Consultant vs. Inner Critic
“I wasn’t my best today,” I said to my husband last week after providing a presentation at a nonprofit leadership conference for my local United Way. The content was killer, my examples and scenarios were impactful and effective, my PowerPoint was clean and visually appealing. So, what was the problem? Me. The delivery. I put so much pressure on myself, I got in my own way.
To be clear, and fair to myself, I received great feedback and have already made some great connections as a result of my presentation. But as presenters, as experts in anything we do, we know when we aren’t our best. And for me personally, as a business owner and someone who is trying to “wow” potential future clients, I am unbelievably hard on myself.
After a bit of self-reflection, I considered what I could learn from this experience and thought I would share it with you. We’ve all been there, especially women.
Don’t Be Hard on Yourself
Self-criticism can take a toll and hold us back. We make mistakes! And. That. Is. Okay. Notice that you’re being hard on yourself and reflect on ways you can address it. I find it helpful to write down my insecurities, why they exist, and ways to overcome them. Turn your negative thoughts into positive thoughts, and practice changing your behavior. Focus on your success!
Take the Opportunity to Learn
What went wrong and why? I know my problem was delivery, and next time I will stop trying to be a presenter that I am not. One example of how I wasn’t myself — I found myself apologizing for the heaviness of the topic. Come on, Christie, we’re talking about health disparities and inequities! It’s not all rainbows and ice cream. It is serious, and that shouldn’t be downplayed. Lucky for me, I’m giving this presentation again later this month. I’m excited about it, I learned from my experience.
Reflect
In addition to reflecting on your delivery, here are a few other questions to consider if you feel like you had a presentation that didn’t hit the mark:
Did I know my audience?
Did I practice?
Did I know the content?
Did I use appropriate content?
Did I engage my audience?
Was I prepared for questions?
Write your ideas down and update your presentation for next time!
Keep Moving Forward
You can do this! There is always room for improvement. Part of being a great presenter is taking feedback from your audience and updating your work. Always be open to change and development. And don’t forget, the more you practice, the better you will be.
Two days later I had another presentation. The topic was on presentation skills (oh, the irony!) and my audience were women entrepreneurs. I rocked it. I actually took the advice I gave them and reminded myself that I was there for a reason, I know what I’m doing! I didn’t let my experience earlier in the week bring me down, to the contrary. I learned, reflected, and kicked some *ss. This is how we do it.
Be kind to yourselves.
In closing, I want to share a quick update. As I was putting the final touches of this blog together, I received an email from a contact I made at the conference. We set a time to meet for coffee, and in this email, she informed me that her supervisor also wants to meet to discuss future collaboration. The sky is the limit!