What does a Navy SEAL have in
common with The Little Mermaid? Well, not much really, but in
recent weeks I had the privilege of seeing both live. I promise this will not
be a discussion about my diverse interests. Really what the two occasions do have
in common is proof that preparation and rehearsal lead to the results you
desire.
While attending the annual CounselWorks SummerTime Summit, I had the honor of
listening to a member of the Navy SEAL's Team 6, responsible for the killing of
Osama bin Laden. As he talked about the lead-up to the mission, he stressed how
much preparation and rehearsal they went through before heading out on their
mission. This is a group of elite individuals who each obviously knew what he
was doing, but running through these exercises allowed them to quickly respond
if and when things do not go according to plan. Like, say, one of their
helicopters crashing on approach.
I also had the opportunity to
sit through a theatrical performance of The
Little Mermaid. This too was a
group of seasoned professionals who likely already knew the story, the songs
and their lines. But there is a need to practice and rehearse in order to make
each performance seamless. Without the right preparation, lines would be
flubbed and the timing would be off.
All too often, we have
witnessed presentations by executives who clearly had not thought through
specifically what they want to say. This is embarrassing for the presenter and
uncomfortable for the audience. More importantly, this ends up being a wasted
opportunity and can be a bad reflection on both the individuals and the
organizations they are representing.
Let’s imagine a senior level
executive who is about to speak in front of the Board of Directors for the
first time. His idea of preparing is to jot down notes on a napkin just moments
before he speaks. The end result is that he stumbles and never quite recovers.
Now, think about a CEO who is
about to give a keynote speech in front of an important industry trade event, which
includes clients, competitors, peers and members of the media. He is meant to
speak for more than a half hour, but after only a few minutes he runs out of
material and exits the stage.
In these examples, both
executives knew their subject matter better than anyone in the room. But
without giving the talking points proper attention and not rehearsing what was
to be said, these opportunities were a huge failure.
At our firm, we view every
client pitch, panel discussion and keynote speech as an opportunity to
effectively convey a company’s key messages. Approaching each of these events
in this manner reinforces the need to prepare properly and rehearse. These are
the most critical steps in effective delivery, but are often overlooked, or
just not taken seriously.
In an ideal situation, you should prepare and rehearse with a professional coach who can help simplify and organize what needs to be conveyed. You also can try your speech or pitch on your communications team, your colleagues—even your family. Traveling alone or in a time crunch? Look in the mirror and practice out loud what you will say. Work out the kinks, hear yourself say the words, and get comfortable with your content. Enough practice will help you begin your presentation smoothly, keep your audience engaged and allow you to continue with your delivery should you stumble--or if something beyond your control goes wrong.
Melissa Daly has
worked in media relations and financial communications for more than 20 years.
Melissa formed MFD Communications, a strategic consulting firm, after spending
three years at Goldman Sachs as Vice President, Corporate Communications. Prior
to that, Melissa was a Director at Brunswick Group, a London-based financial
and business communications firm. There, she spearheaded its financial services
business in the US, managing communications for hedge fund, private equity,
insurance and traditional asset management firms. Melissa also worked at Fred
Alger Management, The Hartford and Lipper in communications and media relations
roles and has frequently appeared on CNBC and CNN as an industry
commentator. Her experience spans across business sectors and
continents. For more, please visit www.mfdcommunications.com.
