Guide to Great Spikker

7/25/2019 Guide to Great Spikker

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Connect With Any Audience

Disk 2, Track 1

Introduction

Welcome to Disk Two of Connect With Any Audience.In case you are listening to Disk

Two before Disk One, I am David Brooks, the 199 World !ham"ion of #ublic $"eaking%&oining me in this three'hour "rogram are my fellow World !ham"ions (ark Brown,

!raig )alentine, *d Tate, Darren +a!roi, &im -ey and .andy /arvey%

To remind you of where we are in this "rogram, on Disk One, we addressed what the

audience wants, needs, and e"ects, followed by a discussion of how to tailor yourmessage for your s"ecific audience% Then we discussed the im"ortance of the first 0

seconds of your "resentation, and concluded by eamining the first five minutes%

Dont forget that this learning "rogram includes three audio disks "lus one D2T2 DI$-%

On the D2T2 DI$- you can find a com"lete transcri"tion of everything we say on the

three audio disks%

3ow, on Disk Two, we will discuss how to address the three different learning styles4

auditory, visual and kinesthetic% Then well look at audience "artici"ation4 how and why%

3et, well discuss how the time of day or your s"eaking order in the "rogram can affectyour "resentation, and in the last track, well eamine how to change the "ace when

things arent going as you "lanned%

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Disk 2, Track 2

Different +earning $tyles

2s a former classroom teacher, I learned about the different ways in which "eo"le learn%

Ty"ically, there are three ty"es of learners4 auditory, visual, and kinesthetic% 2uditorylearners learn best by what they hear% )isual learners learn best by what they see%

-inesthetic learners learn best by what they do%

*very audience is likely to contain a mi of all three% Thats why the best s"eakers are

those who incor"orate all three techni5ues in their "resentations% One way I do this in a

worksho", for eam"le, is to use a sim"le handout% But theres a key difference in thekind that I use% (y handout always em"loys short'answer fill'in'the'blank 5uestions%

Why6 Because if I su""lied a handout in which every bit of information is already there,Im ignoring the kinesthetic learners% They need something to do, and by sim"ly re5uiring

them to fill in a short blank on every "oint, I address their needs%

Oh, and you want to know how to identify the visual learners6 Theyre the ones whowont take a single note7not matter how im"ortant the "oint is7no matter how many

times your "lead with them7until they see it on a "ro8ection screen or chalkboard% Then,

theyre the ones who will co"y down anything they see on a screen whether its im"ortantor not% Thats 8ust the way they learn, so give em something to co"y down%

2ll seven of us have an observation on this "oint, so lets hear net from !raig )alentine%

Weve all heard that we need to cater our s"eeches to the auditory learners, visual

learners, and the kinesthetic learners% But the 5uestion is, are we doing that6 Weve allheard that most "eo"le remember 1 "ercent of what they hear, : "ercent of what theysee, and 9 "ercent of what they do%

Imagine if we could do all three6 2re we catering to the audible learners6 2re we cateringto the visual learners6 2re we catering to the kinesthetic learners6 I believe the answer is

yes for most of us on number one and number two% We know that for the audible learners

we need to s"eak clearly% We know we need to s"eak at a rate that is effective for that"articular grou"%

;or visuals, we can actually use gestures to "aint a "icture for our audience% We can use

characters and we can set the stage to "aint a "icture of the story that were telling% Wecan use image'"rovoking words% We can use all of these techni5ues, these ideas, these

"rinci"les, these strategies to cater to the visual learner%

But what about the kinesthetic learners6 What about the "eo"le who want to feel a "art of

the "resentation6 What about those "eo"le who want to feel they are "art of the creative

"rocess and theyre involved in making this "resentation ha""en6 2re we catering tothem6 2nd how do we6 They dont want 8ust a s"eech< they want an e"erience%

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Do you want "eo"le to buy into your message6 Well then think about this% #eo"le buy

into what they hel" create% Ill re"eat% #eo"le buy into what they hel" create%

Think about this% /ave you ever, ever in your life heard anybody say, >/ey, take a look at

my ugly baby%? 3o, of course not% Why6 Because "eo"le buy into what they hel" create%3ow they might say, >That baby over there is ugly%? But they wont say that about their

own child because "eo"le buy into what they hel" create% $o if you can take your

audience from being a "assive s"ectator to being an active "artici"ant they will buy intoyour message that you bring% .emember4 3o involvement, no commitment%

$o how do we do this6 /ow do we get a kinesthetic connection with our audience6 +et

me give you a cou"le of eam"les% (any s"eakers, including myself, who s"eak on theto"ic of change, understand that change is uncomfortable% 2nd some of the ways we get

that message across are these%

We may say to our audience, >;olks, I want everybody to cross their arms like this% 3owswitch it%? 2nd we ask them to cross their arms in a different way%

