"According to most studies, people's number one fear is public speaking. Number two is death. Death is number two? Does that seem right? To the average person that means that if they have to go to a funeral, they'd be better off in the casket than giving the eulogy." - Jerry Seinfeld
For many presenters, the unknown is what scares them and the audience represents that great unknown. So, make a point of getting to know your audience before you present to them. With today's technology, you can basically learn almost everything there is to know about your audience. The more information you can gather about the group you are speaking to, the more at ease you will become. This will help you the day of the presentation, but will also help you prepare your presentation. There is a huge value associated with not being blindsided by an audience's doubts and biases. Telling them exactly what they need to hear instead of relying on your gut instincts takes a lot of the pressure off of you. Of course, you must know your topic as well as your audience; the more you practice, the more prepared you are, the easier it is to eliminate the unknown.
Take comfort in knowing that audiences do not expect perfection, they expect value. If audience members walk away with something of value, they will consider the speaker to be a tremendous success. So extinguish that need to be perfect because it's an impossible taskmaster. Doing your best is an attainable goal; being perfect is not. And that need to be perfect is a big contributor to the crippling fear that some people experience when speaking in public. So....let it go.
With that said, there are occasions when you will communicate with an individual or a group who will not be receptive to your message - in politics, employee-management relations, community decision making and certainly when it comes to family issues. And...sometimes even the friendliest audience will have the guy who doesn't want to be there, who doesn't agree with what you are saying or who woke up on the wrong side of the bed with a bad attitude. How do you deal with that situation? Don't allow that person to become the focus of your attention. You may be inclined to win him over using your charm, your best smile and intense eye contact, but it's best not to funnel all of your energy into the black hole of one person's negativity. Focus on the entire audience - especially those who you can reach. Again, if you are well prepared for your presentation, you're well equipped to handle objections, hostility, and those who won't agree with you.
If you want to read more about audiences - the good and the bad - check out Ty Boyd's book The Million Dollar Toolbox. At Ty Boyd Executive Communications & Coaching, we offer an array of courses developed to meet the communication needs of all professionals operating in today's fast-paced, technology-driven business environment. Whether you are speaking to an audience of one or an audience of 1,000....we can help.
