It may be because I think too much, but I’ve been doing a little reflection on what my motivations are.
Wrestling with concerns like making sure I’m “doing the right thing” has been a struggle for me for a long time. So I think motivations are a fascinating area to explore. And knowing that human hearts can be deceiving, motivations can be quite hard to truly understand.
Motives matter?
So it is with delivering a presentation; what’s our real motivation? To look good? To gain respect? To get a new job? To sell more products? To reach more people with your ideas? To change the course of history?
Whatever the reason, I believe that having the audience first makes a huge difference. When our focus is on them then the talk is going to become more interesting for them; more actionable for them; more important for them.
Three letter question
The question I’ve then got for us is “why?”. That slightly defensive, but often helpful question can help us root out the reason behind our stated aims.
Why do I want to do this? Are I’m in it for us or them – or is it us for them (to quote a line from Gungor).
Why does “why” matter
When you’re really clear on why your doing the presentation – and why it matters to the audience – then the rest of the work of developing and delivering the talk becomes so much clearer.
You might find your “why” changes as you go through the work. Make sure it’s bringing clarity and focus. It shouldn’t be making it harder to see what you’re doing – or why!
You see I think “why” is crucial as it helps you get really sharp on what you’re there for. And that you can be as prepared as possible. Which then speaks to a lot of the fears people bring with them to a presentation.
Working from a clear “why” as you prepare will mean that by the time you’re ready to deliver your talk, you’ll have confidence that you’re there for a reason – that you’ve done the work. And you’re clear what going to present, the actions people should take… and why.
My motives in all of this?
Well my aim is to help people develop so they can create and deliver amazing presentations. Why? So that people overcome their fears; that people are able to communicate clearly and with confidence. So that good ideas are heard and audiences can take action on the ideas.
And they know “why”.
Come along to a workshop and we can work on these areas together.
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