The night before SQL Saturday, there was a Speakers / Volunteers dinner for those of us working the conference to get to know each other. It was fun, fine, dandy and great. I enjoyed myself. We chatted about bizarre SQL Server issues, what we’d be doing and what presentations we wanted to attend. And then someone spoke the dreaded words: "I’m scared of doing my presentation. How do the rest of you handle it?"
I’ve seen this a lot, both in college and in the SQL Server world. Stage fright is a horrid thing, but there are ways around it. Andy Warren got right to the heart of this presenter’s problem with a question I never thought to ask. "What are you afraid of?" And the answer, of course, was being asked a question the presenter couldn’t answer. It’s a valid fear and one that, unfortunately, keeps many people from taking speaking engagements or training co-workers. If you find yourself in a position to speak publicly and you’re worried about The Question, all you have to do is remember three little words. I. Don’t. Know.
I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve been frustrated with a college professor or a conference speaker because they hem and haw around the answer to one of my questions. My favorite example is my astronomy professor who took fifteen minutes to answer my "Why does the universe move" question. He just kept telling variations on "the universe is moving" and I kept rephrasing my question in the hopes that he would understand. Finally he did understand and replied with those three little words above.
I respect people who are willing to admit they don’t know something. It takes strength to stand up in front of a crowd and admit you aren’t omniscient. And no one has ever ridiculed me for using those words. Of course, I usually follow up with a plan to find out and have even, if I have time, opened up my laptop to cruise through the software and find the answer right then. The audiences I’ve spoken before seem to appreciate that sort of honesty.
So go ahead and take that speaking engagement. Remember the three magic words and relax. It’s not like the fate of the universe depends on you knowing every single answer to every single question.
Lastly, here’s a thought you should remember. Rumor has it that Obama writes (or did write during the campaign) all his own speeches. He seems to be very good at ad lib and speaking in front of a crowd. To the opposite extreme, George W. Bush couldn’t walk into a town meeting or other meet-n-greet without having all the questions prepped and chosen ahead of time, then scripted out by his writers. He stutters when he gets off text and is very uncomfortable at the podium.
Both men managed to get elected as President of the United States.
If George W. can stand in front of that crowd, despite his public speaking qualms, so can you. Just remember that most people aren’t expecting you to be a prophet. They just want to know the things you know that they don’t know yet. And if you don’t know the answer either, it makes them feel a little less silly for not knowing it themselves.
