fascinated by how this machine works, its vast repertoire of recipes, its powerful motor, its easy cleanup, and yes, its potentially positive effect on my health if I can manage to get more veggies and fruits into my diet. The demo was credible and persuasive, and that's why people stood there for so long, watching.

How well do you keep the audience's attention and keep them from wandering to their e-mail and Twitter?

5. He never once sounded like a commercial.

VitaMan was there to sell Vitamixes. There's no question, that is his job. Yet, he obviously enjoys the product and his work so much that his demo never felt pushy or demanding. He was personable, light, had a good sense of humor, and his explanation of features or answers to questions flowed smoothly and organically. He was clearly having a good time.

We watched him prepare recipes, clean the blender, and start over several times. He demonstrated how the casing is sealed and nothing can get inside. He showed us the dull blades and the "tamper" that doesn't touch them when you push down your ingredients inside the container. And all of this while having a casual conversation and making smoothie and soup samples.

Do you sound like a commercial when talking about your product or service? Does your audience want to change the channel?

As presentations go, this was a highly effective and interesting one. Next time you have the opportunity to watch a product demo, take a few minutes to see what you can learn from a speaking (and marketing) pro!

Here are a few more examples of sales presentations that do and don't work:

9 things you can learn from a home shopping show

Tea-ed off: Knowing when to leaf well enough alone

5 ways to spiff up your act, BBC America-style

Slide design inspired by IKEA

"I'm a race car driver!"

Yesterday I had the pleasure of hearing Tanis Hammond, a member of one of my networking groups, tell her story of land speed racing on the Bonneville Salt Flats. Tanis is currently the fastest woman at Bonneville, having just set a new record last August at 323 miles per hour. She was also the first woman to join the "300 club."

Her story struck me on many levels, but the clear message of her talk was "Say yes."

Tanis talked about having the opportunity to drive a race car back in the 80s, as her husband was already involved in the sport. She says, "I don't know what my life would have been if I hadn't said yes."

When she got into the car in 1987 to take her first run, she said to herself, "What am I doing here? I have three little kids!" But the fear quickly dissipated. She pointed out to us that land speed racing is a dangerous sport, but if you focus only on that aspect of it, you hold yourself back from all the great experiences that come with racing.

There were two aspects of Tanis' talk that were particularly interesting to me. One was the idea that we're all afraid and we're all courageous. Tanis may not be afraid to drive a car over 300 mph, but she is afraid of public speaking, which she told us right up front. I loved her final quote:

"I was so afraid to get up here, but I'm going to go through the rest of the day on cloud nine because I did it."

Now, she may not be screaming with joy the way she was when she first broke 300 mph, but she was certainly experiencing some of that good adrenaline we get when we stand on a stage and share our passion with an audience!

Tanis has internalized the concept of "Say yes." She may not love speaking; in fact, it might make her extremely anxious, but she doesn't say no. She challenges herself to get up there and tell her story. She knows she has something to say and she's willing to deal with some discomfort in order to spread her message.

The other aspect of Tanis' talk that resonated with me was the issue of self esteem and the "impostor syndrome."

Tanis has been racing since the 80s and has set many land speed records. She is one of only 11 women and 665 men competing in the sport. Yet, it was only when she set the record at 323 mph that she came out of the car saying, "I'm a race car driver!"

All those years, all those records and awards, and yet Tanis wasn't quite ready to embrace it. She told us, "A sense of self esteem comes from actions and accomplishments," but she had been unable to accept her own accomplishments.

How often do you put yourself down or deny your [public speaking] accomplishments because you're still waiting for the "big thing" to come along? How many of you disregard your [public speaking] skills and talents because they don't measure up to someone else's unattainable achievements?

This is the second message I got from this presentation: "Embrace your success." Look at what you've done in your life and your work and own it -- NOW. Celebrate it -- NOW. Sure, you'll achieve more, but don't forget to take credit for what you're doing NOW.

One technical comment about Tanis' presentation and her use of stories. She's talking about something that none of us in the room have done, and that none of us will likely ever do. How do you talk about racing a car at 300+ mph and ensure your audience feels connected?

Tanis did a great job of telling us all the technical stuff about the car (the small parachute on a spring that pops out and deploys the bigger parachute), the salt flats (reflection so intense you get sunburned under your arms), the mechanics of racing (her hands strapped to the steering wheel), the relationships (the women of racing "have brought a softer side to Bonneville"), how it feels (we saw it for ourselves on video)... and never once did I feel lost or confused. She made her topic easy for anyone to understand, and this is a storyteller's gift.

I particularly loved the analogy she used to describe how fast one is really going at the 3- or 4-mile mark in a race.

