mguhlin

Advice for a First Time Keynoter

This morning, in reviewing my email, I had a request for advice a first-time keynoter…. With some trepidation, I typed up the first few things that came to mind. Here is what I wrote…what would you have said?

Hmm…there’s so much advice out there on keynoting, presentations, but what I’ve found works for me:

  1. Skip the who you are stuff…get into the meat of your preso immediately. Someone will introduce you anyways. For goodness sake, don’t spend more than 10 secs on your blog or twitter, or important links…leave that for a final slide that will hang up there during questions or while you’re talking to folks who mob you after the session.
  2. Sprinkle relevant videos liberally through your presentation but be mindful of the time it takes to play them. People want to laugh and be transported.
  3. The presentation isn’t about transmitting information, it’s an experience that the audience must enjoy. That means, allow the video or information/facts you share convey drama, then you offer solutions to it.
  4. Use lots of images that capture your thoughts, the story…they should be obvious if related to a point you’re speaking to or mysterious, in which case, you use them to make a point about perspective, idea, etc.
  5. Forget the backchannel (twitter) garbage. It’s a waste of time and unless you’re skilled, it’s tough to manage it all. Setup up a chat or forum where people can participate, assign someone from the audience to monitor that…then, at the end of the preso, acknowledge their role (do it at the beginning, too) and ask them to share 2 questions from the chat/forum that they think is important.
  6. Do the same with uStream on #5…or carry an extra laptop to broadcast yourself.
  7. Remember to tell folks you will be podcasting this but spend no more than 10 secs on it.
  8. Let your story and passion carry you away. If they do, who cares what the audience thinks? Invariably, I’ve found that if *I* am carried away, a significant part of the audience is, too.

If you’re going to be bringing in Second Life to your preso, try to do it through video recordings/screencaptures rather than having to depend on in-house wireless/wired connections. Make sure your entire presentation can happen off your computer and isn’t dependent on any internet connections.

That’s pretty much it…run of the mill stuff. I suppose, #8 is the most important for me, then #2, then #4, if I had to prioritize.

Of course, this kind of question just makes me want to question everything written above. (exasperated sigh).

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10 comments

  1. Hi Miguel,I was asked the same question as well. Instead of post this on my blog, I’ll share it here:________________Congratulations! An honor well deserved and I am sure you won’t disappoint – even if you DO take my advice! You’re following some pretty good speakers, but each of us brings something unique to the table.Here are some random thoughts…The traditional keynote to me always has a formula – present an unsolvable problem for 30 minutes and then in 15 minutes give a possible solution that contains a call for action. Of course, the best talks are ones in which the unsolvable problem is one of importance to the audience – or the speaker creates that connection. I think after 30 years in education, I’ve finally concluded that my role as an educator is to convince people that problems and questions are important enough that they will seek their own solutions and answers to them. Better than simply giving advice.I usually ask the host group to list a couple outcomes they would like to see happen for my having been a part of their convention. It’s a good way to get some insight into what THEY see as problematic today.I believe there has been a sea-change in presentation style for keynotes. Instead of being formal, one-way lectures, people are expecting conversational talks laced with personal anecdotes. Facts and charts are fine, but stories connect. But I am insulted when a keynoter simply “wings” it. I expect planning, professionalism and a good communication style.Get there early. Work with your own equipment. Double and triple check everything. (Rebooting a computer in front of 1000 people feels like it takes 10 hours – been there, done that, got the t-shirt.) Make screen shots of websites in case the Internet goes down – and load live webpages into cache for speed. Bring a back up of your presos on a flashdrive. Bring a printout of your slides in case there is a power outage.And man, the key rule is to have just as much fun as you possibly can. If you aren’t having fun as the speaker, ain’t nobody having fun!Good luck and let me know how it goes. You’ll be great!________________I liked your tips better, BTW!Doug

    Reply

  2. Hi Miguel,I was asked the same question as well. Instead of post this on my blog, I’ll share it here:________________Congratulations! An honor well deserved and I am sure you won’t disappoint – even if you DO take my advice! You’re following some pretty good speakers, but each of us brings something unique to the table.Here are some random thoughts…The traditional keynote to me always has a formula – present an unsolvable problem for 30 minutes and then in 15 minutes give a possible solution that contains a call for action. Of course, the best talks are ones in which the unsolvable problem is one of importance to the audience – or the speaker creates that connection. I think after 30 years in education, I’ve finally concluded that my role as an educator is to convince people that problems and questions are important enough that they will seek their own solutions and answers to them. Better than simply giving advice.I usually ask the host group to list a couple outcomes they would like to see happen for my having been a part of their convention. It’s a good way to get some insight into what THEY see as problematic today.I believe there has been a sea-change in presentation style for keynotes. Instead of being formal, one-way lectures, people are expecting conversational talks laced with personal anecdotes. Facts and charts are fine, but stories connect. But I am insulted when a keynoter simply “wings” it. I expect planning, professionalism and a good communication style.Get there early. Work with your own equipment. Double and triple check everything. (Rebooting a computer in front of 1000 people feels like it takes 10 hours – been there, done that, got the t-shirt.) Make screen shots of websites in case the Internet goes down – and load live webpages into cache for speed. Bring a back up of your presos on a flashdrive. Bring a printout of your slides in case there is a power outage.And man, the key rule is to have just as much fun as you possibly can. If you aren’t having fun as the speaker, ain’t nobody having fun!Good luck and let me know how it goes. You’ll be great!________________I liked your tips better, BTW!Doug

    Reply

  7. Thought of this post as I did my presentation today.Went all to transport the participants into my world.Made them laugh- a lot.Think it worked well.Nelson Cluster Conference

    Reply

  9. Allanah, I saw your blog entry and you looked fantastic! I'm sure you also did an awesome job on your preso!! BTW, I must have spent 30 mins clicking the links off your blog. Thanks!8->Miguel

    Reply

  10. Allanah, I saw your blog entry and you looked fantastic! I'm sure you also did an awesome job on your preso!! BTW, I must have spent 30 mins clicking the links off your blog. Thanks!8->Miguel

    Reply

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