>!las" you hands like this% 3ow switch it%? 2nd I ask them to clas" their hands in a

different way% 2nd by this time, the audience members start to giggle because they reali@e

that its uncomfortable to cross your arms in a different way% 2nd thats when Ill "ick onone "erson in the audience and say, >Aou cant even do this, can you6 /ave your arms

been with you all day6? 2nd we get a little giggle out of it% But more im"ortantly, they

now feel a "art of the "rocess% Theyre a "art of your "resentation% They feel involved%

2nd "eo"le buy into what they hel" create%

2sk 5uestions to your audience% That immediately gets them involved in your

"resentation and youre making a kinesthetic connection with your audience% 2fter youmake a "oint, make sure your audience understands your "oint% $ome of the "oints I

make in my s"eeches are these% se your uni5ue gifts% $et your goals% 2fter I make my

"oint, Ill go to the audience and Ill say, >se your uni5ueC? 2nd the whole audiencesays at once, >iftsE?

>$et yourC? 2nd the whole audience yells, >oalsE? They are finishing the "resentation%

Theyre a "art of it% Theres a kinesthetic connection because they are "art of the"resentation%

In addition to that, all good sales"eo"le know the following rule4 If we say it, they candoubt us% But if they say it, it becomes true to them% $o by having them be "art of the

"rocess and actually saying the different "oints and messages that I bring, they will buy

into those messages and they will take action on them%

#ull one "erson out of the audience and do a short activity with them% When you "ull one

"erson u", emotionally the entire audience comes with him or with her% When you

connect to that "erson you remain connected to that entire audience%

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$o I will ask you to make a kinesthetic connection to your audience% ;ind creative ways

to get that audience involved, even "hysically, if "ossible, so that your connection will benearly unbreakable% 2nd the audience will have more fun% Theyll feel em"owered and

they will act on your message%

3et is Darren +a!roi%

I dont really take those into consideration, to be honest% I 8ust know what works% I knowthe stories that work% $o I dont attack it with the different learners in mind% I kee" in

mind the stories that I use and what works from the "ast% /o"efully, I will gather all the

different ty"es of learners% But I dont look at a "resentation in that way% I look at my "ast

e"eriences and Ill go back and listen to my recordings and get valuable feedback fromthe audience after% Its in asking the 5uestions that you find out how truly effective you

are% *s"ecially when you find out what "eo"le are talking about when you leave%

3ow, heres *d Tate%

Ive done a great deal of work in this area% 2nd there are different ty"es of learners% Thereis what we call amiables% #eo"le who are relationshi" focused% There are e"ressives%

#eo"le who are relationshi" focused but they are 5uick, verbal, and have a faster "ace%

Then we have analyticals4 #eo"le who "rocess information logically, a'b'c, 1'='0% Theyhave a task orientation% 2nd the other ty"e of audience member, with a task orientation,

are drivers% Drivers, as the names im"lies, drive forward and want to get to things very

5uickly% $o, what I try to do is accommodate all these different ty"es of learning styles%

2miables want to build ra""ort% They are very res"onsive to stories% $o I make sure that

my "resentations are story rich%

*"ressives like humor% I try to incor"orate as much humor as I can and I include those

laugh lines that I know will work%

2nalyticals want information that is logically oriented, a'b'c, 1'='0 or has order%

2nd with drivers I make sure I get to my messages and "oints 5uickly% I try not to drag

things on% 2nother thing with the drivers and the analyticals is I cite my sources% $o ifthey want to look this information u" on the Internet, in books, other reference materials,

I "rovide them with an o""ortunity%

2dditionally, Ill actually storyboard a story% That is a techni5ue used in the television

and movie industry% Ill take some #ost'ItF notes and I will ask myself, >Okay, for this

"art of the "resentation''whom does it a""eal to6 Is it a""ealing to the amiables6 Is ita""ealing to the e"ressives6 Is it a""ealing to the analyticals, the drivers? etcetera% 2nd

sometimes, some of my "resentations may favor one'style too heavy% I may have too

many stories that a""eal to amiables and not enough information that a""eals to the

drivers and the analyticals% $o this is a way for me to actually see my "resentations in a

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different light and make sure that I am actually covering all the different ty"es of learning

styles%

There are other ty"es of learners% There are auditory, visual, and kinesthetic% -inesthetic

learners''they like to be involved< they like to be "art of the "rocess% $o, if Im doing a

GH'minute keynote I like to get the audience involved at least twice%

)isual learners want not 8ust #ower#oint% I try to include video cli"s and "hotogra"hs to

a""eal to the visual ty"e of learners%

2nd since we are crafts"eo"le in the area of the s"oken word, ho"efully we are covering

the auditory learners%

3et, &im -ey%

(y use of auditory, visual, or kinesthetic mechanisms to enhance the learning of my

audience de"ends on the "articular ty"e of event or medium in which Im s"eaking% 2ndheres what I mean by that%

