Shakespeare’s lines are also true for aspiring business leaders. At a company, meetings are the stage on which you perform. And how well you perform on that stage can make a difference in how you are perceived at work, as my client “Kate” found out.
Kate was smart, hardworking and got results. But Kate didn’t like to speak up at meetings with her boss and colleagues, nor did she have the confidence to deliver a major presentation to a group outside of her direct reports. To camouflage her discomfort, she tended to read her PowerPoint slides and speak too fast if she was making a presentation, or just not contribute much if she wasn’t on the agenda.
Turns out the skills that got Kate to her present level aren’t enough to get her to the next level. Her performance in meetings was holding her back. Her boss couldn’t have Kate represent him in meetings he wasn’t able to attend, nor did he feel comfortable entrusting important cross-functional projects to her. Performing well in meetings is a skill that all of us can learn. We just have to realize that it is important and invest some time.
Here are my key tips on how to do well on the meeting stage:
• Pay attention to your entrance
In acting, a lot of focus is placed on the actor’s entrance. Your entrance is important, too. Do you walk in deliberately, confidently and on-time? Or do you rush in looking harried? Do you smile and greet the others who are already there? A successful lawyer I know told me how she carefully plans how she enters the courtroom – even if she feels her case has a lot of weak spots. She realizes the power of communicating confidence to her client, to the judge, to her opponents, to the jurors, to all in the courtroom by the way she enters the room and carries herself.
• Say something within the first 10 – 15 minutes of a meeting
You want to be perceived as a player – someone who is an important contributor to the “action” of the business and the meeting. That’s why it’s important to contribute at meetings – ideally within the first ten minutes or so since people remember best what is discussed at the beginning.
• Have 3 points prepared to contribute
Once I was asked by a company to work with one of its new hires – a senior female executive we’ll call Liza. Liza was recruited for her experience but in her first six months on the job had failed to speak up and participate adequately at executive meetings. Liza was in a more rough-and-tumble company culture than her previous one, and that can take some adjustment, but not participating adequately for your role is a problem. You won’t be perceived as a player who should be in the meeting – or in the job. Luckily, she had a boss who wanted to help her overcome this problem. It seems obvious, but what made a big difference was having Liza prepare three talking points beforehand that she was going to make. She tried to anticipate problematic questions so that she could have a talking point ready in advance. That way Liza wasn’t caught like a deer in the headlights.
• Take up some physical space
Actors think in terms of stage presence, and it’s important for you, too, even if your seated at the meeting table. Ever notice that men seem to spread out and take up more space at the meeting table, and women tend to sit neatly and take up a small space? It’s not just the difference in size between men and women in my observation. Research shows that taking up more space gives you a more powerful perception with others. So spread out a little bit and take up your place at the meeting table.
• Know your lines
If you’re giving a presentation, don’t read from a script or read the slides. Like in the theater, never let a piece of paper come between you and the audience. You want to be able to make eye contact and connect with the group. If you have some points to make that are technical and detailed, use a handout for that section which you can take the group through. Then, put down the paper and make eye contact as you make your point.
Try these simple tips and see if they help your “performance” in meetings. And let me know if you have other advice to share.
