The theatrics of our Professional Life

A lot of work goes on behind the scenes for any good theater production. In your organization, the same is true.  Coordination, a shared goal, well defined roles for all the players and more are what lead to winning presentations.  What can you do to behind the scenes to ensure success when you are center stage? 

1. At Bravo CC we don’t really have a hard sell like you get at the car lot or Best Buy or anywhere that a sale takes place.  Our hard sell is this: If you want to take your professional development to the next level we have the tools you need to do it. 
   

2. No matter your industry, your communication skills are what set you apart from the competition.  Period. 
   

3. “Resonant leaders, who exhibit attributes of emotional and social intelligence, are better able to connect with others most effectively – and so lead well”.
   

4. --Daniel Goleman’s Primal Leadership

After all the hard work of putting together a great looking presentation, you have to rehearse!  The rehearsal process allows you to coordinate all the players and see if the language you have chosen produces the desired impact.  You also get the opportunity to take a good look at your visuals and   scrutinize your nonverbal behaviors.  And don’t forget to get the timing down.  Really focus on fine-tuning your delivery.

There is nothing more exciting than the energy backstage on opening night.  Everyone is in a frenetic state getting ready for the curtain to raise -- and then it’s like magic -- everything comes together and for a moment in time the audience is captivated. Or not.  The problem is that the audience likes to play critic -- and if the performance is not up to their expectations they will not come back for more.  And they will tell all their friends, too.  Ouch.  If you have spent SO much time preparing but lack the skills to adapt to the audience DURING the presentation you will come up short.

1. 1.Breathe!!  You identified strategies to minimize your anxiety in an earlier stage of preparation -- now use them!  Do what it takes to get yourself mentally and physically ready to present. 
   

2. 2.Make eye contact --  You cannot adapt to your audience if you aren’t paying attention to them.  Put down your notes (or better yet, don’t even bring them with you) and notice how the audience reacts to your message.  

Great presentations don’t just happen.  Even the greatest actors spend months preparing for stage performances: working on their own to develop the character and then with the entire cast to make sure that the dialogue, timing, and movements are all perfect. 

Whether it is in the theater or an organization doing a presentation for a prospective client, the VALUE of hard work beforehand cannot be underestimated.  Do you have a PRE PRODUCTION regimen?  If you don’t, here are some ways you can develop one:

1. 1.KNOW your audience intimately -- what are their wants, needs and motivations?

Behind the Scenes

1. 1.Get everyone on the same page.  Does everyone know what you want to accomplish with the presentation and are they committed to that goal?
   

2. 2.Determine your starting line-up.  Identify the strengths of each team member to maximize productivity in the pre-production stage.  At the same time, push each team member beyond their comfort zone so that they develop their abilities further.
   

3. 3.Get to know your competition.  Knowing how your competition operates gives you an advantage when you come up against them.  Use your knowledge of their strengths and weaknesses to determine your presentation strategy and performance.

4. 4.Assess past wins and losses.  Don’t just focus on the presentations that got you the job.   The only way to get better is to understand what you do well and what you need to work on.  Study those defeats and learn from them!
   

5. 5.Develop a plan for the rest of the preparation process. Spend less time and build better presentations by developing a master plan for putting everything together.  Manage your time wisely by allowing plenty of time for practice.
   

6. 6.Accept anxiety as part of the process. Learn about your own anxiety and identify about specific things you can do to get yourself mentally and physically ready to deliver the presentation.

Pre Production

2. 2.Invest in creating a presentation that showcases your strengths -- this takes time and effort.
   

3. 3.Look at your content from the perspective of your audience.  Do your main ideas hit the wants and needs of the audience?  (To determine your answer to this question -- if you are an architect -- is your presentation made for other architects or for your prospective client?)
   

4. 4.Bring in a good mix of evidence and emotion.  People don’t make decisions based on statistics.  You MUST make them feel something!
   

5. 5.Use your BEST people to create the visuals such as a Power Point.  The Power Point should COMPLIMENT the presentation, not overpower it.
   

6. 6.Determine your plan for dealing with anxiety.  Yes, it can be minimized and even used to energize your presentation.  BUT --- you have to be ready for it.  Identify other situations in which you faced your nervousness and performed successfully -- in sports, in your personal life, etc.  Use your past success as a foundation for future nerve-wracking situations.

Dress Rehearsal

1. 1.Have EVERYONE present for the dress rehearsal that will participate in the presentation.
   

2. 2.Rehearsal is the actual doing of the presentation, not “OK on this slide I am going to say”.  Get comfortable doing this.  You may have some resistance at first from the rest of the team but everyone will benefit in the long run.
   

3. 3.Analyze: Language choices, NonVerbal behaviors and the Power Point.  Do all three compliment the presentation or hurt it?
   

4. 4.Carefully consider the TIMING of the presentation.  If you are doing a team presentation, put the strongest speaker about midway through.  Why? Because this is when attention spans start to wane.  A strong and dynamic speaker will reinvigorate your message.  If you have 60 minutes of content and only 30 minutes to present--START EDITING!
   

5. 5.Practice the Q and A -- anticipate ALL the questions your audience might ask.  Everyone needs to be able to answer these questions with ease! 
   

6. 6.Don’t forget about your anxiety! (As if you would . . .)  The dress rehearsal is a great time to practice getting yourself to the mental place that you need to be before you get on the stage.  Practice deep-breathing and positive thinking.  Create a visual story in your head where you are saying the right things and the audience is being wowed. 

Bonus!!  Click on this link for a Practice Plan.

Opening Night

3. 3.Focus on the message, not on yourself.  True, the audience will play critic, but you were asked to speak for a reason, so share your knowledge with your listeners and learn from the experience.  If you’re worrying about what they think of you, then you are focused on the wrong thing.
   

4. 4.Remember the guy at the back of the room --  Make sure that everyone can hear you easily.   If they can’t hear you, they can be influenced by you!
   

5. 5.Go for it!  If you put in the time and effort to prepare and practice, then the presentation will become almost second nature.  Rely on the hard work you have done to get ready and even try to enjoy the experience!

Do you need a

Plan B Program?

- Libby Spears and Millie Shaw