When I teach seminars or hold training classes I fre5uently will use #ower#oint

"resentation, fli"charts, or other visual aids to assist my audiences learning and retention%

Those mechanisms are "articularly suited for visual learners in those ty"es ofenvironments%

When I deliver keynote addresses, I ty"ically dont use those things, but I will where

a""ro"riate% Try to use a "ro" or other visual aid to hel" bring the audience into mystories so that they remember them more vividly% 2nd these "ro"s can be anything from a

table to a chair to a lectern, a drinking glass, and so on%

.egardless of what mechanism Im using to accommodate the different ty"e of learners

and enhance their e"erience and retention of my message, I never want the mechanism

to outshine the "ur"ose of the message%

3ow, heres (ark Brown%

If I know I have an audience thats highly auditory I try to "aint as many word "ictures as"ossible to give the audience mental images% 3ow "ro"s are very hel"ful to a visual

learner, but sometimes strong gestures and facial e"ressions can be very effective%

Its also useful to give the audience something to do% 2nd that way you can accommodateyour kinesthetic learners%

3ow if your "resentation has all these elements, youll have made "rovisions for yourentire audience% Thats a bonus%

2nd finally, .andy /arvey%

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I try to s"eak to the si senses% 3ow youre sitting there wondering, does this guy know

what hes talking about6 There are only five senses% In reality, there are si% Taste, touch,

smell, hear, see are the five that you are very familiar with% But the sith is a synergisticcombination of the five that results in human emotion, to the etent that you as a s"eaker

can connect to the audience in such a way that they can e"erience the feel of the flannel

and the smell of cherry tobacco% !reate word "ictures that evoke mental "ictures,describing what you see in such a way that the audience can connect with it% The taste7

sweet, sour, bitterC Aou can combine the human senses in your "resentation in such a

fashion that the audience draws u"on those sensations to evoke a s"ecific emotion%Whether its ha""iness or sadness or humor, you have that ability to draw the audience in

and communicate a message through those five senses and through the synergy of those

five senses to draw emotion from the audience%

Often Im asked, >/ow do you get the audience to e"erience the range of emotion6?

#eo"le dont go to their emotions lightly% Aou dont walk u" to someone and say, >/ow

are your kidneys today6? It takes a relationshi" to get "eo"le to e"ress their emotions in

front of you% Its critically im"ortant to take an audience slowly into dee" emotion if youwant them to e"erience intense sadness%

Aou have to take the o""ortunity to develo" a relationshi" with them through a series of

"erambulations4 tension and release% +et them e"erience a little tension'setting emotion,

and then release them through humor% The net time taking them a little bit farther intotheir emotion% #ulling them out again with humor% 2nd after a series of those kinds of

se5uences, which I call descending into the dark, scary cellar, like children running back

u" at the slightest noise, and then getting the courage to go dee"er into those emotions%

Aou can take an audience to a "lace where they can fully e"erience the de"th of human

emotion, whether its sadness or heartfelt feeling% But its critically im"ortant to get the

audience to go to that "lace, to move them there slowly, gradually, a little bit at a time,moving them closer and closer to the full e"erience of emotion%

+ets reca"4I e"lained that to be most effective, you should incor"orate something for each of the

three learning styles4 auditory, kinesthetic, and visual% One suggestion I gave for

a""ealing to the kinesthetic learners is to "rovide sim"le short'answer, fill'in'the'blank

handouts% The reason is that it gives the kinesthetic learners something to do, but theadded benefit is that it reinforces in the listeners mind what is im"ortant% That is, we

"lace greater value on what we see or hear and then "ut onto "a"er in our own

handwriting% What you are subconsciously doing is telling your brain >Im writing thisdown because it is im"ortant%?

!raig reminded us of the aiom4 we remember 1J of what we hear, :J of what wesee, and 9J of what we do% 2nd, he suggested that to move the audience from a grou"

of "assive listeners to active "artici"ants, you can ask 5uestions or let them give an oral

res"onse on cue%

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In addition to the three categories of auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learners, *d

described another way to look at audiences, through four "ersonality traits% /e said you

can divide an audience as amiables, e"ressives, analyticals, and drivers%

&im -ey said he recommend using "ro"s to kee" the visual learners engaged, but

reminded us not to let the mechanism outshine the message%

(ark suggested gestures and facial e"ressions can also be considered "ro"s%

2nd .andy s"oke of the sith sense4 a synergistic combination of the other five% 2nd, he

recommended taking an audience into dee" emotional states gradually, slowly, as if

descending into a dark cellar one cautious ste" at a time%

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Disk 2, Track 3

2udience #artici"ation

The net to"ic is 2udience #artici"ation4 why and how% I do a lot of training "rograms

and worked for several years with an international seminar com"any, as did mycolleagues *d Tate and !raig )alentine% 2nd in case you are wondering, the "ublic

seminar business is a great "lace to start, but the "ace can be grueling4 one city after

another, day in day out for u" to two weeks at a time% *d, !raig, and I are grateful forwhat we learned in that environment, but were all glad to now be on our ownCwhere

we control our schedules%

Through that e"erience, I learned the value of audience involvement% I was doing full'

day "rograms, and I learned the first week on the 8ob that no one7absolutely no one7

will tolerate a si'hour lecture% I mistakenly assumed that the clients "aid for si hours ofinstruction, so I was going to give them si hours on information, and that was a big

mistake7I failed to acknowledge the fatigue factor% 2fter about four hours of non'sto"knowledge, most "eo"le say >$to"E (y brain is fullE?

