Your Public Best - Lillian Brown [69]
Your mouth becomes dry and you feel like you cannot say a word. This condition is caused by tension that constricts and tightens up the throat. To alleviate it, drop your jaw and rub the underside of the tongue against the inside of the lower and upper front teeth. This activates the lubricating saliva glands, relaxing the back of the throat and giving you the moisture you need in your mouth. Sipping water will also help.
Your plane is grounded by weather and you may arrive late. Or you have just been bumped from your flight. Go to the nearest phone and call every relevant phone number you have. Keep calm, reminding yourself that none of this is your fault and you are doing everything you can to alleviate the situation. When you do arrive, there is no need to apologize, since your audience will have been informed about your delay. Thank the audience for its patience and proceed to deliver your speech as though nothing had happened. If you deem it appropriate, make a joke about airline delays (leaving out the name of the airline in question, of course).
Your host mispronounces your name or the name of your company or gives your title incorrectly. Set the record straight with gentle good humor (if possible) and obvious good will in a way that will not offend your host. But don’t let it pass uncorrected.
When you arrive at the site, you learn that you have five minutes instead of the twenty that you were promised for your remarks. Quickly shuffle your notes. Include the opening and close that you intended to use. Select your most important points, streamlining your remarks about each one. Betray no visible discomfort. A short speech is good, and you may not only surprise yourself, but find that you have a new shorter version of your standard speech that can stand you in good stead later.
The air conditioning has gone off in a hot, crowded room. Take off your jacket and invite your listeners to do the same. If there are windows in the room, ask someone to open them.
The audience turns hostile, or pickets disrupt your speech. Remain calm and authoritative. Answer all questions in a straightforward manner. Wait patiently while the police or security handle the disruption. Judiciously shorten your presentation if necessary.
You are the last speaker at the end of a long, tedious evening. Gauge the mood and level of fatigue of your listeners. They may be exhausted by four previous, long-winded speakers. When your turn comes, say or do something to wake them up (such as inviting them to stand up and stretch for thirty seconds, or pacing around on the stage to get some energy into your remarks, or telling one very good joke, or informing them that “they can wake up now—it’s almost time to go home”). Then, be mercifully brief. They will probably remember your remarks better than those of the other speakers.
You have been shaking hands all day and now, after your speech, you are faced with another roomful of people. Shaking hands can be strenuous. Learn how to wear no rings on the inside fingers to avoid becoming hurt by people who want to give your hand an enthusiastic squeeze. Political candidates have been known to suffer tendonitis, tennis elbow, and slight sprains from nonstop handshaking. You can avoid handshaking by keeping your right hand behind your back, or lightly touching the well-wisher’s elbow or arm before the hand is offered to shake.
Other Types of Problems
If a different sort of problem occurs that is the fault of the sponsors of the event or their support staff (such as there is no slide projector; too many tickets were given out and standees are noisily milling around in the back of the room; you weren’t told that you were expected to debate your arch enemy on the platform; or the press has been banned from your speech when you were told that it would be admitted), be gracious about the situation both during the time you are on the platform and in private afterward