Issue a Disclaimer early in your talk for credibility and to keep the attention of the audience.
If you deliver information an attendee doesn’t agree with they may start to view you with a bit of disbelief. If this occurs several times, they might tune you, and your message, out completely.
That’s a shame because they might be incorrect. Even if that part of your message is up for interpretation, there’s a lot more in your talk that has great value and they will likely miss some of it.
One proven way to avoid this is to issue a Disclaimer early in your talk. I deliver mine after my Opening and before telling the audience I will be asking them for “Lessons Learned” towards the end of my talk. Those two announcements dramatically increase the odds your listeners will GET IT!
Here’s a DISCLAIMER I use in many of my presentations. I use it right after the Opening and it goes like this.
“Before I get started, I want to give you a Disclaimer.
I’m going to show you my way to develop, practice and deliver a great presentation. It works really, really well for me and for a lot of the businesses, individuals, and organizations who hire me.
But, I gotta tell you, there are people who do it differently, some very differently. And what they do works really well for them and others.
My advice is to 'Be a Sponge': absorb everything, squeeze out what you don’t need, and Do It Your Way.”
The reason to do that is threefold.
Number One: It gets their attention.
They weren’t expecting that. Some speakers want to be seen as the ultimate authority on their topic.
Number Two: It gives me more credibility
By saying, “My way is not the only way” I’m acknowledging I’m like most in the audience because I don’t know everything and accept the views of others.
Number Three: It opens up their mind to taking in everything and actually squeezing out what they don’t agree with.
That’s a pretty good life lesson, isn’t it!
Combine a Disclaimer with a “Lessons Learned” statement early in your presentations and I guarantee they will be absolutely, positively – NO SWEAT! How good a speaker are you? Find out with this FREE, Self-Scoring, Speaking Skills Assessment Tool
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About the Author Fred E. Miller is a speaker, an international coach, and the author of the books, “NO SWEAT Public Speaking!” and “NO SWEAT Elevator Speech!”
Businesses, Individuals, and Organizations hire him because they want to improve their Networking, Public Speaking, andPresentation Skills.
They do this because they know:"Speaking Opportunities are Business, Career, and Leadership Opportunities."
They also know:We perceive really great speakers to be Experts. We like to work with Experts.
He shows them how to: Develop, Practice, and Deliver Fantastic Presentations! with – NO SWEAT!
Services:
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Workshop Facilitator
Breakout Sessions
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Speaking Opportunities are Business, Career, and Leadership Opportunities.
We are All Self-Employed!
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If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions about this post or other posts please contact me: Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com.
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