#1: There’s only one way to give an effective presentation.
Yes, there are tools and techniques on which there is a consensus, but how you use them is what makes you shine on stage. Like everything else in work and life, it all starts with a goal.
Setting a goal reveals new options for delivering your speech or presentation. Lead generation, calls to action, changing hearts and minds… perhaps all three? None of them are achieved using exactly the same template, so open your mind, and embrace the possibilities.
#2: Solid technique can overcome mediocre content.
No amount of power pausing or vocal variety can make your story interesting. In fact, if your story is authentic and accessible, I’ll listen to your filler words all day long.
When I started working with my very first client, a macroeconomist, we came up with a mantra together: “expertise is basic”. That’s not to downplay the hard work it takes to become an expert (Malcolm Gladwell’s ’10,000 hours’ principle comes to mind), but it does allow you to think about how you uniquely can deliver knowledge that, theoretically, anyone can learn. It’s your platform and your thought leadership.
#3: Working with a presentation consultant means that my current skills are inadequate.
You may be a beginner, but it doesn’t mean you have zero skills. Even Tiger Woods needs a swing coach.
A good coach will show you how to do something. A great coach - a collaborator - will show you how to maximize the tools you already have. That starts with your storytelling.
#4: My audience doesn’t want to hear about how I am connected with my content.
Authenticity is what audiences crave. How much you want to reveal is up to you, and it depends on the forum, but your experience is exactly what connects the audience to your material.
For every client that has doubted the relevance of their personal connection to their content, there is a success story that is based in that same connectivity.
#5: Great speeches and presentations have limited impact beyond when they are first delivered.
The best speeches that you’ve ever heard are great because of their impact beyond the stage. A history teacher from my high school was known for saying that a historical event is measured by how many people it affected and how deeply.
Strip all of that weight and significance away for a second. Have you ever thought about what makes a speech or presentation great in the moment? It usually comes from the presenter speaking their truth. Truth inspires the audience, and the impact comes from their actions or the changing of hearts and minds.
No matter how big your platform or your audience is, you can create that authentic moment on stage as well.