Lessons from the master of emotional management
Many candidates are asked to make presentations as part of their interview process and a good proportion of those wonder whether their prowess as a presenter suddenly takes over as the appointment criteria, instead of their suitability for the job.
The Self-fulfilling Prophecy
Ironically, if presentation skills are not your number one set of skills then you already probably worry more than you should about presenting. Add to that the pressure of this presentation feeling like it REALLY counts and it is easy to find yourself having sleepless nights, as well as focusing heavily on how this might go wrong. Am I right?
Well, unfortunately, if you FOCUS on a presentation going wrong then it is more likely to. This is not some weird psychobabble either. It’s simply one of the neurological patterns that we run that links thoughts to feelings to physical actions. If you need any proof of this, just try carrying a cup ot tea across a room whilst thinking I hope I don;t spill this. Bamm! All over the carpet. So, this is something we have to reign in to be effective and to do it we’ll start with a short video from the master of emotional self-management, Tony Robbins and then we’ll apply this to our own specific context.
Over to Tony…
Watch this very short video and we’ll return to the discussion. Make sure you are focused on the principle/ neurology at play, not the subject focus he chooses to apply it to.
Applying this to Your Presentations
The crux of the issue is what you FOCUS on affects the feelings and emotions you have, which in turn follows through into your mental state and your performance on the day. The good news is that you are in charge of that. What we need to change is the following: FROM: FOCUS on being scared & presentation failure + MEANING of not being appointed = ANXIETY, HESITANCY and MISTAKES TO: FOCUS on really engaging them & presentation going superbly + MEANING of them being delighted you’ve applied = CONFIDENCE, WARMTH & EXPERT EXECUTION I am going to say that it is really that simple but because it is not natural to do this, it takes practice to get into the habit. Just how do you ‘focus’ and ‘add meaning’? Well, the clue is actually in the term. You simply need to visualise the presentation going exactly as you have decided it should be. that might include:- Seeing yourself arrive, relaxed, organised
- Seeing them smiling and welcoming, and feeling their warmth to you as a candidate
- Running through the delivery in your mind but seeing it going as you intended
- Noting the nods and smiles on their faces as they engage
- Feeling they were really interested in what you had to say
The next step is that meaning. Although my equation above focused on just one meaning – them being delighted you have applied – in reality there will be multiple meanings that serve you well. These you simply need to tell yourself (along with a bit of telling yourself off if you question that!). My suggestions here are things like:
- Their smiles MEAN they are pleased I have applied
- Their nods MEAN they agree with the points raised
- The engagement I am seeing in their faces MEANS they have been stimulated by my presentation
- All of this MEANS they will be looking forward to my interview
- Which MEANS I can concentrate on showing them how right they were by demonstrating I am the best candidate
Already here you will have completely changed your confidence, your stature, your poise or presence and your nerves. Each time you feel it slip, you go back to this process and the more you repeat it, and the more consistently you run the same script, the more you will embed it into psyche i.e. it becomes the new reality. You’ll find it has many physical effects too: less heart-racing, no sweaty palms, deeper voice, slower breathing. Physiology and focus are very closely linked. Try asking anybody who hates spiders to think about one and then watch their body language…
The final caveat here is that if you have a lousy presentation that is going to undo some of this positive effect. Sure, it is better to deliver a lousy presentation confidently and with presence than hesitantly and without conviction but there is no escaping that true excellence is about having both the right presentation AND the right delivery. This is only designed to address delivery.