Stage Fright: Joanne’s Frequently Asked Questions

What tips seem to work most often?

Stage fright happens at three different times.

1.      In advance, when you are preparing your presentation:

a.     Procrastination is a form of stage fright, just in advance.  Procrastination not only does not get the presentation written, it also does not get rid of stage fright.  Just sit down and get the content written and move on to what you need to do next to get the presentation done. 

b.     It is HOW you put together the presentation that helps eliminate stage fright both in advance and later while you are presenting.  If you have control over your content, you will not feel as nervous or worry about forgetting.

                                           i.      Use a format or outline that you feel confident about

                                           ii.      Select visuals that both capture the interest of the audience as well as remind you of what you need to say

                                    

2.     On the day of, while you are waiting for your turn to speak:

a.     Practice the opening 1-3 sentences in your mind so you know you can get up and start speaking with confidence.

b.     Hold your body with good posture and strong body language.  Look confident, even before you get up to speak.

c.      Take notes on what the preceding speaker or introducer is saying.  Just the act of writing helps you use your nervous energy.

  

d.     Approach the speaking spot (podium or front of room or whatever) with strong, confident strides.  Stand and walk tall.

3.     While you are speaking:

a.     Notice when stage fright hits you.  Tell yourself you are in control.

b.     Do not tell the audience you are nervous.  That might make you feel better, but it makes the audience aware that you are nervous and makes them feel sorry for you. 

c.      Use strong, dynamic hand and arm gestures while you speak.  This uses your nervous energy and keeps your body from the jitters.  Tense your arm and hand muscles. 

  

d.     If you lose your place, just finish the sentence quickly, skip over that part you can’t remember, and get to the next part you feel confident about or remember.

 

 

What are the main symptoms of stage fright?

Stage fright presents itself differently in different people.  It ranges from invisible where the audience cannot tell if someone is nervous, to complete collapse by the speaker where the audience feels sorry for the speaker and they all wish it were over and done with!

The most common symptoms of stage fright are:  

blanking out and forgetting what you are going to say, sweaty hands, coughing while you are speaking, shaking hands and shaking knees, feeling like you are going to faint, laughing while you are speaking, stuttering or stumbling over words,  reading your notes when you really know what you are talking about, halting or slow voice, not being able to see the audience even though you are looking straight at them, not looking at the audience at all, holding onto the podium with tight fists for “dear life”, walking or pacing too much while you are talking, talking too fast, talking too slowly, not being able to sleep or eat the day of or the day before, sleeping or eating too much the same day or day before, generally having the jitters or a nervous feeling all day and during the speech, avoiding writing and preparing the presentation, procrastinating the preparing or rehearsing, rehearsing too much or rehearsing too little, . . .  

As you can see, there are so many symptoms – and each person can have several of these simultaneously or can always have the same one symptom each time.    

What main advice would you give to somebody who suffers from stage fright? 

You CAN manage your stage fright.  You will never quite rid yourself of it completely – and that is good.  If you get nervous, that means you really care about how well you do – if you do not care, you will not be nervous – and you will not deliver a great presentation!  So don’t let it ruin your day, use the energy to propel you to greatness!

Presenting Ideas to Influence Decision-Makers

Engaging decision-makers as you speak, sharing your information so they are informed and can take action, requires more than just the ability to convey your ideas effectively.  If your goal is to engage, inform, influence, and get the results you seek, you will want to put into play three key techniques:  structure, suitability, and “stick”.

Structure is about how to organize your information in a compelling way.  Is it enough to have a good outline?  Is it compelling to tell a good story?  Is it attention-grabbing to relay a chronology or a process?  Is it appealing to compare and contrast and share examples?  Each of these structures has its advantages, and knowing when to use each is vital to your effectiveness. 

Learn what will work best by doing your homework and sleuthing – find out your decision-makers’ preferred presentation format, what is the desired length of presentation or conversation, what is the listening-learning style (are they visual listeners? aural listeners? experiential learners?).  Armed with individualized communication-style information, you can better structure and target your remarks.

Suitability.  Decision-makers respond best to suggestions and ideas from people they respect and share the same values.  Your job is to create the atmosphere that enhances this camaraderie.   Intentionally set the stage so you are perceived in the way you think will have the right impact.  Will your decision-maker respond best if you appear take-charge, no-nonsense?  Approachable and welcoming?  Solid, traditional?  Cutting-edge and tomorrow’s leader?  Trendy, modern, “with-it”? 

How can you focus on being “suitable” so you get the response you seek?  Make decisions about your visuals –style, color, design, types.  Make decisions about your clothes – style, color, design, types.  Select marketing and promotional language that stimulates interest.  Use the vocabulary of the decision-maker’s organization, i.e., do they refer to problems, crises, issues, challenges, or opportunities?   

Today, in business, the popular phrase is to “make the message stick”.  How does this work in your presentation to decision-makers?  Balance technical talk with conversation that paints a picture in their mind.  Use few, carefully selected but very memorable visuals, including props.  Speak in shorter sentences laced with succinct, dynamic phrases.

Decision-makers need your information in order to move in the best direction for their organization, department, or community.  You can more emphatically help them see the value in your proposal or suggestions by being targeted and influential.

The Savvy Presenter: Reminder: Website address

The Savvy Presenter: Reminder: Website address: "Have you visited the website lately? http://www.lxdi.com"

Reminder: Website address

Have you visited the website lately?   


 http://www.lxdi.com

Don't Leave Home Without It!

