Guy Kawasaki with Garage Technology Ventures has contributed the first of a two-part series for AO on executive speaking with advice being pulled directly from his new book "The Art of the Start." Kawasaki offers up his top ten suggestions for panel speaking opportunities:
1. Control your introduction. Bring a copy of your bio and hand it to the moderator to introduce you. Don’t depend on what the moderator came up with. And, like in speeches, cut the sales pitch about your organization. To make your organization look good, be an informative panelist not a loudmouth braggart.
2. Entertain, don’t just inform. Answering the moderator’s or audience’s questions is only half the job of a panelist. The more important task is to entertain the audience. You can do this with a penetrating new insight, humor, or controversy. Always be asking yourself, “Am I being entertaining?”
3. Tell the truth—especially when the truth is obvious. Most people expect panelists to lie when they encounter a tough question, so if you don’t lie, you establish credibility for your other answers.
4. Err on the side of being plain and simple. Often a moderator will ask a technical question, so the temptation is to answer with a technical statement. This is usually a mistake. Keep it plain and simple: Enough to show that you know what you’re talking about but not so much that it makes you incomprehensible to 80 percent of the audience.
5. Never look bored. You can look happy, sad, angry (at what’s being said, not that you have to be on the panel), or incredulous, but never look bored. Someone in the audience will be looking at you, a photographer will snap a picture, or a video cameraman will put the camera on you. Unfortunately, you are bored when other panelists are talking, so learn how to fake interest.
6. Don’t look at the moderator. Play to the audience, not the moderator, and the audience wants to see the front of your face, not the side of your face. A good moderator will purposely not look at you so that you cannot make eye contact.
7. Make casual conversation. You’re on stage, but act like you’re not. Simply make conversation with the moderator and other panelists. Don’t pontificate and don’t “make a speech.” Interact with the everyone (even the audience) in a casual way.
8. Answer the question posed, but never limit yourself to the question posed. For example, if you’re asked, “Is file intrusion detection an important technology?” don’t just say, “No.” Say “No, but let me tell you what is really hot.” Most panelists go the one of two extremes: answering only the question or providing an answer that had nothing to do with the question.
9. Never say, “I agree with what the other panelists have said.” Just say something different or new. If the other panelists have said everything you want to say (which is unlikely), then be graceful, “Everything has been said. Let’s move on out of respect for the audience.” It’s usually better to appear considerate than stupid.
10. Provide a way to get in touch with you. Most panelists think this is masochistic: Why would I want to provide my contact info to an audience of hundreds of people? The answer is twofold: first, don’t flatter yourself—very few people will actually make contact with you; second, a small number of those who do will be valuable.
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