Presentation Zen [59]
Leave Them Just a Little Hungry (for More)
Professional entertainers know that you want to end on a high note and leave the audience yearning for just a bit more from you. We want to leave our audiences satisfied (motivated, inspired, more knowledgeable, etc.), but not feeling that they could have done with just a little less.
We can apply this spirit to the length and amount of material we put into a presentation as well. Give them high quality—the highest you can—but do not give them so much quantity that you leave them with their heads spinning and guts aching.
This is a typical ekiben (special boxed meal sold at train stations) from one of my trips to Tokyo. Simple. Appealing. Economic in scale. Nothing superfluous. Made with the “honorable passenger” in mind. After spending 20–30 minutes savoring the contents of the bento, complemented by Japanese beer, I’m left happy, nourished, and satisfied, but not full. I could eat more—another bento perhaps—but I do not need to. Indeed, I do not want to. I am satisfied with the experience; eating to the point of becoming full would only destroy the quality of the experience I’m having.
Removing Barriers to Communication
I’m not a fan of the lectern (also referred to as the podium). Yes, it has its place, and sometimes its use is unavoidable. But in almost every speaking situation, standing behind a lectern is like standing behind a wall.
Lecterns can make a speaker look authoritative and in command. This is why politicians love speaking from behind them in most cases. If you are aiming to look “large and in charge,” then perhaps a lectern is appropriate for you. But for most of us—conference presenters, lecturers, sales reps, etc.—the last place we want to be is behind a wall. Also, lecterns are often placed to the side and back from the edge of the stage. In this case, you are not only behind a barrier, your slides (if you use any) are the main focus and your physical presence is now very much playing second fiddle. It’s possible for both you and the screen to be front and center, which is where people are naturally going to focus their attention.
If you present from behind a lectern, you may, more or less, sound the same and the media may look the same, but it’s not ideal. Far from it. The connection is lost. Imagine if your favorite singer performed from behind a lectern. Ridiculous, of course. Imagine, too, if Steve Jobs gave keynotes with the same slides and same video clips, same jeans and black turtleneck, but did all the talking from behind a lectern. He might sound the same. The visuals might look the same. But the connection would not be there. A connection with the audience is not a sufficient condition, but it’s a necessary one.
Recently, I attended a Toastmasters’ speech contest in Japan. Toastmasters is rather traditional, you may be thinking. However, I found it very interesting that not one of the contestants spoke from the lectern, not a single person. All speakers placed themselves front and center (inches from the edge of the stage) and gave excellent talks, many of them moving slowly to different sides of the stage as they spoke, connecting with the whole audience.
Generally, the lectern is “so last millennium.” There are times when the use of a lectern is perfectly acceptable, such as when you are one of many speakers taking their turn at the center stage at a formal ceremony. But in cases where the people have walked in that room specifically to hear you, to learn from you, to be convinced or inspired by you, then you’ve got to do whatever you can to remove all walls—literally and figuratively—between you and the audience. It’s scary.