She gave us a framework for understanding the distance and speed by referring to a local offramp we all know and a pedestrian footbridge about two miles down the road from that. Then she told us to imagine counting 12 seconds from the first offramp... she'd already be at the footbridge.

I tested this out later; I admit it, I set the countdown timer on my phone for 12 seconds and started the trip meter in my car at the aforementioned Las Positas offramp to see how far I got in 12 seconds. It was really cool to see for myself what she had been describing.

This was an example of how you can be nervous and you can be inexperienced, but if you have a clear message, good stories, good visuals and lots of passion, your audience will never be disappointed.

I want to leave you with this awesome video of Tanis' son Channing going 293 mph on the salt flats. The video is from the perspective of the driver, and I really grasped the concept of high speed while watching this. After all, as Tanis mentioned, there are no other cars or buildings to pass on the flats to judge your speed by, so you don't even necessarily feel it!


293 MPH RUN World Finals from Channing Hammond on Vimeo.

Video description: The strings taped to the car are for a study of the air passing over the body. The car is pushed off the starting line by a push vehicle up to 45-50mph and then the run begins.

At the end of the run behind the camera the parachute is deployed and from the sound you can hear the car decelerate. The car is going about 100mph when I pull off the track and make my way to the return road, where I am met by our "elated" crew with the trailer to tow the car back to the starting line for another run where we qualified for the record with a 318mph 5th mile time with a 323mph terminal exit speed.

Microphone faux pas

I'm a "handsy" speaker; that is, I gesture a lot. It's me, and it's natural, and I don't have a problem with it, but where this gets me into trouble is when I'm wearing a wireless lapel mic.

I forget it's there and find myself smacking my chest, rustling papers right next to it as I'm getting ready to give handouts, and any other variety of microphone faux pas.

Luckily, I've never kept mine turned on in the restroom, as two colleagues of mine have, by mistake.

Here's the latest one that someone else did (for a change). Standing at a lectern with a fixed mic, the person introduced the next speaker, then proceeded to clap right into the microphone inches away from her hands. Eardrum-shattering, but she didn't hear it at all.

It's funny that, when you're using a microphone to magnify your voice, you still have to project or you might not be heard, but when you just brush it or rustle a piece of paper against it, everyone can hear the noise!

Just like most things about public speaking, using a microphone requires a level of awareness beyond just what you're saying, but of everything your body is doing, so pay attention!

What other microphone mistakes have you made or seen?

For more on proper microphone use, see the following:

Don't be macho, use a mic

I can't hear you

How to use a microphone

The music of speech -- guest post by Steven Cohen

While I'm off gallivanting around Disneyland and eating my way through the Natural Products Expo, I'm leaving you with a guest post with a musical analogy by fellow speaker and author Steven Cohen. See you next week!

The Music of Speech

If you want to become a powerful public speaker, you must think like a composer who is creating a powerful piece of music. Your goal is to harness the music of your voice to take your audience members on an emotional journey.

The first step to creating a musical masterpiece is to decide on the theme. Often, a composer will start with a simple one-line melody or a melody with an accompaniment, and build the rest of the piece around that theme. You probably have heard Ludwig van Beethoven’s famous Symphony No. 5, which is based on just four notes. These four notes present a “fate knocking on the door” motif that is revisited throughout the piece.

Hillary Clinton borrowed a page from Beethoven’s score when she delivered her 1995 remarks to the U.N. 4th World Conference on Women. Clinton emphasized her primary theme – the importance of human rights for women – through the rhythmic repetition of the phrase, “It is a violation of human rights,” but she also raised her pitch when she said the word, “human,” to draw attention to her theme that “human rights are women’s rights.” Clinton’s blatant, almost staccato delivery made her message even more meaningful as she explained that these issues must be heard “loudly” and “clearly” and that “we must move beyond rhetoric.”

You can deliver an equally meaningful speech if you focus on the main message that you want to convey. Surely, you will explore a variety of supporting ideas throughout your speech. However, you can reinforce your primary theme – your one big idea – by redelivering your most important message over and over again in emotionally evocative ways.

Composers are experts at using different musical “settings” to elicit specific types of emotions. For instance, Elmer Bernstein’s The Magnificent Seven begins at a comfortable pace, with loud and assertive proclamations from the full orchestra, before launching into a galloping theme that evokes the adventurous Wild West. But Gustav Holt’s Mars, on the other hand, features low-pitched brass instruments with a deep, dark drone that state and restate the main theme, which starts soft and gets louder before fading away, evoking a menacing, ominous, and otherworldly musical image.

