A Forbes article cites a survey\ndone by Prezi, the cloud-based presentation platform company, that 70% of\nemployed Americans, who give presentations, agree that presentation skills are\ncritical to their success at work. Even\nthough employees acknowledge the career boost great speaking skills afford, few\nlove to present. In fact, the Book of\nLists cites fear of public speaking as the #1 fear people have, ahead of\nsnakes, heights, and death! Perhaps you\nhave developed some skills around speaking but now with department meetings,\nquarterly meetings and conferences going virtual, you have not translated those\nskills on to Zoom, Microsoft Teams and other platforms. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
As many of you know, in my career, I have given over 3,000 presentations and spoken to over 100,000 women. I know what it takes to create pizzazz in a presentation and how to impact your listeners. You must learn how to morph those same skills online to create the same pizzazz. One of the bizarre behaviors I have observed in watching virtual presentations over the last six months is the belief that because they are online, the standards of excellence have changed. Yes, working from home can give you the illusion that everything is casual. Smart women know that is NOT TRUE! In fact, smart career women know that they must fight that perspective. Preparation, practice, and pizzazz are even more important now. It is so easy to disappear from the forefront of your career when working remotely. You must seek every opportunity to make an impact on your career trajectory. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clean up your act! Looking like you just rolled out of bed for a presentation is a career killer. Even though your commute is from your bedroom to your basement doesn\u2019t mean you can have the luxury of rolling out of bed 5 minutes before a meeting. You still need to do the same readying for your day that you did before the pandemic. Plus, you often do not have the other trappings of success when you are presenting online. You are not speaking from the front of the room, on stage or standing. All three of those behaviors give you some instant credibility. However, if you can give your virtual presentation standing, do it. You will have more tools to seem forceful, credible, and confident. Pay attention to what your viewers will see of you on a screen. Whether it is the jacket you wear, the necklace that frames your face, or the hairstyle that looks kept, this attention to detail will make an impact. Even if you have ratty jeans on your bottom half, the part of you the world sees will send a message of confidence, credibility, and command. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Make your voice an asset. Online presenting demands that your voice\nconvey seriousness, lightness, and variety of other tones. It has been obvious lately, that many people\nhave forgotten their voice is key in conveying their message. Practice ahead of time by recording\nyourself. If you could not be seen,\nwould your voice send your intent? This\nis even more critical when you are screen sharing. Slides can get old fast if your voice does\nnot keep things lively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We know that your listeners have more distractions to their attention span at home than they ever did in a conference room. Your \u201caudience\u201d members have kids, barking dogs, crazed cats, partners, dishwashers, doorbells from delivery drivers, chirping birds, just to name a few. You must be different, interesting and attention getting. Make sure you check out Kay\u2019s Consulting Corner for some specific steps you can take to put some pizzazz in your delivery. Whether you will be presenting from home for the duration or just until we kick the pandemic to the curb, remember, presenting online can be your asset or your albatross. <\/p>\n\n\n\n