Presentations in Action - Jerry Weissman [40]
In the portrait on display at the Louvre museum in Paris, the point of view of Titian, the painter—and, therefore, the viewer—is looking up at the pope, emphasizing his high social status. Conversely, the pope is looking down at the painter—and the viewer.
The audio guide to the exhibit calls this position the “sociological role” because the angle reinforces the pope’s exalted position. To prove the point, the guide goes on to describe the impact of the portrait: “When Titian brought the painting out in the open air for varnishing, passersby bowed down and removed their hats in reverence.”
In presentations, your goal is not to create reverence, but empathy with your audience. Empathy occurs when you are at the same eye level as your audience. For maximum impact, therefore, sit when you present—unless you are in a large presentation venue. If the size of your audience or the sight lines of the room challenge your ability to see everyone, stand when you present so that you can look every member of your audience straight in the eye. Eye contact trumps position.
However, standing introduces a new psychological element. In photography and cinematography, when the camera points down at the subject, it is called an “inferior angle,” when the camera points up at the subject, it is called a “superior angle,” like Titian’s portrait of the pope.
Most mission-critical presentations—where a “yes” or “no” hangs in the balance—occur in small groups seated around a conference table. In such settings, presenters often stand and look down at their audience, creating an inferior angle—a negative position for the valued decision makers. So when you present in small groups, sit and engage with every member of your audience at eye level.
They won’t remove their hats in reverence, but they will find you empathic. To paraphrase the old adage about real estate, in which location, location, location is paramount; in presentations, position, position, position is paramount.
53. Presentation Advice from Musicians and Athletes: The Value of Effortlessness
Three famous musicians and two athletes share a performance quality that any presenter would do well to emulate. The musicians are jazz pianist Art Tatum, violinist Jascha Heifetz, and dancer Fred Astaire; the two athletes are baseball great Joe DiMaggio and any good trapeze artist. All of them are celebrated for performing their specialties with supreme effortlessness—or, in the idiom of trapeze artists, without a net. The lesson for presenters is to stand up in front of a mission-critical audience and appear supremely confident in describing their businesses. But this is far easier said than done because presenters, unlike musicians and athletes, are not performers.
In a Wall Street Journal article, Terry Teachout, the newspaper’s drama critic, referenced Mr. Tatum’s effortlessness in a YouTube video of his 1954 performance of “Yesterdays” and then commented:
Close your eyes and it sounds as though someone had tossed a string of lit firecrackers into the Steinway. Open them and it looks as though you’re watching a court reporter take down the testimony of a witness in a civil suit.
Mr. Teachout went on to describe Mr. Heifetz’s ease: “[He] brought off his stupendous feats of technical wizardry without ever cracking a smile or looking anything other than blasé.”F53.1
Fred Astaire and Joe DiMaggio were both noted for the consummate grace with which they performed their vigorous physical activities.
How can a presenter achieve that appearance of effortlessness? The answer goes back to the old vaudeville joke about a visitor to New York City seeking directions. The visitor stops a man on the street and asks, “How do I get to Carnegie Hall?” The man replies, “Practice.”
The best way to practice your presentation is to Verbalize, the subject of Chapter 13, “Do You Know the Way to Spanish Bay?” Verbalization means rehearsing your presentation aloud—just as you will deliver it in front of an actual audience, and doing it many times