Mario Savio was a composer in his own right when he leveraged tempo, volume, and rhythm in his 1964 sit-in address at the steps of Sproul Hall to motivate his audience members to act. Savio spoke about the power of non-violent civil disobedience with a tensile rapidity, without dramatic pauses or thought breaks. The panting Savio spoke quickly and assertively to generate excitement and inspire his listeners to “put [their] bodies upon the gears and upon the wheels, upon the levers, upon all the apparatus… to make [the machine] stop!” Savio’s use of musical elements enabled him to harness the energy of a crowd calling for change.

You can apply this idea to your speech by varying the musical elements of your voice to produce the desired effect. Think about dropping your pitch to emphasize a point, speeding up your tempo to create a sense of urgency, or increasing your volume to generate excitement. How you deliver your speech really counts!

But what matters most is the end of the speech. Composers understand the importance of the ending and often use a crescendo to signal to musicians that they should gradually increase the volume of their instruments. For example, Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 5 closes with a jubilant chorale featuring the brass instruments that includes crescendos during the sustained notes.

President Obama leveraged a similar technique in his 2009 address to a Joint Session of Congress, which focused on the importance of passing healthcare reform legislation. He raised the volume of his voice as he explained that the “politically safe move would be kick the can further down the road – to defer reform one more year, or one more election, or one more term.” With each successive line, his voice grew louder and louder and his tempo quickened until he reached the climax of his speech, “I still believe we can act even when it’s hard. He ended on a high note by exclaiming, “Because that’s who we are, that is our calling, that is our character.”

Like Obama, you will be able to end your speech with conviction and power if you use a crescendo to make your audience members feel like they are climbing to the peak of a mountain. A well-placed crescendo will help you heighten anticipation, create momentum, and leave a lasting impression.

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Steven D. Cohen is an award-winning speaker who teaches communication at Harvard Extension School and the University of Maryland. An expert on speech delivery, Steven researches and writes about the verbal and nonverbal techniques that professional speakers use to design and deliver powerful messages. He is the author of Lessons from the Podium: Public Speaking as a Leadership Art. Learn more about Steven here.

The audience has heard it before... how do you make it yours?

If you watch American Idol, you'll hear this a lot from the judges: "Put your own spin on the music. Make it your own." However, the more inexperienced the performer, the harder it is for them to do.

Here's an example from a recent episode. Rachel Zevita is sitting in the hot seat, not knowing if she's going to be added to the top 24 contestants or if she's going to be sent home.

Rachel: I kept trying to figure out what you guys wanted to see from me.

Randy Jackson: We want to see you always. We only wanna see you

Jennifer Lopez: You can't be wondering "What does that person in the third row want me to do? Why isn't he smiling?" That's not what it's about. It's about doing something really sincere from your heart. You feel it, they feel it, and then it all works.

As a speaker, you do want to serve the audience and give them what they want. But not at the expense of being your true self.

If you try to mimic another speaker (or mimic another singer, as in the case of many Idol contestants), you just look like a hack who has no voice of her own. You may sound great, you may have a compelling message, but your audience can't quite connect with you, because you are unoriginal. They've heard it before, and expressed in exactly the same way.

There's a big disconnect when you try to copy someone else's mannerisms, vocal patterns or speaking style; you seem insincere and the audience can't quite "feel" the real you. Your message might be the same as someone else's, but only you can deliver it in your own unique way.

What makes you unique?

What's your own personal spin on the topic?

What's your individual point of view?

What makes you stand out from others?

What's original about the way you express yourself?

Dig deep. Know yourself. Actively answer these questions when preparing your presentation. Then use it to make your content, message and delivery stand out as uniquely your own.

Remember: The audience wants to see you. They only wanna see you.

Here's Rachel's original audition:

Your time's been cut -- what do you do?

Here's an example of a typical speaking situation:

You prepare an hour-long presentation. You arrive at your venue, get set up, and are ready to go on time, but the meeting starts ten minutes late. Then there is business up front, and the discussion goes on longer than planned. Now your talk, which you had planned for an hour, is going to be cut down to 35 minutes.

What do you do?

Do you panic? Frantically try to get through everything you've planned, but step on the gas and gun it? Go long anyway? End your presentation 3/4 of the way through, and never actually reach the end?

Here's where two very important aspects of presenting come into play. One you can do right now. The other can only be accomplished with time.

1. Practice
2. Experience

First, let's talk about practice. The most common complaint I hear from speakers is not, "I'm nervous," but "I don't have time to practice." And time and time again I will say that, if you don't practice, you have only yourself to blame for the consequences.

In the scenario above, of which variations are extremely common (and just happened to me last week), the only thing that will carry you through is to absolutely know your content inside and out, to have a clear understanding of how much time each section of your presentation takes, and to be able to make changes on the fly.

