Perspectives
The
Emotionally Intelligent Presenter:
How to Connect with Your Audience
in a
Personal, Proven and Purposeful
Way
Part 1 of 3
by George M. Hendley
|
“Self-knowledge
is best learned, not by contemplation, but by action. Strive to do your duty
and you will soon discover of what stuff you are made.” - Johann Goethe |
Abraham Lincoln was known
as a story teller. Yet it wasn’t a story he told on
His words became legendary
because his heart and soul was one with the people. His empathy showed his deep
compassion with the loss that was seen and felt by those present and those who
would read his words for centuries to come. He could feel, relate to and
articulate the emotional pain and heavy burdens that his audience felt and do
it in a concise, brief and simple manner. It was a masterful presentation by a
master presenter who was emotionally in touch with the moment.
But what about the ‘other
speaker’ who spoke on that day?
What’s the BIG DEAL (Why is this Important to You)?
You are a presenter! Each
and every day of your life at work, at home, in social settings or in
professional gatherings you are presenting yourself, your ideas and concerns, important
information and relevant questions and a host of other issues meaningful to
you. Your knowledge, attitudes, skills and habits in the context of presenting
to others makes you effective or ineffective, heard and believed or just ignored.
Knowing the principles that are supported and expanded by skills and attitudes
will make you uniquely different in your ability to inform, influence and
inspire your audience.
Becoming an emotionally
intelligent presenter will do these things and more:
- Raise your level of confidence and competence
which will be noticeable and appreciated by your audience
- Maximize your audience appeal using your unique
strengths and personality so you can be memorable
- Enable you to be both persuasive and
empathetic to connect with your listeners in a more personal way
What’s for Dinner?
Everyone wants to know
what’s for dinner when it’s approaching that time. When you are embarking on a three
course learning meal (a three part series) you want to know what you will learn
and will it be ‘yummy’, worth eating again and again. Here’s some of what you
have to look forward to as we proceed.
You’ll enjoy a brief
review of emotional intelligence and why it is so critically important in the
arena of presentations. You’ll expand your awareness of when, where and how
often you are presenting to others and how multiple exposures can deepen the
trust they have in you. Finally, with analogous detail you’ll discover the form
and the substance, the structure and the heart that causes one presenter to resonate
with or inspire his audience, while another bores or worse infuriates her
listeners. And we are all capable of both.
Who Cares?
You do if you’re smart. Why? As
mentioned above, you are a presenter and you are ‘the message’. Your whole life
and much of your success revolves around your effectiveness as a presenter. Remember,
people are persuaded by and ‘buy’ on emotion, while they justify with facts.
You are constantly selling (by using persuasion) yourself and/or your ideas to
everyone in relationship with you. Your daily success or failure has to do with
how well you truly connect with your boss, your peers, your team, your spouse,
your children, your family and every person in your relationship world. You either
‘get it’ and they ‘get you’ or….well, you know.
E.I, E.I. Oh?!
Ten years ago Daniel
Goleman built on the research of others in Emotional Intelligence (E.I.) and simplified
it with everyday language while putting it into the main stream of the business
world. Suddenly, our ‘self awareness’ was born! Well, it was there before but
now it was really important. Quickly the elements of E.I. were jewels of wisdom
that many were relieved to have finally identified, described and equated as
even ‘more important’ than I.Q. WOW! The last great frontier (our mind) is
right there between our ears. Who would have thought?
|
“Oral delivery aims at persuasion and making the listener
believe they are converted. Few persons are capable of being convinced; the
majority allow themselves to be persuaded.” - Johann Goethe |
Over the following years with expanded research, focused papers and more ‘best
selling’ books Goleman, et al. were able to implant and enlarge the importance
both in relevance and in financial impact that E.I. has in the work place. And
when money is involved, the business world takes notice.
This month Goleman releases his newest in this series that delves
deeper into what he is calling ‘social intelligence’. With more neurological
understanding and some startling new discoveries this new horizon of an old
world is brimming with possibilities. We’ll look more closely at these recent
revelations in a forthcoming article.
The recognition and
description of both form and substance or structure and heart as the two
pillars in the doorway to the logical and emotional aspects of a presenter’s
audience will be revealed in a future article. Come back next month to get your
second course of this highly valued and practically oriented meal for those who
want to excel in presentations. Who knows, you might be persuaded.
About the Author: