The Seven Strategies of Master Presenters - Lifecycle Performance ...

230 / THE SEVEN STRATEGIES OF MASTER PRESENTERS
Brad: I had already booked our family’s annual Easter weekend
retreat at Nova Scotia’s beautiful White Point Beach Lodge.
There were many wonderful activities that the children could
engage in and there would be lots of time for me to refine my
presentation, practice it, and record it. Although I really liked
the introduction, exercises, the transitions, and the ending,
there was a part in the middle that I just wasn’t happy with.
I asked my children—Katie, age 10, and Andrew, age 13—to
listen to parts of the presentation, which included the part I
wasn’t happy with. Surprisingly, they both thought it was
quite good. However, when it came to the part in the middle,
Katie suggested that I change the order of a few of the words
and that I add some increased emphasis and vocal variety to
the parts I was having the most trouble with. Her feedback
was right on. This once again proves that we live in a feedback-rich
world, but most of us, however, do not do enough
to harvest the feedback that exists.
David: Seek advice from many; accept advice from few. I learned
this as I prepared for the World Championship of Public
Speaking. As I went to various Toastmasters clubs to practice,
on two specific points I heard constant and unanimous
criticism. I had learned that the quickest way to please no
one is to try to please everyone, so with each rehearsal when
criticism on those two points was raised, I thanked the evaluator
for his comments and then promptly told myself, “This
is not negotiable.” I then turned to my most trusted advisor,
my wife, Beth. She, knowing me better than anyone else,
said, “Yes, this is who you are, and this is right for you.”
The lesson was clear: Turn to people who know you best for
the best advice.
12. The Results Achieved Over Time Evaluation
It is all well and good to find out that the participants enjoyed the
presentation and that all of the presentation’s components worked.
However, the acid test is whether the presentation had a long-term
impact on the “bottom line,” the corporate culture, or whatever the