Professionally Speaking...

Presenting in Africa

I've just returned from two trips to Africa where I spoke and ran workshops at the Women in Management and Business (WimBIZ) conference (Lagos, Nigeria) and the Kenyan Association of Women Business Owners (KAWBO) conference (Nairobi, Kenya). They were both amazing experiences and I thought it would be interesting to make some comparisons between African and U.S. presentation style, format and approach.

STYLE

The style in Nigeria was definitely more formal than we're used to here. The wife of the Governor of Lagos State attended the entire conference and each presenter started her comments with, "Her Excellency, First Lady of Lagos State, distinguished ladies and gentlemen..." When speakers referenced someone in their remarks, they always used the title Mr. or Mrs., never a first name. This was a challenge in my own presentation; when I wanted to refer to another speaker, I had to be sure I could correctly pronounce the unfamiliar, Nigerian name.

Kenya was more similar to here, with first names being used freely.

Also worth noting in both countries was the politeness of attendees. They paid serious attention to the speakers, didn't leave the room and clapped enthusiastically. Conference delegates in Nigeria were really put to the test as there was a power outage which delayed the start of the conference by over an hour. Unlike one might imagine, attendees sat patiently, without complaint, using the time for additional networking.

FORMAT

The majority of the presentations at both conferences were in the form of moderated panels. Each panelist gave a short presentation, commented on the other panelists' remarks and answered questions from the audience. I found this to be a richer format for attendees as it gave them a number of perspectives on a given topic and encouraged greater dialogue among panelists and between panelists and audience. And it minimized the pain of a bad presenter!

Handouts were, refreshingly, non-existent at both conferences. All speaker notes/presentations were going to be put up on the websites of the sponsoring organizations, for download by interested attendees.

I am sorry to say that PowerPoint is just as ubiquitous and badly done in Africa as it is in the US. Bad PowerPoint slides have clearly become viral. One of the presenters at the Kenya KAWBO conference, Dr. Julius Kipng'etich, Director of Kenya Wildlife Service, gave me a great definition of PowerPoint I hadn't heard: "PowerPoint is too many points without power."

Keeping to a time limit presented as much of a challenge in Africa as it does here. In Nigeria, speakers who went past their alloted time were silenced by a moderator who took enforcement seriously. In Kenya, speakers went over time frequently, to the delight of the audience who were getting such value, but to the chagrin of the organizers who were forced to then constantly juggle time lines.

APPROACH

The presenters at both conferences were generally better prepared than what I experience at presentations here in the US. It was obvious that many of the speakers had rehearsed their remarks and most spoke conversationally without heavy reliance on notes. Almost universally, they included stories and anecdotes, many from personal experiences, to underscore their message.

The true measure of any speaker's or conference's success is the satisfaction of the attendees. KAWBO and WimBIZ did an awesome job of putting on as professional and relevant a conference as any we would attend here in the US. Based on the conversations I had with attendees and their reactions throughout the conferences, both organizations passed the success test with high marks.

Presentations: What To Wear

"I base most of my fashion sense on what doesn't itch" ~~ Gilda Radner

If asked, most of us would say we want to look our best when we are at the front of a room, presenting to a group of people. However, in the flurry of pulling content together, finishing slides and producing handouts, we don't always give enough thought to the role our clothes play in our presentation.

Now I'm not advocating buying a new outfit every time you give a presentation (although...if you need an excuse...), but choosing appropriate clothing can help you feel more confident in front of an audience and can ensure that your physical appearance is not distracting from your message.

Here are some wardrobe tips to keep the focus off your clothing and on what you're saying.

1. Your image will speak volumes about you before you even open your mouth. Make sure it's saying the right things. Does your conservative suit and muted tie support your creative, innovative image? Does your blouse with the low cut neckline cry senior executive? Certainly different corporate cultures will embrace different styles. But the point is to be sure your clothing is indeed communicating the desired image.

2. Dress for the audience. Dress so they get a visually pleasing picture but not so they're distracted by your array of non-matching patterns, bold designs or heels so high you look like you're going to trip. Your audience shouldn't be more engaged by your clothing than they are by your message.

"Seldom do people discern eloquence under a threadbare cloak" ~~ Juvenal

3. Be the best dressed person in the room. Always dress a notch (but not two) above the standard attire as a compliment to your audience. It adds to your credibility.

4. Wear comfortable clothing. If you are tugging at clothes that don't fit properly or fidgeting with a neckline that's too low, it will be a disruption for your audience and will undermine your confidence. Determine what you're going to wear a few days before the presentation, try it on and move around in it. This also lets you determine if your outfit needs pressing or cleaning.