Thats when I stumbled on this startling incongruity4 the audience will learn and

remember more if you mi LJ information with =J entertainment, than if you merely

saturate them with 1J information% +et me em"hasi@e this "oint4 By miing =Jentertainment with LJ information, the audience will learn and remember more than if

you overwhelm them with 1J information%

Thats when I learned the value of audience "artici"ation7thats the =J ;un ;actor%

When you involve the audience in an activity, as long as it is not com"letely frivolous, it

kee"s them engaged% 3otice I said >as long as its not com"letely frivolous%? Weve allseen s"eakers and trainers that ask the audience to stand u" and do something silly, and Icant stand that% 2s you will hear in a few minutes, Darren +a!roi agrees% ;rankly, if I

dont feel like interacting with a stranger, I wont be coaed or coerced into it%

But I never mind an activity that 1M is relevant to the to"ic at hand, and =M "rovides

mental or "hysical relief from long stretches of uninterru"ted lecture% The fact is,

everyone needs a break now and then, and a "ractical, fun activity can be a blessing forthe audience and the s"eaker%

3ow lets hear from Darren, *d, &im and .andy% ;irst, Darren +a!roi%

*veryone does this differently% (e6 I love im"rov% Because I love im"rov Ive studied it%

Ive taken courses in it and Ive read books about it% $o, in my "resentations I do,

generally, two im"rov routines where I bring audience members u" to work with me% Theattention is always heightened because now it is one of them u" there on the "latform% Its

like they got the s"otlight% 2nd this adds to curiosity%

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I ty"ically bring u" five "eo"le from my audience and do a routine called the ;ive'headed

*"ert% One of the books that I highly recommend isPlaying Along, by I@@y esell% This

book shows you im"rov techni5ues, and how and when to use them%

I use im"rov because I en8oy im"rov and bringing it u" to the net level by involving the

audience% (y ending routine is something that Ive done and turned into a classic% Itsbeen done before, but its my story and I love doing it% 2nd its a great way to end my

"rogram% 2lways gets a laugh% 2lways works%

#art of the key to this is getting the right "eo"le involved% I always ask, while Im

interviewing "eo"le in my research "ortion, who is really outgoing from this audience6

Who in the organi@ation likes to ham it u", or likes the s"otlight, likes to fool around6

enerally, "eo"le know instantly who the two or three "eo"le are% I always gather acollection of names and I look for the names that I get that are in common% Those are

"robably the best "eo"le% 3ow I always ask them ahead of time for "ermission to bring

them u" onstage% I dont 8ust wing it% I want the right "eo"le u" there% 2nd I dont need to

take any unnecessary risks%

I believe audience "artici"ation is a wonderful thing, if used "ro"erly% Aou will makemistakes when you start using it, if youre not already% But make mistakes% But make

calculated mistakes for the free s"eeches that you give, not for the big ones% 2nd then

youll start to see what works for you and how its received by the audience%

Im a big fan of audience "artici"ation as a s"eaker using im"rov% 2s an audience

member, I hate when they ask you to turn net to each other and give a massage, or start

"laying games% Im 8ust not a fan of that% $o thats why when I do my im"rov Im only"icking a few "eo"le from the audience, Im bringing them u" onstage so everyone else

8ust en8oys rather than has to "artici"ate%

3ow, heres *d Tate%

I am a big "ro"onent of audience "artici"ation% 2s a matter of fact, my keynotes in my

literature are described as Interactive -eynotes% That is, the audience is going to

"artici"ate, be it a GH'minute keynote, an hour "rogram, or es"ecially if it is a 9'minute

"rogram or longer% If its 8ust GH'minutes the audience, theyre going to "artici"ate with

me at least twice in a GH'minute segment% If its an hour, I want them to "artici"atesomehow at least three times% If its a 9'minute "rogram, G "ossibly H times% 2nd beyond

that, it could be u" to around ten times, if its an all'day "rogram%

Ive got it "aced% Theres some ty"e of activity, and it could be as sim"le as a 5uestion, it

could be a bu@@ session, where the audience members are talking among themselves%

Theres a wide variety of ways to get the audience "artici"ating% I am a "ro"onent, a big'time user of audience "artici"ation, be it in a keynote, facilitation, or a full'day training

