Fast Company Article - August Melinda Re

Sittenfeld, Curtis. "How To WOW An Audience - Every Time". Fast Company. September 1999. Pg. 84 - 86.

You Like Me, You Really Like Me!

I was a Nutrition Education Assistant for eight years. I considered myself a "performer" and had to be "on" several times a day (one of the reasons I contributed to my burnout). This article intrigued me as it is about giving a great performance.

The Theatre Techniques for Business People, Inc. is a run by Martha Burgess, cofounder and actress. Burgess and her partner teach professional people how to give a compelling performance, whether it is during a presentation or chatting with someone on a plane. To be persuasive, they say, you have to generate a high level of energy, without anxiety, that makes you visible and gives you presence. Burgess calls it "performance energy".

At Theatre Techniques, you are taught how to tap into your performance energy on command using a trigger exercise. First, choose an image that triggers your personal stimulus for raising your energy (I thought about driving a racecar). Then, five times a week for six weeks, physically raise your energy level (run in place or practice your jumping jacks - bet you haven't done those in a while!) until you've raised your heart rate. At that point, stop, shut your eyes, and focus on your trigger. After six weeks this response will be set and you will be able to energize yourself by simply focusing on your trigger.

Another technique taught is the ability to read your audience and speak to them in their own "language". Everyone has three "learning lines" according to Burgess. These are ways in which people receive information. They are mental, emotional, and physical. When addressing someone whose primary learning line is mental, speak with a clear argument with plenty of facts. Emotional learners are receptive to storytelling. To engage physical learners, get them out of their chairs and involved in an activity. Of course, most audiences will have a mixture of people. Learn what charges up each audience and keep those techniques coming.

In addition to a good speech, great performances also require effective nonverbal language. One way to convey information is called "shading". Shading is adding internal dialogue to your spoken word. For example, when introducing yourself you may try this: "My name is Melinda Re (and I am so happy to be here)" instead of "My name is Melinda Re (and I am scared to death to be here)". The fact that you are happy to be there will come through even though you don't announce it verbally.

Another technique is called "pre-editing". After figuring out what you're going to say, choose two or three words per sentence and attach an emotion or picture to them. Pause either before or after those key words. That way you are pointing out to the audience the exact information you want them to take with them.

I feel like I have mastered the art of gearing up my energy for a presentation. I used to pretend that I was the honored guest speaker and the audience deserved a great presentation. That helped me to come fully prepared and enter the room with confidence that it would be a good session.

I really like the idea of shading and pre-editing. I have never consciously tried to do this, but I will think about it when preparing for presentations in the future.

I discussed this article with a Nutrition Education Assistant. She could relate to the feeling of being "on stage". I asked her if she had any techniques similar to the ones in the article. She said that she "psyched" herself up in the car on the way to nutrition classes until she felt kind of a natural high about the upcoming class.

She said she had never considered class participants as an "audience" but did admit that she tries to be more "flamboyant" than if she was casually speaking to friends or colleagues. Whether it's psyching up in the car or imaging yourself Sally Fields giving Oscar a thank you, accessing your performance energy and delivering it with gusto is bound to WOW an audience!

-- Anonymous, September 07, 1999