Have you ever seen a robotic presenter? The presentation just looked too rehearsed?
Actually, the problem was probably not being too rehearsed. More likely, the presenter hadn’t rehearsed enough.
When I coach executives for keynotes and other important presentations, they often come to me with a script – especially Japanese executives presenting in English.
I take video recordings to show them that when they attempt to stick to their script, they become robotic because they’re “in their head” and not connecting with the audience.
When we stand in front of an audience, we’re likely to be nervous. And when we’re nervous, we don’t think clearly, so we have to concentrate more to recall specific phrases from a script and this makes it even more difficult to connect with the audience.
Rather than writing a word-for-word script, I recommend making notes for the overall structure and main points of your presentation.
You can then rehearse in different ways, so that you become comfortable with the content and internalize it. That way, you don’t have to think about the content and you can talk with the audience like a normal human being.
4 ways to rehearse so you don’t sound robotic
1. Rehearse in your mind
Run through your presentation in your mind as much as you can. I often do this while I’m on my morning walk in the park, in the shower, and doing the dishes. This helps me to be sure that my structure is simple enough for me to remember easily (so that I can focus on the audience). I pay particular attention to being clear on how I’m going to transition from one section to the next.
2. Rehearse out loud
Where possible, rehearse your presentation out loud. Get used to the sound of your own voice. If you don’t say exactly what you planned to say, keep going instead of correcting yourself.
How often do you correct yourself in a normal conversation? If you keep correcting yourself during your presentation, it suggests that you’re talking from a script and that makes it difficult for the audience to connect with you.
3. Talk through your content with others
When you have the opportunity, talk through your presentation content or sections of your presentation with friends or colleagues.
This doesn’t mean that you need to make them sit through a full rehearsal. Simply talk as you normally would when you’re chatting with them.
This helps you to be able to speak naturally about your content, so that you don’t have to spend so much time thinking about it and can focus on the audience – just like having a conversation.
And it’s an opportunity for you to see how people react to what you say ☺
4. Video yourself
Videoing yourself is so effective because you can play back the recording and see and hear exactly how you’re delivering your presentation. Use your smartphone or a video camera.
But how can you practice connecting with the audience like this?
I’ve solved this problem in one-on-one coaching sessions by drawing faces of “the audience” on a white board, so that the presenter can practice paying attention to different people.
You can do the same by drawing similar pictures or simply imagining some of the objects in the room where you’re rehearsing as audience members. Also give some eye contact to the recording device, so that you can see what you look like face on.
Use these different approaches to rehearse your presentation as much as you can. Your aim is to know your presentation well enough so you don’t need to think about it and can talk naturally, not like a robot.
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Huge thanks to TopTia for the photo!