"rogram%

3et is &im -ey%

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I liken audience "artici"ation to a racecar% It can be very "owerful, but only under the

guidance of an e"erienced hand at the wheel% The ine"erienced hand will cause that"resentation to run into a wall%

When I invite audience "artici"ation I always kee" it sim"le% I always try to clearlydefine, or at least im"ly what the e"ected and acce"table res"onses are% ;urthermore, I

want to have a "lan so that when, not if, but when I get that une"ected res"onse I will

remain in control of the dialogue and can effectively return to the direction in which Iwant to take my "resentation%

I think audience "artici"ation is good% But it has to be directed and controlled%

2nd now, .andy /arvey4

(y s"eaking style is very much that of a storyteller, along the lines of a arrison -eillor%

2s one listens to the s"eeches that I give it soon becomes a""arent that I e"ect audience"artici"ation% 3ot in terms of vocal res"onse, but in terms of structured incom"letion%

+et me tell you what I mean by that% When I describe an automobile, for eam"le, I might

say a 19: ;ord ;airlane% I wont say what color it is% Why, you ask6 Because everyone

in the audience, at some "oint, has seen a 19: ;ord ;airlane% 2nd in their thinking, itsgreen, or its blue, or its red% If I say a red 19: ;ord ;airlane, then that "erson in the

audience says, Aeah, mine was red% Or they say, ee, mine was green% 2nd in that one,

s"lit second, theyve now gone on a tangent from the "oint I was trying to make

originally%

$o to the etent its "ossible, by using structured incom"letion, I will say a 19: ;ord

;airlane, and then the audience7there will be green ones and blue ones and red ones%Because every "erson will connect with their own memory the color of that car%

By structuring you s"eech in such a way that the audience can draw their recollectionsand their memories about the things that youre discussing in your "resentation, you

allow them to "artici"ate in your "resentation%

That "ower of structured incom"etion allows a mind that can com"rehend s"eech at :words a minute to fill in the blanks of your s"eech thats given at 1=H words a minute%

2udience "artici"ation also comes in the form of describing sensual e"erience% 3ow,Im not talking about se% Im talking about the five senses7the seeing, tasting,

touching, smelling, hearing''giving brief descri"tions that allow the mind to com"lete the

sentence% $tructured incom"letion allows the audience to actively "artici"ate in yourvocal "resentation, such that when youre done they will say, WowE That was greatE I

had some of those very same e"eriencesE I had a 19: ;ord ;airlane, 8ust like thatE 2nd

while yours was red and theirs was green, no one knows the difference%

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To reca",

I reminded you that information overload is a very real "ossibility in any "resentation if it

is not balanced with a moderate amount of audience involvement% 2nd, I e"lained thatsthe reason that =J entertainment mied with LJ information will "roduce a greater

rate of learning and retention%

Darren discussed the value of im"rov in getting the audience involved% But, like me, he

doesnt like it when s"eakers re5uire everyone in the audience to stand u" and do

something they otherwise would not do% $o Darrens im"rov "artici"ants are alwaysvolunteers%

*d said >the audience is going to "artici"ate in my "resentations, keynotes includedC%at

least twice in a GH'minute "resentation, or u" to 1 times in a full'day "rogram%?

&im -ey said audience "artici"ation can be very "owerful but only under the guidance of

an e"erienced hand% It can be good he said, but it has to be directed and controlled%

2nd .andy /arvey introduced the conce"t of >structured incom"letion%? This techni5ue,

he said, allows the listener to fill in the missing details based on their memories%$tructured incom"letion also allows the mind, which can com"rehend words at a rate of

: words "er minute to fill in the blanks in a "resentation thats s"oken at 1=H words "er

minute%

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Disk 2, Track 4

Time of day or "lacement in the "rogram

2s the other si guys will tell you in this track, the time of day can have a huge im"act onhow you connect with your audience% $ome will discuss how the schedule of events

immediately "receding your s"eech can also be a ma8or consideration% I have an eam"le

on this "oint%

2 few years ago I was scheduled to be the closing keynote s"eaker at the end of a four'

day conference% I was scheduled to s"eak from 114 a%m% until 3oon and the conferencewas to ad8ourn immediately after my "resentation%

3ow if the schedule of events leading u" to my "resentation were ty"ical, there wouldhave been no "roblem% But this schedule was not ty"ical% The "rogram began at L40 and

the o"ening s"eaker "rom"tly "roceeded to "ut the audience into a stu"or for over a fullhour% This was followed by an e5ually ine"t s"eaker who thought his bad #ower#oint

slides would save him% They didnt% /e rambled aimlessly for an hour, so by this time itwas "ast 140% 2nd, then, for some ine"licable reason, they had scheduled a 0'minute

break immediately "receding my "resentation%

The audience, already ehausted from four days of training, and thoroughly eas"erated

by the o"ening two s"eakers reali@ed the only thing standing between them and the

freeway was me% 2nd guess who won6

Before the break there were more than = "eo"le "acking the room% When the break

ended, there were only KH "eo"le who returned, and of course, they remained scatteredthroughout the room in their original seats% *normous ga"s se"arated the "eo"le and asyou will hear in a later track, that will drain the energy from a room faster than anything%

