THERE’S only one week to go until the speaking event of the year, TEDx St Helier!
Each presentation is only 15 minutes long, but it didn’t stop one of the presenters quietly asking me, “What do you do about fear?”
“You mean, like, nerves?”
“No, fear! Abject, relentless, pulsing fear! Like, the plunging sensation that I’m about to be publicly executed, moments after I’ve wet my pants?”
“Have you tried mints?”
It’s actually extremely common. If your own knees knock theatrically before a big presentation, you’re in the majority. Most people are terrified of the prospect.
And why wouldn’t we be? Consider the psychology. You are separated out from the herd.
They are all seated, safe and comfortable, staring up at you, the lone pariah. You stand before them, flop-sweat decorating your brow, trying to remember that first thing you practised saying in the bathroom mirror this morning. They evaluate your posture, your gestures, your every word. They evaluate your very thoughts. Plus the slide you agonised over last night, with the typo you didn’t spot until now. It would be weird not to feel the effects.
Over the decades, I’ve amassed a few solutions to this problem. Some are comical, but I’ll share them with you on the off-chance that they might save your life. Or your pants.
Firstly, the intensity we project onto speaking events is of our own creation. When our slot approaches, we feel as though it’s the biggest event in the history of the universe. After 25 years as a professional speaker, I can assure you, it isn’t. We’re not that important. People may be vaguely intrigued, but mostly, they’re thinking about what to make for dinner. If your presentation goes well, they’ll smile. If it doesn’t, they’ll barely notice. They may be a little bored for a while, but that’s about it. The consequences are significantly less apocalyptic than people assume.
Next, remember that no one wants you to fail. Contrary to our dark psychology, they are not rooting for your active demise. Actually, most people would be delighted if your talk went well. Success is more interesting. If you give them even a little energy, humour or enthusiasm, a few useful ideas, they will warm to you.
Now let’s get practical. The way you start makes a big difference. Confident body language, and a warm voice, can be half the battle won.
Ideally, you should do some out-loud speaking in private just before your slot, to warm up. If you can find a quiet bathroom or unoccupied room, take a few minutes to walk about making big, bold gestures. It works because there is a psychosomatic link between mind and body. If your body language is small, scrunched up and fearful, that is how you will feel.
Conversely, if you move about like a gorilla, an opera singer, Superman or Wonder Woman, you can quite literally trick your own brain into feeling confident. It works so well that I still do it a couple of decades down the line.
Speak out loud too. Keep your voice warm. If that’s not an option, take warm water into the room. Your vocal cords are only muscles, after all. They can be warm or cold, and cold makes you sound squeaky and pubescent. Warm them up, and you’ll be good to go.
Next, be sure to deliver a “chunked” opening. What sort of apparition is that? Well, the opposite of a chunked opening is when we launch into long sentences, delivered very quickly. That’s a dreadful way to begin. It’s hard for you to breathe, and it’s impossible for your audience to process. So instead, decide what your first two or three sentences will be, and make them short and punchy.
I’ll give you a practical example. Here’s a terrible opening:
“Okay, so our division spent the past month studying the data we were asked to look at and coming up with solutions to the various challenges that we were asked to consider, and after a lot of consideration, we believe we have refined the problem down to the scope that we would like to show you today…”
(Gasp!)
Instead, try this:
“What’s the biggest threat to this industry? What is the biggest opportunity? Good morning. Our team has been studying how this brand can become the industry leader…”
Another great idea is to wrap your points in stories. Without boring you with the mountains of research on this one, it turns out that human brains are perfectly capable of processing abstract data: graphs, charts, numbers. But we don’t love them. They don’t light us up. And they do almost nothing to the part of the brain associated with persuasion.
That part of the brain is ignited by stories. So, turn important points into mini stories.
Doesn’t have to be extravagant. It’s the difference between saying: “Four out of five mothers agree with the following statement,” versus saying, “If you gathered five mums into a room and asked this question, only one would raise her hand.” The only difference is that the second version is visual. It creates moving imagery in the mind. And that approach way outperforms dry data. Try it. You’ll light them up, and it will change the level of engagement. You yourself will feel the difference in the energy.
Can you start with a story? So much the better.
In terms of body language, here is the simplest tip of all. Lock your body language from the waist down. You’ll need a mirror for this one. Stand with your feet in a loose, comfortable V shape. Not too wide a stance, not too close together. Do not lean on one hip or the other.
Now lock it that way. You can gesture and be animated from the waist up, using your hands, facial expressions, etc. But keeping your feet from shuffling, and your knees and hips from buckling, makes you look significantly more powerful. It makes you look like you are “presiding”, rather than waiting for the firing squad.
Finally, smile on purpose. When you move to the front of the room, and as you’re about to deliver your first line, take a half second to “light up”. Go from a straight face to a smile, and allow that smile to “gather up the room”. This half-second investment in human connection changes everything.
And just remember that it will all be over in mere minutes. Even if you don’t feel it went dazzlingly well, don’t draw attention to the fact. Simply take your seat, let the audience’s attention move on. They likely didn’t notice any mistakes the way you did. It was probably better than you think.
Hope that helps.
And if you’d like to see me pacing like a gorilla, do join us for TEDx St Helier on the 24th. I’ll be speaking on strategic rule-breaking for enhanced freedom. Tickets are available via islandtickethut.com.
Douglas Kruger is a Hall of Fame keynote speaker, and the author of several bestselling business books. He lives in St Helier, but speaks any place that will have him. Meet him at douglaskruger.com.
