Thanks for the responses.

It’s on all of ‘us’ to practice what we preach.
Keep that energy and enthusiasm coming. It continues to be amazing how many executives we work with – the fear of being ‘that sales guy’ with their energy – or somehow over the top.

Yet…they never overdo it. Powerful to know how you come across, and the difference it makes to get your audience engaged.

More to come… and thanks again! Happy Holidays.

Ben

“When you present your message to an audience, you are the conductor. You lead. It’s your job to create the environment in which participants are most likely to listen, engage and absorb. You provoke connection. You motivate your audience to care.”

I couldn’t agree more. It is the speaker’s job to engage the audience.

“When you lead your listeners with confident communication skills, authentic enthusiasm and infectious energy, you can convert apathy into action.”

Enthusiasm and infectious energy are important, but it takes more than that to make the audience care. As a speaker, it’s your job to make the audience see why the information is important to them, how it will help them and why they need to listen to what you have to say.

Once you help them to understand why the information is important to them, your enthusiasm and energy will matter more.

Today, thanks to some aggressive responses on my blog and on Twitter, I learned that when I question the value and informed use of backchannels that there will be hell to pay.

Still, I feel this is a fight worth the strain.

Some people, presenters and audinece members alike, think that backchannels are just a thing to always provide and encourage and put up on a screen behind the presenter, because backchannels are modern and people are engaged in it – “They like it, therefore I must provide it.”

Attention is a limited resource.

I agree with Josh that authentic, sincere and passionate communication will keep people engaged. If the presenter is not passionate about their message, the audience wil be bored. Create contagious enthusiasm and your audience will spread the message virally.

Thanks for the post!

Josh