Thanks Rick! As usual, this piece is timely and nourishing! Isn't every moment your moment in the spotlight when you are writing to an audience? Feels that way to me this morning, and your tips are precisely apropos. For me right now, I'm using the Own the Room and Arrange the Space tips, having gotten Curious, and Clarify(ed) the Aim of the piece I'm working on. I can feel my feet on the floor, the sound of my voice, clear as a bell, and my excitement building... my readers will be arriving soon!
I love the idea of transposing these on the writing process, and yes, they all apply in their own way. Looking forward to hearing your "talk" when it's owned, rearranged, clarified, aimed, and curiosified. : )
These tips are so very helpful, Rick. And, as Alden noted, they indeed do apply to experiences beyond public speaking. Getting curious and mingling with others ... those tips alone are really valuable. Thank you.
Love the "Own the room" tip. So, how do you own an on-line 'room'? Especially when I may be restricted to the chair/space in front of a laptop screen. That's my beef with the Zoom experience... I feel alienated from the audience who appear as little squares barely visible. I'd love my own office/studio but don't have that luxury. Anyway, just thinking about this issue may prove to be a help. Thanks, Rick.
Great question. The same thought occurred to me at 11 pm last night when I was up against my publishing deadline and decided I have to think about a list for virtual presentations that was modified. To your point, feeling well-positioned in your own space and intentional about the atmosphere you are communicating from is obviously what you can control. It is much more of a challenge to connect kinesthetically in the Hollywood squares format. I took a course in room design for hosting zoom sessions and the instructor called it "visual hospitality" to create a view that reduces clutter and distraction and uses proper lighting to allow people to focus on what you're saying instead of visual disharmony in one's environment.
Another note and kudo for you Rick on how you own the ONLINE realm from PJ... on Zoom calls with you in Write Hearted, your background and lighting is incredibly warm, friendly and inviting! You have all of that completely dialed in. And you are an expert at using the online tools amazingly well in all aspects. It gives the viewer a sense of ease when you are leading. Very well crafted on all levels.
Really appreciate that Skip. I guess the overall principle that applies under all circumstances is to extend awareness to our audience put ourselves in their shoes, imagine what they're experiencing, and help them to maintain focus on what matters most. With that in awareness it becomes obvious what to do and what to adjust with that goal in mind.
These tips are great Rick! Love what you are sharing. As a person who has given 1000's of presentations, everything on this list is of great value and spot on. Especially about set up and testing the equipment. When you are entering into a space that you didn't necessarily set up from the beginning, we always have to be aware and careful. Communication about the specifics of the talk with the meeting planner or corporate liaison about the talk can sometimes get lost in translation or forgotten, even if it's in the agreement/contract. Best to always check to be sure, as you have shared. It's the only way that a speaker can be at their best and be present in the moment. Wondering or worrying about something going wrong is the quickest way to get pulled away from being at one's best. Granted, things can still go wrong even when we have done all of the right things to make sure they don't. And I've also found that audiences are forgiving when you just name what is happening, own it, don't blame others, and take a moment to get back on track. Once you win over an audience at the beginning... they tend to give you grace when the unexpected thing happens. My favorite line to get back on track after a mishap is to go to the front of the stage/audience... look straight out into the audience... take a bit of long pause... and say... "So, THAT happened," with a straight, deadpan face to acknowledge it. Always works to get the room to come back to center again with a chuckle or laugh (when appropriate.)
Thanks for the excellent additional experience to add to the conversation Skip. What's the most memorable "so that happened" moment you can recall in a presentation?