5. If you have pockets in whatever you're wearing, empty them before the presentation. There are few things more annoying than watching a presenter playing with pocket contents. And if those contents create noise (like coins or keys), it's doubly annoying.

6. Ensure that all your clothing is in good repair. That means hems should be secure, suits and shirts pressed, no obvious stains or rips.

7. Shoes deserve a special mention. In many cases, your shoes are at the audience's eye level if you're on a stage. Shoes should be polished and heels should not be worn down. Shoes shouldn't squeak. And ladies, if the three inch heels that look fabulous are so uncomfortable you can't get your mind off them, you certainly won't be at your best for your audience.

8. Choose jewelry carefully. Jewelry is a striking complement to most outfits, but if it's huge and jangly, it will be distracting. If a bracelet slides up and down your arm every time you gesture, if there's jingling every time you make hand movements, if your earrings are so huge that people can't take their eyes off them, your audience is going to be focused on these distractions.

"When in doubt, wear red" ~~ Bill Blass

9. Hair should be neatly trimmed and in a style which doesn't encourage you to play with it. One of my biggest peeves is women who have long hair and are constantly flipping and flinging it around. It's as if the hair takes on a persona of its own! This is typically a nervous habit and when done obsessively, it is painful for an audience to watch.

10.Makeup is an enhancement for most everyone, particularly if you are speaking to a large group and may appear rather small way up on stage. For women, eye makeup highlights the eyes and makes them more expressive. Guys, you may consider a bit of powder or foundation makeup if you are speaking under very bright lights or have a shiny complexion.

11.If you're traveling any distance to the presentation, try not to travel in the clothes you'll present in. They'll look wrinkled and you run the risk of picking up a stain or a rip during the journey.

Many of these tips just take some attention to detail. If you're not sure what image you convey, a videotape of your presentation can help you analyze what works well and what might need to change.

What other wardrobe tips have worked for you?

Presentation Tip: The Difficult Speech

Every so often we are called upon to make a difficult speech...you know the kind I mean. It might be a speech informing your employees that budgets are being cut by 25% and layoffs are required; it might be one where you communicate that the incentive trip everyone worked so hard for is canceled; it might be announcing to your faithful supporters than you are withdrawing from the campaign. 

How do you deliver these kinds of messages with grace, poise and confidence?

Be Clear and Concise
Your tendency may be to ramble around, avoiding the tough, stark facts. Or to use euphemisms to sugar coat the situation. But your audience will appreciate clarity, specifics and ramifications. Honesty plays a role here as well. Be as honest as you can, without divulging confidential or inappropriate information.

Empathize
Put yourself in your audience's shoes and imagine what they're feeling. In some cases this may be very easy to do, because you too are being negatively affected by the news, but in others, it may be more difficult. Don't be afraid to say, for example, "This is an awful situation. Of course you must be scared and angry." Even if you're delivering the company's 'position' on the event or circumstances, be human.

Explain But Don't Make Excuses
If you come across defensively or make elaborate excuses for why the situation isn't really the company's (or management's or your) fault, you will lose credibility with your audience. And it will be hard to empathize sincerely. By all means, provide facts and explanations but avoid finger-pointing or "if onlys". Answer questions as thoroughly as possible or suggest other resources which can provide more detail.

Maintain Eye Contact
If you can't look your audience in the eye, you will seem guilty, uncomfortable, insincere. Sort of like the child who, while disclaiming all knowledge of the broken vase, can't look the parent straight in the eye. You will exacerbate an already difficult situation. Fight with your demons before you get in front of the audience and show enough respect to connect with them by looking at them directly.

Find a Silver Lining
Frequently there may be some good news or positive possibilities in the midst of the bad news. Again, don't sugar coat the tough message, but take the opportunity to remind your audience that things may not be quite as bleak as they thought.

For example, in announcing that your company is moving to another area where economic conditions are more favorable (upsetting and disruptive to many employees), your silver lining could be that house prices are much lower and the company will be providing a generous re-location package. 

Take a look here at Hillary Clinton's speech when she withdrew from the 2008 presidential campaign. The "18,000,000 cracks in the glass ceiling" was the silver lining for her audience [this is at 23:00 of the speech].

The next time you have to deliver a difficult speech, your audience will be grateful that you cared enough to put these tips into practice. 

THE POWER OF LANGUAGE, PART III

"Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind."

