The first time I was asked to present to hundreds of Strength and Conditioning coaches, I wondered, "How am I going to get these guys to listen to me, someone who is 145lbs soaking wet…"
A THREAD on presenting, teaching & getting buy-in any environment:
A THREAD on presenting, teaching & getting buy-in any environment:
Our first instinct is to impress with accolades. Don't!
Don't list all the pro athletes, teams, or success you've had right off the bat.
Accolades impress the inexperienced, not people with competency in their field.
Don't list all the pro athletes, teams, or success you've had right off the bat.
Accolades impress the inexperienced, not people with competency in their field.
Don't fall for the need to prove yourself. No need to drop names or to try to impress with complex jargon or to overdo it with science. It mostly backfires.
Your job is to get them to think.
Your job is to get them to think.
The number one rule when trying to teach an informed crowd is to disarm and take them off the defensive.
These people are good at their jobs. They're educated and informed. If you're the outsider, don't explicitly tell them how to do their jobs.
These people are good at their jobs. They're educated and informed. If you're the outsider, don't explicitly tell them how to do their jobs.
What does this mean practically?
Disarm and address concerns:
"You might be asking what you can learn from a guy whose baseball experience ended with T-ball… Let's start off with what I'm not going to do: Tell you how to pitch, throw, swing better. That's your expertise..."
Disarm and address concerns:
"You might be asking what you can learn from a guy whose baseball experience ended with T-ball… Let's start off with what I'm not going to do: Tell you how to pitch, throw, swing better. That's your expertise..."
Do the work to understand their concerns going into it. Are they wary of an outsider, of mental performance? Are they into science or are they doubtful of science types?
Your job is to allay concerns, disarm, and not be seen as threat.
Your job is to allay concerns, disarm, and not be seen as threat.
Not being seen as a threat is step one. Step two is to show that you genuinely care and want to help them succeed.
You aren't there just for a speaking gig or to get paid. You are there to help.
You aren't there just for a speaking gig or to get paid. You are there to help.
Utilize Curiosity.
Curiosity is fueled by the gap between knowing and not knowing. Utilize that gap to get them engaged.
Take something they know, with a little new information, but not all. Ask the question…then work your way towards it.
Curiosity is fueled by the gap between knowing and not knowing. Utilize that gap to get them engaged.
Take something they know, with a little new information, but not all. Ask the question…then work your way towards it.
Connect, connect, connect.
Connect things back to practicality. I'm a science guy, I love showing research. But research doesn't convince.
What convinces is getting the person listening to see how this fits and has application in something they do.
Connect things back to practicality. I'm a science guy, I love showing research. But research doesn't convince.
What convinces is getting the person listening to see how this fits and has application in something they do.
Mix stories, science, and application together. What dose of each depends on the audience. How far into the weeds you go, depends on the audience.
Your job is to get whoever is listening to think.
It's about self-discovery. It's not about persuading, dictating, or demanding.
The moment you start dictating, you've put most people on the defensive.
It's about self-discovery. It's not about persuading, dictating, or demanding.
The moment you start dictating, you've put most people on the defensive.
And finally, pay attention to the audience. If a particular topic sparks curiosity and gets people asking questions, pivot and go in that direction.
I once ditched 75% of a presentation to a sports team because they were really into one topic. So we went down the rabbit hole.
I once ditched 75% of a presentation to a sports team because they were really into one topic. So we went down the rabbit hole.
To summarize how to teach when outside of your comfort zone/tribe:
-Disarm: No threat here
-Avoid putting on the defensive
-Here to help, not do their job
-Curiosity and connect to what matters to them
-Make them think
-Disarm: No threat here
-Avoid putting on the defensive
-Here to help, not do their job
-Curiosity and connect to what matters to them
-Make them think
For the other side of the coin, if you are an audience member listening to a speaker or podcaster, how do you know whether you should listen to them or not?
Here's a thread on the science behind that!
Here's a thread on the science behind that!
https://twitter.com/stevemagness/status/1354472958199271427
If you enjoyed this thread, I tweet out similar threads on the science of performance 2x a week, so follow along!
For deeper dives, I put out a free weekly newsletter, which you can find here: thegrowtheq.com/newsletter-sig…
For deeper dives, I put out a free weekly newsletter, which you can find here: thegrowtheq.com/newsletter-sig…
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