When you finish speaking before a large group it’s not uncommon for several of the audience members to approach the front of the room to engage you one on one. Since hearing Penn Jillette speak at Blog World I can assure I will never leave the front of the room until everyone who wants to has had an opportunity to speak with me.
Mr. Jillette shared his story of never leaving the stage after a performance until every audience member who wants to has had a opportunity to approach the stage and say hello or shake his hand. It’s because of his story that I have this tip to share with you.
After speaking today I spent about forty five minutes speaking with those who wanted to stick around. One gentleman said that he always looks for one ah-ha moment in every presentation. I thought, great I want to hear this because my goal is to alway leave the audience with at least one idea of value to them.
This gentleman had three takeaways and I asked what they were then listened patiently to his answers. I didn’t expect to hear any of the three answers I did. All his answers related to material I had covered, just not in the context I expected. I walked away from the presentation with a reminder that we all arrive at conferences and meetings with different perspectives and information needs.
My tip is to stick around when you are done speaking and engage with all who are so inclined. You will learn a thing or two and be a better speaker next time around for the time invested.
What’s your favorite public speaking tip?
Great bit of advice!
My favorite public speaking tip is to get the audience involved in the presentation by asking questions and engaging them throughout the presentation. This keeps them involved, vested in the content and builds a more solid relationship between speaker and audience.
Well done!
Agreed. I had it easy for the recent Waukesha County Business Alliance event. It was an early morning event so a potentially sleeping audience is generally less of a concern.