Rudyard Kipling

 

Words are the primary mechanism we use to transmit ideas. Words encourage, challenge, persuade, teach and transform. Yet many business presenters speak without adequate knowledge of, or attention to, the tools that can hone their craft.

I highlighted some of these tools in Part I and Part II of The Power of Language. Here are some additional rhetorical devices that can be effectively integrated into your presentations to make your message come alive and connect with the audience. Also check out the Successful Speeches Blog for ways to make your presentations more memorable.

[Click on the speaker's name below to go to an audio and text version of the speech.]

Antithesis

Antithesis gives balance to a sentence or clause by intentionally juxtaposing contrasting ideas. The juxtaposition adds emphasis to both concepts.

"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.  

 Martin Luther King, Jr., I Have a Dream

Symploce

A technique where the first and last word or words of one phrase are repeated in one or more successive phrases. This is another way of structuring repetition, which is always a powerful tool.

"Let us let our own children know that we will stand against the forces of fear. When there is talk of hatred, let us stand up and talk against it. When there is talk of violence, let us stand up and talk against it."  

  William Jefferson Clinton, Oklahoma Bombing Memorial Prayer Service Address

Rhetorical Question

A question in which the answer is obvious or implied and therefore, no answer is expected. Because it is human nature to answer a question in our heads, even if we don't do so out loud, this is a very effective device to force the audience to react, expand their thinking and get them to consider possibilities. It is frequently phrased as "What if...."

"How can we allow the rich and powerful, not only to rip off people as consumers, but to continue to rip them off as taxpayers?"

 Ralph Nader, 2000 NAACP Convention Address

Rhetorical devices add so much richness to your presentation or speech: they make your message and ideas more memorable; they expand the understanding of the listener; they build a powerful connection with the audience. Why not start using them in your next presentation?

THE POWER OF LANGUAGE, PART II

"You measure the impact of your words, not on the beauty or the emotion of the moment, but on whether you change the way people not only think but the way they feel."

                                                                                   Bill Clinton

 

Rhetoric is the art of using language as a means to persuade. Popularized in ancient Greece circa 600 B.C. by a school of philosophers and teachers known as Sophists, rhetoric evolved as an important skill for aspiring orators. Although the formal study of rhetoric has waxed and waned over the centuries, this classic art offers many powerful techniques which we can use to enhance the impact of our speech. (Thanks to my colleague, Halelly Azulay, at TalentGrow, for passing along this BBC article on The Art of Oratory).

One of the foundational areas in the study of rhetoric is the rhetorical device, a technique used to evoke an emotional response in the audience.

Here are a few of the rhetorical devices that you can easily incorporate into your presentations. Click on the speaker's name to go to both a printed and an audio version of the speech.

Alliteration 

Repetition of the same sound through the use of initial consonant letters in two or more different words across different sentences or phrases.

• "And our nation itself is testimony to the love our veterans have had for it and for us. All for which America stands is safe today because brave men and women have been ready to face the fire at freedom's front."                         Ronald Reagan, Vietnam Veterans Memorial Address    

Epistrophe

The repetition of a word or words at the end of two or more successive clauses or sentences.

• "...and that government of the people, for the people, by the people shall not perish from the earth."     Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address

Antimetabole

Where the words in one phrase or clause are repeated, exactly or closely, for emphasis, in reverse grammatical order in the next phrase or clause.

• "And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country."    John F. Kennedy, Inaugural Address

Although the names of these devices may sound a bit esoteric, the flexibility they give you to capitalize on the impact of words and sentence construction is a powerful tool for your presentation toolkit.

Next time, we'll look at some more rhetorical devices to help you change how your audiences think and feel.

(Here is Part I of The Power of Language)

PRESENTATION BALANCE: CONTENT VS. EMOTION

You have a presentation coming up...one you haven't given before...so you know you need to set aside some time to create it. You go through your mental check list...

Confirmed the topic? Check.

Composed an outline? Check.

Started designing PowerPoint slides? Check.

Decided where to include emotion? Hmmm.

Frequently we see content and emotion as competing choices. Either a presentation is full of meaningful content, replete with facts and supporting data OR it's a "make everyone feel good" presentation, short on real detail but long on platitudes. What we neglect to realize is that our audience responds to what they hear on both rational and emotional levels.

When I say emotion, I'm not talking about a gooey outpouring of emotional pap. Nor am I advocating you turn into a hyped up, game show host persona. I'm talking about connecting with your audience on a human level, appealing to their hearts as well as their heads.

According to USC professor of neuroscience and head of the USC Brain and Creativity Institute Antonio Damasio, emotions form a necessary part of almost all rational thought and in fact, play a central role in decision making. It has been said that logic leads to conclusions while emotion leads to action. And isn't action generally what we want from an audience as a result of our presentation?

