Recently, I witnessed a classic mistake made by presenters… and it was made by a professional speaker. In this Pocket Sized Pep Talk, I’ll not only tell you what it was, and how it diminished his performance, I’ll also tell you how to make sure it doesn’t happen to you!
Originally Published: March 15, 2023
Rob Jolles (00:00):
Recently I witnessed a classic mistake made by presenters, I mean classic. Let’s have ourselves a pocket-sized pep talk and I’ll not only tell you what it is, I’ll also tell you how to make sure it doesn’t happen to you.
Intro (00:18):
A pocket size pep talk, the podcast that can help energize your business and your life with a quick inspiring message. Now, here’s your host, Rob Jolles.
Rob Jolles (00:32):
I watched as a professional speaker, felt prey to the same mistake amateurs make all the time. I’m referring to losing your timing in a presentation. We’ve all seen the telltale signs. We sit through 50 minutes of a one hour presentation that seems to meander a bit, and then suddenly the speaker puts the throttle down for those final few minutes. As we watch the slides being shown, we hear a cleverer lines like this, we won’t be needing to cover that, or that’s not as important to get to. Well, if it wasn’t important, why is it in the handout that you passed out to the audience? It’s a mistake that is plague speakers forever. Let’s take a look at the two major issues that usually caused this problem. One is uncertainty. Unless you’re a professional speaker who delivers one particular presentation frequently, timing’s almost always an uncertainty.
(01:33)
Even though you may have practiced in an empty room or in front of a mirror, that does not come close to simulating the give and the take that goes on in live presentations. When in doubt, speakers will always put in too much information to avoid the dreaded running out of material nightmare. In the second problem, unknowns, sometimes audiences members will ask questions. Sometimes the audience takes longer than expected to finish an exercise. Sometimes a speaker finds an inspirational moment in his or her delivery and loses track of time. All these unknowns contribute to timing issues. Now let’s look at the solutions. One, break it up. No matter what the length of the presentation might be, create a one page agenda that you can keep an eye on and break the timing of that agenda up into four equal parts. If your presentation is an hour long, break it into 15 minute segments.
(02:41)
It’s three hours. Break it into 45 minute segments. Two, think of a hot air balloon. When I deliver a presentation, I always visualize the timing of my presentation like flying in a hot air balloon. Let’s say my goal is to keep that balloon at 2000 feet in the air. When that balloon goes to 2200 feet, I cool it down and the balloon comes down slowly. When that balloon goes to about 1800 feet, I add a little heat and bring it back up. Now see your presentation as you see that balloon when you hit that first quarter mark in your presentation, check your timing. That presentation is running quickly, ask the audience some questions, break into a story or two that you keep in reserve edge off the throttle and you ease that balloon down a few hundred feet. When you hit the next quarter, check your timing, that presentation running too slowly.
(03:43)
Leave out that unnecessary story you tell from time to time, shorten your delivery a bit. Those audience members with their hands up, tell ’em this. Let me take one last question and please hold the rest until we reach the end of the presentation. Then I’ll be sure to answer every question you might have lightly hit that throttle, ease that balloon back up a few hundred feet. See, the key is this. Don’t wait until the presentation is 90% complete to begin to gauge that balloon. When you lose your timing, that frenetic finishes all the audiences left with. However, when you complete a presentation without rushing or slowing it down, it’s a thing of beauty. It’s like jumping off a balance beam and sticking your landing without even a hop. Ease the timing of that presentation up or down throughout the delivery and you won’t find yourself jolting that audience back to earth. When the presentation comes in for a hard landing, you’ll know you stuck that landing because those who brought you there, that audience will be applauding and appreciative of not just you, but your timing.
Outro (05:03):
Thanks so much for listening. If you enjoyed today’s show, please rate and recommend it on iTunes, outcasts, wherever you get your podcasts. You can also get more information on this show and rob@jolles.com.