You've prepared: audience research, well-designed speech or presentation, audience participation, a few great slides, Yet the audience was quiet as a stone, giving few facial expressions or heads nodding as you spoke. You leave feeling very down and questioning yourself.
This happens even to the best business speakers. If you have any insecurities, it feels even worse. What to do to recover?
The most important thing is not to blame the audience--because you have no control over them so you can never, ever make an audience be want you want it to be.
Focus on what you can control--yourself. But don't beat yourself up and make blanket statements such as "I was just terrible."
Ask these yourself three questions:
- What could I have missed in my audience research? Did I ask the right questions, did I understand the answers, did I assume more interest in my topic than I should have?
- Did I put myself in the audiences heads as I designed and prepared my speech? Does my expertise get in the way of clearly seeing how the design and content work with my audiences?
- Was I rested enough and did I clear my mind of other things early enough that I could be in the moment with my audience?
Use your answers to guide you in the days preceding your next speech or presentation.
I think the most important idea to focus on is the future. Let the provide a lesson or two and then put it behind you.
Share your tips for boosting yourself after a presentation that didn't go as well as you would have liked by posting through our comment link.
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