“Super-Speaker” May be Perfect, but is He
Effective?
By Monica Wofford
Your Audience Prefers a Real Person over Perfection
We
have all seen the speakers with perfect gestures,
perfect hair and perfect timing. We may have worked with
trainers who promise to teach you gestures and
presentation skills with finesse and poise. Remember the
saying “nobody’s perfect?” If that is true for your
audience, wouldn’t that also be true for you as a
presenter? The answer is yes! Your audience expects
humanity and imperfections, not a flawless
“Super-Speaker.” Successful presenters make a
connection with their audience. They make mistakes,
laugh at their imperfections, and even tell stories of
their blunders so that the audience can connect with a
real person.
If you want to be “Super-Speaker,” go out and get the
cape and big “S” emblem for your chest. Keep your
distance and lead your learners to believe you are the
picture of perfection. Don’t be alarmed if they fail to
subscribe to what you present and lack motivation to
follow your recommended actions or behavior changes.
Perfection is unattainable and so are the actions of a
“so-called” perfect “Super-Speaker.” Choose to show them
your humanity and they will follow you. These three
steps will put you in place to lead them.
-
Learn to Laugh at Yourself
No amount of preparedness will eliminate your
ability to goof up. Spare wireless remote batteries
will not keep you from tripping over the carpet. Go
ahead trip, and then laugh. Call it a blonde moment
and laugh. Follow your PowerPoint with precision and
when your computer takes on a mind of its own,
laugh. Build the mistake into your presentation as a
learning point for dealing with the unexpected or
handling negativity, but laugh, instead of panic.
Mistakes happen, and he who maintains a sense of
humor, maintains control over the situation. Your
audience will warm up to the fact that you make
mistakes, too. Laugh and they may even laugh with
you. Adults learn better when they are relaxed and
laughing. They are also much more likely to listen
to you when they believe that you are one of them.
-
Be Natural
I tell every speaker I consult with to “be natural
and be you.” Use the gestures you would use in a
one-on-one conversation. Use your own speaking and
movement style, as opposed to someone else’s. The
audience can tell when you are emulating someone
rather than just being yourself and being
comfortable in your own skin and style. Talk to
individuals with your eyes and face. You would never
look at someone’s forehead or imagine them naked if
you were just chatting casually. Now, if the tension
of a large audience forces the naturalness out of
you, then find a way to get comfortable. Know your
environment before you speak. Listen to your
favorite song prior to a presentation. I even know
one speaker who cackles like a chicken on stage
before anyone arrives so that he knows nothing more
embarrassing could possibly happen during the event.
When your audience can sense that you are just being
you, then they are much more likely to take your
advice and believe the wisdom you are trying to
share.
-
Use connectors
Skilled speakers pause almost as much as they speak,
so pause. No, I mean really pause, for an entire
breath or even two. Then take the audience with you
as you survey the entire room in silence. A pause
works best after a point or a question to your
audience. Make a point, and pause. The audience will
connect with you in the time allowed to absorb your
point. Ask a question and then pause. The audience
will connect with you in being able to form an
answer. You can also connect with the meet and great
before a session. Take the time to meet your
audience. Talk to them, shake their hand. That touch
alone will create a greater connection. By meeting
people, you may also increase your comfort level
that disappears when “Super-Speaker” arrives in the
scene. Connectors bring you closer to the audience
you are about to address. What better way to become
comfortable than to realize that you are speaking
among acquaintances who know you as another flawed
human being that is willing to share part of
themselves.
I have yet to see a costume that says
“Super-Speaker,” though I am sure it has inhabited my
closet before. I have seen many speakers attempt to wear
such a costume when they try to be perfect. The audience
truly wants to feel as if they can do what you are
proposing or showing or teaching them how to do. If they
feel as if you are the only one who can actually achieve
this skill or behavior or task because you appear to be
perfect, then you are missing the mark on what speaking
and presenting is all about. People want new knowledge,
skills, beliefs and new ways to achieve the dreams that
they have, but they also want it from someone who can
say “hey, I make mistakes just like you do and look, I
was able to do this”. After all, “Super-Speaker” may be
able to leap tall audiences in a single bound, but do
you want to leap over the heads of your audience or
connect with their hearts and minds?
About
the Author
Copyright 2005, Monica Wofford
Monica Wofford is a nationally
acclaimed speaker, author and trainer on the subject of
leadership and customer service. She teaches people how
to acquire skills that are contagious and that others
will want to follow. Monica may be reached at
monica@monicawofford.com or
www.monicawofford.com
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