(y "resentation never really connected as a result% What did I learn from this6 2lwaysask to see the schedule of events before you acce"t a s"eaking assignment%

3ow, lets hear from the other si guys% /eres !raig )alentine%

I have found, by failing, that its etremely im"ortant to understand where you fall in the

course of an event% #robably the most difficult s"eech I have ever given in my life was in

&amaica because they had a hometown hero, a wonderful comedian who entertained theaudience for about an hour and fifteen minutes to an hour and a half% But it was very hot%

2nd it was hot in the room% #eo"le were sweating and "eo"le were s5uirming, but they

were really en8oying him because he was ecellent%

But as soon as he finished, without hesitation, they introduced me to do my hour'and'a'

half long seminar on "ublic s"eaking% 2nd I was in the back thinking, >3oE 3oE We needa breakE We need to be on a break% Oh, noE?

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But it was too late% The video was rolling, my introduction was given, and I had to come

u" and do another hour and a half% I saw "eo"le s5uirming in their seats% They were hot%They were sweating% They needed a break% They were too "olite% 2nd they did not want

to be rude so they didnt get u" and leave%

But about halfway through my "resentation I wanted to get u" and leave because it was

going downhill fast% $ince then, Ive been very diligent in finding out where I fall in the

"rogram and making sure that "eo"le have not been sitting for long "eriods of timebefore I come u" to the micro"hone% The environment can take over if you are not

careful%

3ow, heres Darren +a!roi%

;rom the comedy world Im fully aware that every audience is different% I can give the

same material, word for word, on a ;riday night show, a $aturday evening show early,

and a $aturday evening show late% I can do the same eact set, word for word, and I willget com"letely different res"onses%

sually, for most comedy clubs, they have one show on ;riday night, two on $aturday

night% But what ha""ens is, usually the ;riday night audience is a little on the tired side%

Theyve been working all day, theyve been working all week, and now its ;riday night,they want to go out, theyre full of energy% But, by the time nine oclock comes around,

show time, theyre starting to feel the effects of the week%

$aturday night early show is usually the best one of the weekend% #eo"le sle"t in a littlein the morning, theyve been doing yard work and things during the day, and now they

are ready to go out and have some fun% $o theyre more u"%

$aturday night late show, theyve been drinking% These are the "artyers% $ome of them

"robably started at four in the afternoon, and are still going strong% These "eo"le tend to

be much more rowdy%

But again, I can do the same 8okes, word for word, and I will get a different res"onse% The

difference is, I have different e"ectations at all of these shows, and its never the same%

$ometimes the magic show, the best show of the weekend, will be the $aturday night lateshow% $ometimes it will be ;riday% Or for the most "art it is 8ust how I described%

But in terms of "rofessional "resentations we have to ad8ust our e"ectations% I knowwhen Im doing humor or comedy first thing in the morning at eight oclock its not the

o"timal time% !omedy or humor usually goes better late morning, right after lunch, or

after dinner% Thats where it works best%

3ow its my 8ob to educate the meeting "lanner or the "erson hiring me that this is not the

o"timal "lace to "ut me, right after breakfast% But once I e"lain it to them and educate

them, then its their decision% Theyre the ones "aying me, so I have to let it go% But, me

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as a "resenter, if Im doing humor first thing in the morning I know I need to ad8ust my

e"ectations% $o I dont beat myself u" if its not ri"'roaring, from the gut laughter% Its

okay% I lower my e"ectations% I still give it my all, but I dont beat myself u" because itseight oclock in the morning% They still havent had their coffee kick in 8ust yet%

3ow, lets hear from *d Tate%

Time of day is really im"ortant whether youre doing a "rogram in the morning, or at

lunchtime, in the afternoon, and the evening, Im going to talk about the evening first%(y "reference is not to do evening "rograms% 2nd I s"ecifically will not do an evening

"rogram where alcohol is involved%

(y "rograms are high content% $o theres high content, theres high learning, theres highbrain stimulation, if you will% 2nd in an after'five or after'dinner "resentation, ty"ically,

"eo"le are in a different mindset% Theyre e"ecting humor% Theyre e"ecting light'

heartedness% 2nd they dont want any heavy'duty content at that time% $o I have found

that my message doesnt necessarily lend itself to after'five events, s"ecifically after'five,after alcohol%

3ow if its an after'five "resentation where there is no alcohol "resent, then I will do the

