What’s the biggest gift you can give your audience as a presenter…
It’s being present. You can’t spell the word presentation without “present.” OK, so we’re not talking about the “gift” kind of presents. But the “being present IN the moment” form of presence.
Perhaps the best advice on presence comes from Patsy Rodenburg. Rodenburg is a renowned British voice coach, author, and director. Patsy is renowned for her emphasis on expression and the primacy of the human voice. She established a framework called the “Second Circle.”
According to her presentation at TED, it’s a “state of mind and body where confident, relaxed control allows us to establish intimacy and human connection where and when we want it.”
Rodenburg describes three kinds of presence when we speak: first circle, second circle, and third circle.
First circle presenters focus their energy inward. They are in their own head. Absorbed in their own thoughts and words, they minimize eye contact. They don’t connect.
In contrast, third circle presenters are bombastic and over-the-top. They focus their energy outward in order to dominate. They are loud and forceful. They can come across as telling rather than presenting. They might grab attention, but they might cause the audience to tune them out.
In between the first and third circle is the second circle. Second circle presenters have the right balance between self-awareness and being commanding. This is the ideal place you want to be when presenting. It’s the right mix of connecting with the audience and expressing yourself. It’s being present.
TIP (To Improve Presentations) – Achieve the right balance when presenting. Spend the majority of your time in the second circle. Be present . . . it’s the greatest gift you can give your audience.
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Stan Phelps walks the walk. He stands out in the sea of sameness by modeling his own Differentiated Experience (DX) message: Differentiation isn’t just about what you say, it’s about what you do and, more importantly, how and why you do it. Stan leverages his unique collection of 5,000+ case studies on customer, employee, and brand experience to engage audiences with informative learning-based experiences. He believes purposeful DX wins the hearts of employees and customers, and differentiation ultimately boosts loyalty, retention, referrals, and results.
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