From An Audience Perspective

I don’t often have the chance to sit in the audience at a conference.  Rather, I’m more likely to be a panelist myself, attending to a conference event outside of the panel or, most likely, I’m back at the office.

Recently though, I had the chance to be at an industry event with a colleague who spoke at one of the event sessions. My colleague had the dreaed 4 p.m. speaking slot. We’ve all been there – you, the speaker, are exhausted, and the audience is ready to break for the day.  For me, it was a great opportunity to observe what good communications skills can do.

In short, I’d be willing to wager that the audience still remembers my colleague’s presentation a few weeks later. I can’t say the same for the other panelists.  I could fill a multitude of posts on lessons from this panel alone, but to be brief, the communications tip I will offer here is, “be present.”

The low point came when two of the panelists began actively checking their blackberries during the Q&A portion of the event.  Not only was it disrespectful to the audience, more than once each of them had to ask to have a question repeated before answering.

A simple rule: Turn off your cell phone and or PDA when speaking at a conference. The audience is taking time to listen, show them the respect that time deserves.  If something back at the office is so mission critical that you cannot be away for 90 minutes, find an associate to hold and monitor for you. 

Public speaking can be nerve wracking for the best of us, but if you approach it with a clear idea of what you want to tell your audience, tell them with some energy and be completely focused on your audience, they will remember what you have to say.

I’ll post more about public speaking in the future, but in the meantime would love to hear your thoughts. What are the best and worst examples of behavior you have witnessed in a conference or seminar setting?