"rogram and the "resentation% But I wont do it if there is alcohol involved%

(orning, ty"ically, is higher energy% $o, again, if youre doing a brief keynote, its high

energy%%%

If its an all day "rogram, the one thing I try to do is, again, I want to include activities%$"ecifically, I want to include more activities, more audience interaction, es"ecially after

lunch% I want to get them involved% I want to get them u" and talking to each other% Its

not 8ust being a talking head behind the "odium or micro"hone%

2fter lunch, es"ecially after food, I definitely want to get the audience u", involved, and I

have various activities and different ways of doing that%

/eres &im -ey%

The time of day, or the s"eaking order in which I s"eak in the "rogram affects my"resentation because it affects the audience% If Im s"eaking to an audience after theyve

had a meal theyre likely to be drowsy% 2nd I will need to give them something for which

they want to stay awake%

If Im s"eaking late in the day, or maybe in evening, the audience may be worn out if

theyve gone through a lot of "resentations already% Itll be vitally im"ortant that my"resentation not be drab or boring, and that the significant "oints are tied to entertaining

stories so the audience will remember them through their fatigue%

3et, (ark Brown%

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$ometimes the time and the "lace have a huge im"act on the audience% (y worst

e"erience with a huge audience came on a sunny 3ovember afternoon in the southern$2%

It was a Wednesday, the day before the Thanksgiving holiday which ha""ens to be thelast Thursday in 3ovember, and a ma8or event in the $2% (y s"eech was at 140 in the

afternoon, and the "rinci"al, the main disci"linarian, was away%

I s"oke in a gymnasium7a very hot gymnasium% 3ow these students, they knew that

their four'day weekend would begin in less than two hours% 2nd they, 5uite frankly, had

no desire to hear from anyone7 certainly not from me% Ill tell you, it was the closest I

ever came to walking out of a s"eaking engagement% 3othing that I tried worked% 2nd forthe first time in my career I had to ask students to leave my assembly%

3ow, Im not "roud of that% But I learned a valuable lesson% The audience res"onse can

de"end largely on the setting%

I have made "resentations on a ;riday afternoon immediately after lunch% Try thatsometime% Its a real challenge%

2nd now, .andy /arvey%

Im a morning "erson% I would 8ust as soon s"eak at :4 a%m%, if "ossible, because I will

have already been u" for two hours% (y least favorite time of day to s"eak is late at night%

If Im asked to s"eak after nine oclock at night I may be yawning in the "erformance%iven the chance Ill s"eak early in the morning, shortly after sunrise%

-nowing that thats not always "ossible, if I know that Im going to be s"eaking at adinner in a keynote that occurs later in the evening, Ill take a na" midday, so I make sure

I have "lenty of energy%

In terms of s"eaking order, if given a chance of s"eaking first versus s"eaking last,

de"ending u"on the "ur"ose of the meeting, I like to s"eak first to set the stage, to

"re"are a foundation for s"eakers that will follow%

If thats not "ossible, Id rather s"eak last so that I can summari@e hat the audience has

heard throughout the other "resentations% $"eaking in the last "osition, its im"ortant to

listen to the other "resentations and allow your "resentation to be a summary, not 8ust ofwhat you have to say, but tie'in the "oints that other s"eakers have made throughout their

"resentations%

+ets reca"4

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I reminded you that a long break immediately before your "resentation can be

counter"roductive7es"ecially if youre the last "erson on the "rogram% 2nd I mentioned

the energy killing effect that em"ty chairs have on an audience%

!raig said to make sure the audience has not been sitting for a "rolonged "eriod of time

immediately before you s"eak, or the environment can take over your "resentation%

Darren +a!roi said the same "rogram can "roduce different res"onses 8ust de"ending on

the time of day% ;or eam"le, in the comedy world, he says the same set when done on a;riday night, the $aturday early show, or the $aturday late show will "roduce three

distinctly different res"onses% 2s a result, s"eakers need to be aware what the >o"timal?

time is for their ty"e of message%

*d says he avoids s"eaking after dinner, and never after alcohol due to the high'content

nature of his "rograms% /e said after lunch, or after any food, he tries to get the audience

u" and involved in as many activities as "ossible

&im -ey reminded us that after a meal, the audience may be drowsy, so you must give

them something s"ecial for which they want to stay awake%

(ark Brown said audience res"onse is tied to the environment% If the room is too hot, for

eam"le, attention wanes%

.andy /arvey said he "refers to s"eak first on a "rogram, so that he can set the stage for

what will follow% If not first, he then "refers to s"eak last so you can tie in the "oints that

other s"eakers have made throughout the day%

Obviously, as s"eakers we rarely get the chance to set the schedule% But on those

occasions in which we can e"ress a "reference, we should know "recisely when we"refer to s"eak, and when we do not%

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Disk 2, Track 5

!hanging the "ace

It is said that variety is the s"ice of life% )ariety is also the s"ice of a good "resentation%

There is no one correct rate, rhythm, or volume% What "eo"le res"ond to is variations in

rate, rhythm, and volume% It is the contrast between the louds and the softs, the highs andthe lows, the fasts and the slows that "eo"le notice and a""reciate%