You are about to attend another networking event.  You do this so regularly, it has become routine, automatic. You know how to ready yourself: plenty of business cards at easy reach, a few brochures tucked away in an inconspicuous pocket, pen and paper to jot down those workable contacts, and the right attire.    Beyond these basics, how are you preparing?  Are you preparing?  What’s missing?

Don’t walk out the door until you are ready to make the complete impression that counts! 

To maximize our effectiveness at every networking event, we need to prepare for how best to project our competence. 

Demonstrating competence in a networking setting is unrelated to how competent we are in our job function.  Rather, it is embodied in how well we can discuss what is happening at our firm or in our area of expertise.  It includes selecting accomplishments, milestones, progress, visions, trends, policies  – taking selected happenings (that might not seem so exciting on a daily basis) and making them newsworthy by discussing these items as news!  It is how we discuss them that counts.  Since the rule for chatting at networking events is to let the other person do 70% of the talking, we must carefully craft our statements to get the most impact in our time allotment!

Before we walk out the door, prepare targeted statements – at least two versions – one to use with people you see often or run into frequently at these events, plus one to use with “just-mets” or more casual acquaintances.  Have two versions of these statements.

1.  The “sound bite” –  This is similar to what we might hear in a media interview – a statement of about 2-3 sentences that briefly encapsulates the essence of your topic and what is "newsworthy" about it.  This “sound bite” needs to be carefully planned so you are engaging the listener with just the 2-3 points that  make you and your firm shine.   Brief and to-the-point, it provides a tidbit or two of good information that grabs the listener.  The distinguishing feature is to guide the information away from yourself and express it so it is relevant to the interests of the listener.  

2.  The “education” – When we are ready to engage in a real discussion on our “news” topic, then we need to be prepared with substantive information, not just conversational descriptions.  The “education” is a good paragraph, seemingly casual but actually tightly planned!  it contains the classic who, what, when, where, and why, with the added distinguisher of what we will be doing about it, going forward. 

By structuring and practicing what we will say, we will project our competence in a subtle, understated way.  It is not so much about promoting ourselves or our firm’s accomplishments, but rather planning before we walk out the door to ensure the information is engaging and makes the impression that counts.

Enhance Your Presentation for the Win!

Key elements that enhance the presentation to make it a “winner” :

Attitude. When you are presenting for the purpose of winning work, you are in “sell-mode” and you become energized when you psyche yourself into that mindset. We are not talking about pushy, harsh sales pitches or the rah-rah of over-zealous salespersons. With the understated “sell” attitude, each presenter demonstrates sincerity and concern for the success of the project, for the pleasing of all stakeholders.

Language and voice, together. We all recognize the importance of choosing the “right language” and a using a confident voice. So, during rehearsal, really listen. Listen carefully to the word choices and vocal emphasis of the other presenters. Does the project manager really make his/her approach to the job

sound important, with results beyond expectations? Is “on-time-on-budget” just a slogan or is it a driving force that propels the principal-in-charge or PM to achieve at a level of excellence?

Team! The real messages about team compatibility and comfort levels are expressed non-verbally and with subtlety. What do the body language, tone of voice, word choices say? Do the team of presenters share the same “work vocabulary” in discussing issues and problem-solving approaches?

Does there appear to be respect for each other, especially during the question-and-answer section of the interview?

So You’re A Consultant Now? Hints for Getting Up and Running in Your New Role in Today’s Economy

If you are finding yourself working for yourself, short or long term, by choice or not, you need to get in gear so you can be a viable consultant.  Here are the 5 basics:

    1.  Define your skills as services a prospective client needs. 

    Rather than thinking of what you can do and what you have done, remove that resume mentality and start thinking like an entrepreneur. Turn your thinking around so you see your skills as a service you can perform to help a client be more effective at their work.  Think of your abilities as a sort of "product" that you can sell. 

2.  Set up your workspace, contacts, and resources.

Just because you've decided to hang out an "open for business sign", doesn't mean you're ready to roll.  Set up a real, defined workspace.  If you are working from home, create a place that is your "official office" -- even if it is one section of the dining room table.  This space should not be violated or invaded; this is YOUR separate and personal workspace just as it was at your former employer.

    Gather names: 

    All your contacts, resource persons, vendors, professional organizations -- everyone you ever knew -- these folks are your network.  Be methodical about putting these names in a usable form -- excel spreadsheet, email distribution list, index or rolodex cards (for those old fashioned types), phone contactslist, and even subscribe to a service in "the cloud" such as Constant Contact.  The important thing is to keep every contact you ever had while working -- this is your database.

3.    Create an appealing “brand” and identity.

Do it yourself or hire someone, or even barter services -- but get a business name, an image, a brand, and a "look".  Start getting known and being readily identifiable.  And get business cards with this look -- there are plenty of online or instore places that will help you design and inexpensively print cards, letterhead, or whatever you need.

4.    Choose suitable marketing approaches to get the word out.

Don't be shy -- proudly promote the new you -- the consultant!  Create your own marketing campaign with a 6 month timeline and go for it!  Decide on a number of techniques and use them, including in-person strategies such as attending meetings, joining committees from your new consultant role, and volunteering.

5.   Say the “right thing” at the right time.

Get your "elevator speech" perfect.  In fact, create a couple different versions so you have a ready statement for each type of service you offer or each type of client/market you want to serve.  Have two lengths -- the quick one-liner and a longer description that is dynamic and concise!

Becoming a consultant can be fun -- it may be a new life and it may be only until you find a job within a company again, but let the entrepreneurial spirit carry you enthusiastically into a new world of doing business.