Connect With the Audience
Your job is to connect with the audience so they will
listen, remember and do something positive with the information you give them.
You have to deliver your presentation in a way that will captivate your
audience. You're not doing your job if you don't have a connection and merely
stand or sit in front of your audience, reading your slides or notes. Your
ultimate mission, if you accept it, is to connect with your audience. That
means you must stay focused on the audience, be aware of their body language, adapt
to their needs, and keep them with you.
This is the single most
important thing to remember as a speaker. Sometimes you get so caught up in the
momentum of the presentation you forget it, but if you're pouring information
on the audience and they have their umbrellas up, it does not matter how much
your pour or even how great the data is. They won't get it. You may think they
are like this with everybody, or only a few people are bored. Each presenter
sets the standard and the behavior of their audience. You are responsible for
getting your audience to pay attention. So do it. Be radical if you have to.
Run around the room, move your arms and hands, change your voice, sit down on a
high stool, wave a white flag of surrender, and ask your audience what you can
do to help them get this information. Don't attack them. Take responsibility.
It's your speech. Get 'em Tiger!
One of the ways I connect
with my audience is to be waiting by the door of the speaking room and greet
and shake hands with each of them as they enter to the room. In this way, I
have a rapport with them. Since I am an expert in nonverbal communication, I
also am able to read their body language and see if they are having a bad day
or seem uninterested in being there. I can try to shift them to a more
accepting and open energy.
It's About Them
But you say. I am the one that did all the work. I am the one that that stayed up late and spent hours putting together all the numbers. Why shouldn't I think it's about me? Because it's really about them. From the first moment you put pen to paper or fingers to keys, your whole focus is to create and deliver a speech for your audience. Connected to their needs, their interests are delivered with a style and energy to suit and captivate them. We sometimes give our speeches as if our audience was our first date with someone. We worry about how we will look, agonizing over clothing decisions and getting our hair just right. We worry about what we will say, create the perfect setting, and try to sound really smart. But we forget we are doing this all to make a connection with our date. The focus should be on that. So find out about your audience and what they like. Have a 'Conversation" with them that flows back and forth. Make significant eye- contact, and they may want to go out with you again.