In this track !raig, *d, &im and (ark will tell you how and when to change the "ace inyour "resentation% ;irst is !raig )alentine%

It is etremely im"ortant to be fleible when s"eaking, whether youre giving a GH'minute keynote address or a two'day training event% Im a veteran of both% If everything

that you are doing and saying at that "ace does not get an a""ro"riate res"onse, then

change the "ace%

But the interesting thing is changing the "ace does not 8ust mean s"eaking faster%!hanging the "ace means to "ut an activity in, do some call'back, do something thats

different than you 8ust standing u" and s"eaking%

I manage my events by the energy% ;or a two'day training event, for eam"le, I tell my

audience, my seminar attendees, we will be moving around the ob8ectives based on yourenergy% If I see the energy is falling, I will switch to an activity net, instead of going to a

list of GH recruiting ideas% Or a list of 1H low'cost, no'cost motivational incentives for

your staff% 2nd when the energy gets u" we can go back to that list% But Ill manage theevents based on the energy% 2nd by doing that, Im tailoring the "resentation to them% To

me, tailoring the delivery and the organi@ation to that audience is as im"ortant as tailoring

your content%

3ow, *d Tate%

I really dont have any scientific data here% This is based on "revious e"erience, havingworked with an average of 1 audiences "er year over the "ast five years% 2nd, its

intuitive%

There have been a cou"le of times where Ive 8ust sto""ed the "resentation and asked,

>Why cantC, whats going on here6? Other times Ill 8ust sto" and, Ill 8ust make a self'

de"recating 8oke about myself% 2nd the audience will laugh or chuckle% 2nd, or,

sometimes theyll 8ust tell me whats on their mind or something that 8ust recentlyha""ened% I think Darren alluded to that sometimes theres something that goes on

outside of the convention, the conference that you may be unaware of% 2nd youre still

giving your "resentation and its still on the minds of the audience%

$o sometimes Ill 8ust flat out say, >/ey, whats going on6 Aou guys seem to be

some"lace else% Is there something that Im missing6? 2nd I have found that the fact thatI have actually taken the time out and taken off my "resentation hat and really sought out

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to connect with the audience, that they ty"ically tell you whats going on% 2nd then were

able to deal with the dead horse on the living room, whatever that issue may be, and once

weve dealt with that then were able to move on%

By being honest with the audience, describing my observation of what I see and what Im

feeling, Ive found that to be very effective%

3et is &im -ey%

(ost of the times when I change the "ace of my "resentations based on the audience

reactions it relates to the humor Im using in the "resentation% ;or instance, if an audience

is reacting "articularly well to my humor, I dont rush it% (y motto is, if the audience

wants to laugh, let them%

I take my time and allow them the time to en8oy that moment% It will make them more

comfortable in that setting% 2nd when "eo"le are en8oying themselves theyre more likely

to be rece"tive to my message and to learn%

2n additional side benefit is that by allowing that audience the time to laugh I may have afew other comments come to mind which have to do with something or someone that Ive

learned about in that organi@ation or com"any, or something that ha""ened in that event

"rior to me s"eaking%

Often, that additional bit of time to en8oy the humor, "lus the small, s"ontaneous

customi@ed references give me the additional authenticity that makes my significant

"oints even that much better received by the audience%

2nd now, (ark Brown%

$ometimes Ill "ick u" my "ace if I sense that the audience is getting bored or restless% 2t

times, it can sim"ly be an in8ection of energy, enthusiasm, and intensity% 3ow, "lease

understand that energy, enthusiasm, and intensity are not to be confused with increasedvolume%

+ets reca"4

I e"lained that there is no one correct rate, rhythm, or volume% What "eo"le res"ond to isvariations in rate, rhythm, and volume% It is the contrast between the louds and the softs,

the highs and the lows, the fasts and the slows that "eo"le notice and a""reciate%

!raig said tailoring the deliveryto the s"ecific audience is as im"ortant as tailoring your

content%

*d Tate said sometimes when things are not going as e"ected, occasionally hell sto" the

"resentation and 8ust ask, >Whats going on6? and fre5uently the audience "rovides the

answer% $ometimes the lack of connection is related to eternal factors that are weighing

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on the audience members minds, but you as a s"eaker may be oblivious to it% 2nd in

cases like that, you wont know whats wrong if you dont ask%

&im -ey said most of the time he feels the need to change the "ace of a "resentation, it is

a result of their res"onse to the humor he is using% That is, if they are having a good time,

he lets them en8oy it without rushing% But if the humor is not working as well as itusually does, hell "ick u" the "ace%

(ark Brown said he will "ick u" the "ace if he feels the audience is restless% In thesecases, hell add a burst of energy, enthusiasm and intensity% But he cautioned not to

confuse energy, enthusiasm, or intensity with increased volume%

Nend of Disk =M

19

Documents

Guide to Great Spikker