Because my presentations tend to be interactive, I find it much easier to trim on the fly. After all, it's easier to skip an activity than it is to skip content.

If I have a question I want the audience to discuss, and I'm planning to write answers on the flip chart, I skip the flip chart and just have a general discussion. There, just saved a minute or two. If there's a handout I want to discuss, instead I give the handout and instructions to use it later. Some discussion I might have to skip altogether, but I'm still able to make my point while only removing a bit of interaction.

I've also quickly scanned my slide titles (which I use as printed notes), and jumped right to a slide 10 slides ahead (using the keyboard and typing in the number of the slide I want to skip to) without losing any momentum, and without the audience realizing I was skipping material.

How am I able to do this? I practice my presentation. I know what comes next. I know how much time things take. I build in a time cushion when practicing, so that an hour-long presentation never really goes an hour unless I want it to. There's room for questions, for interruptions, for unanticipated circumstances. And I don't panic or get flustered when running out of time. Instead, while the meeting is going on, or the speaker ahead of me is running over, I'm running through my presentation in my mind, thinking about what I might cut.

Now, let's talk about experience. This sense of calmness in a storm and the ability to be thinking ahead five minutes down the line does come with experience, no question. The more you put yourself in these kinds of situations where you're forced to roll with the unexpected, the better you'll do and the more confident you'll be. But you can't get experience if you don't speak.

You can read all the public speaking books and blogs out there. You can get coaching and training and go to Toastmasters. But if you don't make opportunities for yourself in the real world, (which is where these kinds of things are inevitably going to happen), you will not gain experience, and every time you speak it will feel like the first time.

You may avoid speaking exactly because you fear scenarios like this happening. But it's likely that you won't be able to avoid speaking forever. And it's likely that something like this will happen. So start getting practice and experience now so you can deal with it like a pro when it happens.

Practice: Don't make excuses, make time. If it's important to you to do this right, especially in times of chaos, you'll find ways to fit practice into your busy schedule (just like you find time for a manicure, a baseball game or a movie).

Experience: Make speaking opportunities happen. Here are some blog posts about that (and one about making excuses).

7 ways to practice public speaking at work

Public speaking practice for the self-employed

Every presentation is an opportunity to improve

What's your excuse?

Have you had an experience like this at a speaking engagement? How did you handle it?

Can't sleep before a presentation? Here's a tip from a Super Bowl MVP

Ellen Degeneres interviewed Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers quarterback and Super Bowl XLV MVP shortly after the Super Bowl...

Ellen: It's your first time going to the Super Bowl. Even though you know you're good, you've gotta be scared. Kind of?

Aaron: Not really, no.

Ellen: The night before? You can sleep?

Aaron: I had my best night of sleep the night before the Super Bowl.

Ellen: How is that possible?

Aaron: It was such a long process. I studied for two weeks on our opponent. So by the time I got to Saturday night, I was so tired of watching Pittsburgh film, I felt so good about our game plan, that there was nothing to worry about.

Usually, laying in bed, you might have some doubts about "How's this gonna go?" I'd already played everything out in my mind and visualized it, and studied the game plan and studied the Steelers, that I just had a great night of sleep.

Interestingly, Drew Brees, quarterback for the New Orleans Saints said almost the same thing when interviewed by Ellen:

Ellen: Two minutes to go, and you were one score away from tying it... What goes through your mind? How can you be calm enough? You're watching the clock...

Drew: As I prepare throughout the week, I imagine that situation probably 10, 20 times. So that when you get to the actual moment, two minutes left... where you don't want to have to think, you just want to be able to react. And since you've already played it over in your mind a bunch of times and you've seen the result being success, you just operate, you just do it, you just execute.

What's your game plan before a presentation? Do you study? Do you plan? Do you visualize? Do you have preparation rituals to get ready mentally and physically?

How do you evoke your experience for the audience?

Pomona College play long before my costume design days

I got goosebumps from one line in Julie Weiss' speech as she was honored with the Disaronno Career Achievement in Film and Television award at the Costume Designers Guild Awards.

To set the stage: She told many colorful stories of her life and career as a costume designer.

She apologized for borrowing clothes from friends and family and forgetting to re-alter them before giving them back. She thanked costume houses for staying open late for her (even locking her in while the staff went to dinner). She described her storage units full of acquired costume items and a jar of red dirt just waiting to be used.

And she described the moment when, after spending much time laboring to get every piece of the costume just right, suddenly she realizes...

"The actor has become the character, and you quietly wheel away the rack of other choices and grieve about it later."

I felt like I was inside the costume designer's thoughts and emotions with this evocative line.

Find ways to paint descriptive pictures with your words so your audience can experience your story as though it's happening to them.

Photo: Claremont Colleges Digital Library