Holy. Moly.
I just looked at the calendar and realized that in 6 WEEKS it’s 2018. How crazy is that? 2-0-1-8. In 6 weeks. This year has FLOWN by. Amazing.
How do YOU want to spend the rest of the year? What kind of plans are you working on? What do you still want to accomplish? Want to finish that book? Set that running record? Finalize the budget for next year? Get a huge confidence boost, new insights and inspiration in English at my last Business English Masterclass of the year on 7 December? (All the info on that is hier, and tickets are going fast….)
I hope you enjoy the final sprint of the next few weeks. It’s going to be a huge rush for me – working in Belgium for The Voice, teaching and coaching in Berlin, several in-company corporate training courses, new artist and CEO coaching programs, finishing an album, doing Songwriters Day, and finalizing innovative plans, proposals and products for 2018 (gosh, I have to get used to typing that). Woot woot! May your final stretch be awesome, and painless.
I’ve been working on Presentation Coaching with a few special clients lately. One thing they (and maybe you) always forget is the Magic Thank You Moment. Did you know that a good presentation (in the classic style, there are of course exceptions) has 3 Magic Thank You Moments?
Your audience is busy. They didn’t need to come and see you, but they showed up anyway. Making them feel appreciated is part of your job. Spreading that love and appreciation right from the start makes all the difference in the vibe of your talk. If your audience feels welcome and appreciated, they will listen with much more interest. Believe me, everyone wants to feel a little special. So sprinkle that Appreciation Dust all around the damn place.
The first Magic Thank You Moment is at the start. Saying ‘Thank you’ is a basic part of English communication. If you watch any talk show in the States or the UK, the host always welcomes the guest, and the guest always starts out with ‘Thanks for having me/Great to be here/ It’s a pleasure to be here’ (or something of that nature). Starting your talk (after you’ve introduced yourself with ‘It’s great to be here today, so great to see so many of you in the audience, thanks for joining me’ (or a variety thereof) sets the right tone. The audience is ready to receive your awesomeness.
The Second Magic Thank You Moment comes after rocking your talk, before you open the floor to questions. ‘Thank you all for listening, now I’d love to hear from you – who would like to ask the first question?’ This gives the audience the signal that you are done ‘giving’ and are ready to ‘receive’. They can then jump in and ask away.
The Third Magic Thank You Moment comes at the very end of your talk, just before you collect the roses they throw at you on stage. ‘Thank you all so much for coming, I really enjoyed talking to you today, thanks for being such a great audience’ (or something similar, find out what works for you) makes the audience leave feeling Done and (Appreciation) Dusted.
Who doesn’t like a pat on the back once in a while? We all do, and we all need it from time to time.
So, let me just thank you so much for reading this far. You rock. So much. And you are REALLY having a Great Hair Day. Even if you’re bald.
Drowning you in dust,
XX buffi