One that happened regularly, and for no understandable reason, kept happening in Newark NJ. And I did lots of seminar dates at this one hotel. Periodically as I was speaking on the mic, during a peaceful meditation, the sound on the mic would BLAST static so loud that the entire room would jump up out of their seats as if they were being shocked by a cattle prod. Tried different mics, sound boards, locations of sound receivers. So that happened. Also, I've had fire alarms go off while giving seminars at different hotels, and the entire audience would have to leave the building on multiple occasions. So that happened. I had a light fixture fall over and almost hit me and scare the crap out of everyone because I didn't see it and the entire audience did. So, that happened. I had a delegate on stage faint and I had to catch her as she was falling... get a doctor up to help... after coming back from the incident... so that happened. Multiple times when a projector bulb blows up in the front row, and it sounds like a gunshot. I immediately just keeled over and hit the floor as a prat fall. I've fallen off the stage. I've had a chair leg slide off the edge of the stage and fall over and off the stage. Just a few things like that. ;-)
…great list rick, the equipment testing one made me chuckle a bit, largely because it seems the most obvious DUH of the bunch yet I’ve seen it assail no less than almost everyone who has turned down the opportunity to test…speaking of which testing the speech on an audience of peers/friends etc. is another great and obvious one, as an improvised being, even that requires testing and practice…i’m glad you omitted the old imagine everyone is naked, these days i do the updated adage and imagine everyone is a outhouse so if after the speech someone says I performed poorly I can let them know they are []…
Yes, great point about the testing the content on a group of friends beforehand. This was original a list to things you could do if you only had 60 min notice for a presentation. Now that the frame is expanded your suggestion should obviously be included. An improvised being. Is that the title of your memoir?
Thanks for asking Henny. I speak on all nature of organizational and professional development issues. Each keynote is custom to the client after a discovery call, but the basic approach and lead in to the keynote is similar and takes advantage of a piece of improvisational theater that you can see here if you want to know more. www.ricklewis.co
Oh my gosh the waiter deal is a fantastic idea! And also, a good way for bosses to get feedback on which of their employees are a-holes! Watching how someone treats a server is an instant “find out who they are” type deal.
Thanks Rick! As usual, this piece is timely and nourishing! Isn't every moment your moment in the spotlight when you are writing to an audience? Feels that way to me this morning, and your tips are precisely apropos. For me right now, I'm using the Own the Room and Arrange the Space tips, having gotten Curious, and Clarify(ed) the Aim of the piece I'm working on. I can feel my feet on the floor, the sound of my voice, clear as a bell, and my excitement building... my readers will be arriving soon!
I love the idea of transposing these on the writing process, and yes, they all apply in their own way. Looking forward to hearing your "talk" when it's owned, rearranged, clarified, aimed, and curiosified. : )
These tips are so very helpful, Rick. And, as Alden noted, they indeed do apply to experiences beyond public speaking. Getting curious and mingling with others ... those tips alone are really valuable. Thank you.
Thank you Larry.
Love the "Own the room" tip. So, how do you own an on-line 'room'? Especially when I may be restricted to the chair/space in front of a laptop screen. That's my beef with the Zoom experience... I feel alienated from the audience who appear as little squares barely visible. I'd love my own office/studio but don't have that luxury. Anyway, just thinking about this issue may prove to be a help. Thanks, Rick.
Great question. The same thought occurred to me at 11 pm last night when I was up against my publishing deadline and decided I have to think about a list for virtual presentations that was modified. To your point, feeling well-positioned in your own space and intentional about the atmosphere you are communicating from is obviously what you can control. It is much more of a challenge to connect kinesthetically in the Hollywood squares format. I took a course in room design for hosting zoom sessions and the instructor called it "visual hospitality" to create a view that reduces clutter and distraction and uses proper lighting to allow people to focus on what you're saying instead of visual disharmony in one's environment.
Another note and kudo for you Rick on how you own the ONLINE realm from PJ... on Zoom calls with you in Write Hearted, your background and lighting is incredibly warm, friendly and inviting! You have all of that completely dialed in. And you are an expert at using the online tools amazingly well in all aspects. It gives the viewer a sense of ease when you are leading. Very well crafted on all levels.
Really appreciate that Skip. I guess the overall principle that applies under all circumstances is to extend awareness to our audience put ourselves in their shoes, imagine what they're experiencing, and help them to maintain focus on what matters most. With that in awareness it becomes obvious what to do and what to adjust with that goal in mind.
Sounds good... more empathy with the audience that has their own issues with the technology... thanks you two... big smooches!