It may be action to adopt a new policy, buy our product, agree with our idea or join our committee. Yet, too frequently we feel that showing anything other than a calm, reasoned, "professional" demeanor is not appropriate for a business presentation. We forget that our audience is comprised of human beings. Human beings who respond on various levels to far more than just the content they are hearing.

WHAT ARE YOUR TOOLS?

In any situation where you are speaking to others, words are only a small part of what you communicate. Tone, facial expressions, body language and eye contact all deliver a message as strong as or stronger than the words. These non-verbal cues convey a speaker's attitude, conviction, credibility and passion for the content. Your sincerity and enthusiasm inspire your audience. And an inspired audience is much more likely to buy into what you're saying and take the action you suggest.

HOW TO DO IT

Some of the same techniques that we have discussed here before are helpful in bringing some emotion to your presentation:

• Stories and anecdotes connect with the audience on a more "gut" level than impersonal facts and figures. Use stories to humanize your rational content but make sure they are linked to your message.
• Tell your audience what your information means to them and why it's relevant. Show your own passion and commitment for your content by speaking enthusiastically. Enthusiasm is contagious. 
• Stand up straight and look your audience in the eye, demonstrating that you are eager to share your viewpoint with them.

At the end of the day, it's not an either/or proposition between content and emotion. These two elements are like a dance...having all the technical steps down perfectly is merely the placing of the feet on the floor. It doesn't become a "dance", flowing and graceful, until the two partners put their heart into those steps.

So make your presentation dance across the hearts and minds of your audience when you combine emotion with your content.

WEB 2.0 PHILOSOPHY FOR YOUR PRESENTATIONS

I attended a presentation recently (at the DC Chapter of ASTD - the American Society of Training and Development) on using Web 2.0 tools to enable social learning. The presenter did a great job on most presentation techniques but one thing really stood out -- his connection with the audience.

He used many presentation best practices to engage his listeners -- eye contact, asking rhetorical questions, having some knowledge about issues important to this audience. But what was particularly impressive was how he modeled the philosophy of Web 2.0 in his presentation.

WEB 2.0 PHILOSOPHY

Web 2.0 is all about collaborating, sharing, facilitating rather than teaching, embracing an abundance mentality. So instead of presenting gems of wisdom from the lofty perch of the expert, accompanied by a multitude of PowerPoint slides, this speaker encouraged a dialogue where audience members interacted with each other, sharing ideas, commenting on others' comments and making discoveries along the way.

Now this was not audience members being put into groups at their tables to discuss a point and then report back. This was real time interaction and sharing, facilitated by the presenter who managed the timing, asked questions, synthesized and added value to the comments.

The audience was energized and very involved. They had contributed to their own experience.

And they had made new networking contacts to follow up with after the presentation.

ELEMENTS OF SUCCESS

What ingredients does a speaker need to create this sort of presentation?

• a clear understanding of the key messages and how to get back to them
• significant comfort level with the material
• willingness to give control to the audience
• ability to get that control back
• lack of heavy reliance on PowerPoint slides
• skill in anticipating questions
• ability to think on one's feet
• ability to let go of one's ego and be OK with not having all the answers

A tall order, you might say. And I agree that it is not the typical presentation style. But the payback in terms of audience response, engagement and value makes it a format worth putting into your tool kit.

What are your thoughts on the benefits and challenges of this type of approach?

THE PRESENTATION THAT INSPIRES

What makes for an inspiring presentation?

Is it visionary ideas?

Is it lofty words?

Is it compelling delivery?

All certainly play a role. But inspiration is really in the eye of the beholder.

Mr. Webster tells us that to inspire is to fill or affect with a specified feeling, thought, etc.; to influence. So at its core, the inspiring speech is one that creates significance for and resonates with the listener.

Hope and pride of accomplishment are two emotions that typically inspire people. Think John Kennedy promising to put a man on the moon; think Martin Luther King, Jr. sharing his dream; think Winston Churchill vowing to fight Hitler.

You Tube Video - Inspiring Speeches of the 20^th Century  

But inspiration doesn't come only from famous people talking about grand opportunities, initiatives or challenges. It comes from presentations that speak personally to the audience about issues relevant to them. Connect your facts and data to something they care about. Bring that data to life through stories, anecdotes, pictures and vibrant language and you'll be delivering an inspiring presentation.

