Your Guide To Putting Your Audience First.
When presenting, put the audience first.
Put your fears to the side. Instead, focus on what the audience needs.
What stops you from presenting with confidence?
Most people say a variation of self-consciousness, and feeling like they aren’t adding value.
Smart people worrying about being seen as incompetent is more common than you think.
It is estimated 70% of people have a fear of public speaking and in some instances, would rather move house or get a divorce than present.
Insecurities are what gets in the way of presenting with authenticity.
Three distinct fears get in the way of clever people presenting well:
Fear of judgement: what will they think? Will they judge me?
Fear of inadequacy: what if I don’t know the answer? What will people think then?
Fear of uncertainty: what if I don’t know what to do? What will people make of that?
At the heart of it is worrying that other people will see you as incompetent. No one wants to be seen as incompetent. So what’s a clever person to do?
First, know that people are judging you …
… but not for the reasons you might expect. Research suggests they want to know two things:
Competence: do I trust this person knows what they’re talking about?
Intent: do I trust this person's intentions? Do they want to genuinely help me?
Not ‘you don’t know enough’, or ‘you’re not smart enough’. But, is this information useful to me, and does this person sincerely have an interest in me?
Flip the switch when worrying about being judged.
When you think about your insecurities before you present, you’re centering yourself.
Great presenters centre the audience, first.
Today is an invitation to start thinking about how you can centre the needs of your audience, by focussing on showing your competence (by being succinct) and your intent (by asking what they value most).
Sure, you’ll have insecurities that still make a cameo.
But this way, they’ll have less time to fester as you’re focussing your nervous energy on your audience, instead of your ‘lack’.
Audience first mindset.
An ‘audience first mindset’ is centering the needs of the audience you are speaking to.
It’s not about being smarter than the audience. It’s about centering the audience's goals, first.
Meet your audience's needs by articulating what’s in it for them when you present.
Who’s your audience?
Anyone who isn’t you, that you’re communicating with.
At work, your audience could be colleagues, clients, customers, stakeholders, peers.
When you think about your ‘audience’, who comes to mind? Your boss? Clients? Team?
All audiences want to know this when you present.
Is this message for me?
If it is for me, how does it benefit me?
If you can answer this before you present, you will successfully tailor your update.
Remember: if it’s not immediately clear to your audience, they will zone out.
Ok … so how do I figure out what my audience needs are?
Ask them. It’s not a sign of incompetence to ask; it’s a sign of care.
Your audience is always scanning for evidence you care about their goals and how it benefits their agenda.
It’s a boss move to ask what people want to hear.
It doesn’t make you look silly. It makes you look organised, smart and focussed on them.
An audience is not interested in you.
They are interested in themselves. Lean on that.
Put the onus on the audience to educate you on what is most useful, so you can personalise your update to them.
Let’s say you’re asked to introduce yourself and you don’t know who’s in the room.
And/or you don’t really know what your stakeholders want to hear. Don’t be afraid to add, “What specifically would be most useful to know?”
Examples:
‘My name is X, and I’m the project manager. I see we’ve got people here from marketing and finance. So I can best tailor my update, which parts of the project are most relevant to you?’
‘I’m responsible for Y, specifically the outcomes. Before I share what I’ve been up to, what parts do you need an update on?’
Your audience knows what they want more than anyone. Show you care about their agenda, by asking them how your update helps them achieve that.
You’re not subservient to your audience by centering them.
Because as a presenter, your job is not to centre yourself.
It’s to centre the audience, who are investing time and energy to actively listen to you.
When you show your audience you have centred their needs, you’ll be amazed at how they respond and how your career transforms.
Anything that doesn’t benefit your audience, doesn’t get air time in your mind.
That’s the mindset of a memorable presenter. What do you say?
Help your people put their best foot forward.
Presenting with confidence gives access to endless opportunities and greater influence.
In our presentation training, leaders and individual contributors alike learn to engage audiences, manage nerves, and present with confidence.
Presenting with Confidence Programme.
Any time you’re communicating, you’re presenting.