The William Tell Overture (Without the Cymbals)
Photo by AfroRomanzo from Pexels
The ultimate goal from a delivery standpoint is to present yourself as professional, authentic, and accessible. We have all worked with people who are professional, but lack accessibility (presidential candidates Bob Dole and John Kerry suffered from this reality at times). We have also experienced presenters who were authentic and accessible, but lacked professionalism…think back to that “train wreck” of a best man’s toast at your friend’s wedding a few years back. (Cringe momentarily if you must.)
When actually delivering your presentation, pay close attention to the audience. There is one simple question that can help you gauge your performance, which Scott asks himself: “Am I good enough to keep them off their devices?” That, of course, relates most to in-person presentations, when it’s tempting to keep your phone in your lap, or look at your smart watch every time a notification comes in. But in the era of online work and online presentations, this question could become, “Am I good enough to keep them focused on MY presentation window, as opposed to answering emails, browsing other sites, or chatting on iMessage?” Yes, we know that this is a big challenge, but one way to prepare is to ask yourself during the design phase, “Are all aspects of my delivery working in concert?” If so, you are more likely to connect, have an impact, and—depending on your objectives—inspire action.
Great delivery of a presentation is like watching a world-class orchestra in action. Each piece of the whole is perfectly timed, aligned, and executed at near perfection—certainly as the result of many hours of rehearsal, both rough and fine-tuned. As you design your delivery, keep the orchestra metaphor in mind. When all of these elements of the presentation are perfectly timed, aligned, and executed well, the presenter will connect at a much deeper level than those who are missing even one or two of these elements. For example, a presenter may have incredible content, and 90% of the elements locked in, but their slow pace, lack of vocal variety, and infrequent eye contact diminish their ability to connect. It would be like listening to the “William Tell Overture” without the bass drum, cymbals, and piccolo. Regardless of how well all of the other instruments perform, the piece of music would not connect in the same way.
The good news is this: It’s likely that 70% of the items we explore over the next few blog posts are not an issue for you. Some of you reading this blog already know how to expertly use your voice and maintain eye contact, and don’t struggle with rocking or swaying. However, if you are like us, you do have 3–4 items that are opportunities for growth. And when we identify them, work through them, and bring them to a place of unconscious competence (see Chapter 6 in our book Captovation: Online Presentations by Design for more explanation about that term), it’s as if the bass drum and cymbals have been reintroduced to the piece of music. And that’s a much better experience for you, and for your audience. So raise your conductor’s baton, take a deep breath…and begin!
We explore this topic and others in our book Captovation: Online Presentations by Design.