These tips are great Rick! Love what you are sharing. As a person who has given 1000's of presentations, everything on this list is of great value and spot on. Especially about set up and testing the equipment. When you are entering into a space that you didn't necessarily set up from the beginning, we always have to be aware and careful. Communication about the specifics of the talk with the meeting planner or corporate liaison about the talk can sometimes get lost in translation or forgotten, even if it's in the agreement/contract. Best to always check to be sure, as you have shared. It's the only way that a speaker can be at their best and be present in the moment. Wondering or worrying about something going wrong is the quickest way to get pulled away from being at one's best. Granted, things can still go wrong even when we have done all of the right things to make sure they don't. And I've also found that audiences are forgiving when you just name what is happening, own it, don't blame others, and take a moment to get back on track. Once you win over an audience at the beginning... they tend to give you grace when the unexpected thing happens. My favorite line to get back on track after a mishap is to go to the front of the stage/audience... look straight out into the audience... take a bit of long pause... and say... "So, THAT happened," with a straight, deadpan face to acknowledge it. Always works to get the room to come back to center again with a chuckle or laugh (when appropriate.)
Thanks for the excellent additional experience to add to the conversation Skip. What's the most memorable "so that happened" moment you can recall in a presentation?
One that happened regularly, and for no understandable reason, kept happening in Newark NJ. And I did lots of seminar dates at this one hotel. Periodically as I was speaking on the mic, during a peaceful meditation, the sound on the mic would BLAST static so loud that the entire room would jump up out of their seats as if they were being shocked by a cattle prod. Tried different mics, sound boards, locations of sound receivers. So that happened. Also, I've had fire alarms go off while giving seminars at different hotels, and the entire audience would have to leave the building on multiple occasions. So that happened. I had a light fixture fall over and almost hit me and scare the crap out of everyone because I didn't see it and the entire audience did. So, that happened. I had a delegate on stage faint and I had to catch her as she was falling... get a doctor up to help... after coming back from the incident... so that happened. Multiple times when a projector bulb blows up in the front row, and it sounds like a gunshot. I immediately just keeled over and hit the floor as a prat fall. I've fallen off the stage. I've had a chair leg slide off the edge of the stage and fall over and off the stage. Just a few things like that. ;-)
ha ha, priceless. great anecdotes. reading your list was like watching a physical comedy routine.
There were so many other moments. These were just the ones perfect for... So THAT happened! ;-)
…great list rick, the equipment testing one made me chuckle a bit, largely because it seems the most obvious DUH of the bunch yet I’ve seen it assail no less than almost everyone who has turned down the opportunity to test…speaking of which testing the speech on an audience of peers/friends etc. is another great and obvious one, as an improvised being, even that requires testing and practice…i’m glad you omitted the old imagine everyone is naked, these days i do the updated adage and imagine everyone is a outhouse so if after the speech someone says I performed poorly I can let them know they are []…
Yes, great point about the testing the content on a group of friends beforehand. This was original a list to things you could do if you only had 60 min notice for a presentation. Now that the frame is expanded your suggestion should obviously be included. An improvised being. Is that the title of your memoir?
The saying goes that there is no such thing as a stupid question, so here goes: what is it you actually speak on?
I know I should probably know that because it seems like you are very good at it. But I’ve only been reading you for a short while.
Thanks for asking Henny. I speak on all nature of organizational and professional development issues. Each keynote is custom to the client after a discovery call, but the basic approach and lead in to the keynote is similar and takes advantage of a piece of improvisational theater that you can see here if you want to know more. www.ricklewis.co
Oh my gosh the waiter deal is a fantastic idea! And also, a good way for bosses to get feedback on which of their employees are a-holes! Watching how someone treats a server is an instant “find out who they are” type deal.
Really cool.
Rick, I loved this and don’t recall seeing it before. I never would have considered this:
“Space is this the first requirement of transformation. We have to have room to move, not necessarily physically, but in our thinking.”
I can see why it’s important - to connected and become one with the surroundings from our thinking all the way out into the room.
So many other treasures in this piece. Thank you. 🙏
Thanks James. Don't you have some big keynote coming up? I thought I heard you mention something about that.