Creating Empathy in Delivery – How Do You Show that You Care (in your Presentations)?
A quick search on the internet for presentation tips and you are likely to find the magic words, such as “authenticity” or “sincerity”, being bandied around. While we agree that it is important to deliver your presentations with sincerity, you may find it difficult to translate such an abstract concept into your presentations. What techniques or presentation structure should you adopt to create that effect? Today, we want to focus on creating empathy while delivering an authentic and sincere presentation.
Creating empathy on stage is more than just being “nice”. By changing the way you approach your presentation structure or delivery techniques, you can show your audience that you have them as your priority. In short, showing empathy is about showing your audience that they are important and a priority. This is more likely to encourage them to buy into your presentation or idea!
To start off, here are three techniques you can apply to create empathy on stage!
Technique #1: Pick Relevance as Your Go-To Tool
Creating empathy does not necessarily mean you have to deliver an emotional or dramatic speech. Instead, pick out what your audience needs and try to build that bridge for them to get there. We call this the relevance bridge approach. This is a bridge that shows your audience how your presentation content or main point is directly applicable to their day-to-day settings. If they can see the significance to their day-to-day settings, they are more likely to pay attention and internalise the content you are delivering.
To build the relevance bridge, start with the end goal you have for your audience. For example, if you are selling a product or service, identify the problem or gap that you are trying to address in your presentation. Add empathic statements to show your audience that you identify and understand the specific challenge that they face. For example, if you are selling a new learning management system, start with this: “Many of us will find it a struggle to manually keep track of the student records every single day.” Reach out to your audience through this bridge!
Technique #2: Don’t Shy Away From the Problem – Lead Your Audience!
Flowing from the approach above, the preparation phase of your presentation deserves special mention. When we mention “empathy” in the presentation, it may be tempting to think of it as being ‘weak’ or ‘nice’ in your delivery. This may lead to a presentation that waffles around the main challenge or adds unnecessary caveats to your main message.
Instead, set out on a strong footing by highlighting the exact problem to your audience. This is not an easy process, and the bulk of your preparation for the presentation may involve a reframing exercise to see how you can frame your problem in a palatable manner. One technique is to frame a difficult challenge/problem from the perspective of the future benefit instead of a fault-finding exercise. This perspective also helps in building an empathic focus in your presentation!
Technique #3: Summarise the Wins
Finally, your commitment to creating empathy in your presentation should continue well into your conclusion. To show your audience that you genuinely care for them (or want to make them a priority), you will need to ensure that they are reminded of that even in your conclusion. This is only a method to remind yourself about the key deliverables you are giving in your presentation. The aim is to let your audience go home with the end embedded in mind!
One method of ensuring the longevity of your empathic message is to summarise the wins of your presentation. As we shared, your presentation may have been angled to address a specific audience need/problem. This can get lost in the digressing points or various pattern breaks deployed in a long presentation or speech. As you end your speech, don’t just conclude with a content summary, re-emphasise why the content can help them in the long run!
Deliver that Caring Presentation!
Empathy is a powerful communication trait to nurture – beyond just a speech or presentation, it contributes to more fruitful relationships with those around you. Creating that caring presentation can still mean delivering your main message with power and precision. To help you create an empathic speaking persona, try out the three tips we shared today!
By The Way…
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