SAY IT SIMPLY

Weasel words -- aka gobbledygook, jargon, buzzwords, corporate-speak, doube-talk -- are everywhere. Listen carefully the next time you're at a presentation and you'll hear that we are going to cascade down information to staff concerning the headcount reduction. Or that, going forward, we're confident that we have the bandwidth to really add value for our stakeholders. Or that it's necessary to drill down to that level of granularity because this initiative is mission critical for our organization.

This is not a new phenomenon. Weasel words have been blurring our messages and confounding our audiences for some time. Ten years ago President Bill Clinton issued a memorandum to all federal agencies requiring plain English in government writing in an effort to make the government more understandable in its communications with the public. But even a presidential decree hasn't really made much of an impact.

NAMED FOR A WEASEL'S EATING HABITS

According to Wikipedia, weasel words are ambiguous words used to create the illusion of clear, direct communication. Taking their name from the weasel's habit of sucking out the contents of an egg while leaving the egg looking intact when it is actually hollow, these imprecise or euphemistic words suck the meaning out of your communication. They leave your words open to misinterpretation, they make you sound like you don't know what you're talking about [or worse, that you're hiding something] and they confuse your audience.

ARE WEASEL WORDS EVER APPROPRIATE?

Now I must admit, I use weasel words too. They've become a part of our business lexicon. But that doesn't mean I should use them. The key is to be aware that you're including weasel words in your communication and then ask yourself whether or not the audience will understand them. If there is any doubt, opt for delivering your message in plain English.

My colleague, author and executive coach Scott Eblin, cites an interesting article in his post Good Jargon, Bad Jargon which suggests that there may be some circumstances where it is appropriate to use jargon -- for example, within the same company, team or industry where certain words or phrases can become a sort of shorthand to create a deeper understanding of an issue. But as Scott emphasizes, it's not a one-size-fits-all approach. Watch for non-verbal clues [like eyes glazing over] from your audience to determine if your message is getting lost.

So the bottom line [oops, is that a weasel word?] is to stand in your audience's shoes and consider whether they will understand your weasel words. Or would a little more plain-speak be in order?

What are your favorite [or most dreaded] weasel words?

For more amusing and illuminating comments on weasel words, check out:

David Meerman Scott's blog

The BBC's list of 50 office-speak phrases you love to hate

Weasel Words from Australia

Weasel Words: The Dictionary of American Doublespeak -- a collection of weasel words, many with humorous definitions, from politics, the media and corporate America.

Death Sentences: How Cliches, Weasel Words and Management-Speak Are Strangling Public Language -- the author makes a passionate case for taking back the language from those who would strip it of all color and emotion and therefore, of all meaning. To support his argument, Watson recasts the Gettysburg Address and Shakespearean dialogue in corporate business-speak.

DON'T YOU DARE APOLOGIZE

Apologies certainly have their place in our lives...just not in our presentations. As King Charles I said,

"Never make a defense or an apology until you are accused."

Wise advice, King Charles.

WHY DO PRESENTERS APOLOGIZE?

We apologize because we're feeling inadequate, insecure, unprepared. We apologize to lower the bar. If we proactively point out all the things we feel aren't good enough about our presentation and delivery, then perhaps the audience won't judge us harshly. Yet multiple apologies have the opposite effect: they grate on an audience and make them uncomfortable while severely compromising our credibility. "I'm sorry" can also masquerade as a filler, in the same family as "ah" and "you know".

DON'T APOLOGIZE FOR...

While you will want to apologize for spilling hot coffee on someone or stepping on her toe, don't you dare apologize for these four things:

1. Misspeaking -- We all have the occasional slip of the tongue or we mispronounce a word. Either simply correct yourself (without apology!) or use a bridge such as "rather" to get to the correct word. [The final cost will be ten million...rather, ten billion dollars.]
2. Clicking onto the Wrong Slide -- Simply acknowledge the slide was out of order and move to the correct one. Say something humorous if you can pull it off. [The PowerPoint gremlins have been rearranging my slides again.]
3. Not Covering a Topic/Not Having Sufficient Material -- Bringing the audience's attention to something that's missing, through an apology, only highlights its absence and gives the missing piece undue importance. Either ignore it or rationally and unapologetically explain why it's missing and direct the audience where they can obtain the information.
4. Not Knowing an Answer -- If after preparing your material thoroughly and anticipating what questions the audience will have, you still get stumped, you have nothing to apologize for. Admit you don't know the answer and either offer to get back to the questioner with the answer or direct him to where he can find it.

If you keep the wise words of King Charles in mind, it's unlikely you'll have much need for an apology in your presentations.