Command the room. Own the space. Act like you belong there.

Have you heard this advice to speakers? Ever wonder what it means?

In today’s podcast, I’m going to tell you exactly what this means and how you can own the space on stage. (Or Court, or any presentation.)

​Give it a listen.

You might not have someone jeering and poking fun at you during a presentation, but you better be prepared when someone challenges your authority or asks you a question with the intent to derail you.
In today's podcast, learn "How to Deal with a Heckler."

DON'T MISS THESE HIGHLIGHTS:

• What is a "heckler?" [0:55]
• Hear one of Sari's experiences [1:46]
• Power nonverbal and when to effectively use them [6:12]
• Identifying if your heckler is a bully or not [7:42]
• Keeping the group safe and you in control [9:38]
• Why breathing and detachment are critical [11:39]
• Taking your cues from the group [14:40]
• Three possible scenarios [18:19]

RESOURCE LIST:

• Roger Fisher, William Ury, and Bruce Patton - Getting to Yes: How To Negotiate Agreement Without Giving In
• ​Presentation Prep Sessions with Sari

TRANSCRIPTION:

​In a world where everything is competing for our attention, it can be next to impossible to get, much less keep, an audience engaged in what you're saying. Welcome to Soundcheck. The podcast that gives you practical tools to help you command the room, whether you're speaking to groups of 10 or 10,000. This is the podcast for speakers by a speaker. Now your host, Sari de la Motte.

Hey everybody! Welcome to another episode of Soundcheck, and today we're going to be talking about 'how to deal with a heckler'. Hopefully, you are not dealing with people in your lives or giving presentations or speaking where there are tons of hecklers, heckling you. But, I believe that every speaker must have some tools in their back pocket, so that they're never caught off guard, should this happen.

So let's talk about what I mean by a "heckler". So this is someone who hopefully, isn't heckling you like, if you're a comedian up on stage and making fun what you're saying or trying to get your goat. But what this is, is someone who, in the middle of your presentation or otherwise, even in the question and answer part, challenges you in front of the audience. I think it's really important that you know that this can happen. And that you know how to deal with it should it happen. Because, you never want to get caught off guard in front of your audience. In fact, you've probably heard me say this before, 'the number one thing that an audience wants from its speaker, is to know that you've got this'.So that includes, not just having confidence as a speaker, but having confidence in how to deal with a heckler.

It's an annoying, bad habit. I'm talking about "speechy voice." Today we're going to talk about why you do it and how you can stop doing it.

DON'T MISS THESE HIGHLIGHTS:​

• The first phase every speaker goes through [2:15]
• Phase two in the speaker's development [3:12]
• Expert presenters live in the third phase [6:35]
• Why do people use speechy voice? [7:14]
• Faulty expectations [9:00]
• Why memorization is bad [11:22]
• How to fix the problem of speechy voice [13:05]
• The power of pause & gesture [14:57]
• The purpose of a presentation {17:40]

RESOURCE LIST

• Get caught up or review previous Sound Check episodes
• FIND your voice and AMPLIFY it
  

TRANSCRIPT
Well, hey, everybody, Sari de la Motte here, and it's been a while since we had a Sound Check podcast, I apologize for that. I have been busy writing my book which is now off to the publisher by the time you hear this, and will be coming out later this year. It is for trial attorneys, although it applies to a variety of different speakers. So, if you want to learn how to move any kind of hostile audience to one that wants to be there, you might want to pick up a copy when it comes out. It's called From Hostage to Hero. I'll be letting you know, of course, in the podcast when it is available and ready, but very exciting to have that finally done. 

​Well, in today's podcast we're going to talk about something that drives me nuts. So, of course, I have to talk to you about this thing that drives me nuts so that you will hopefully stop doing it, and that is speechy voice. Oh my god, you guys, I hate speechy voice, and yet so many speakers use speechy voice. 

Now, if you don't know what I'm talking about, I'm talking about the type of talking that people do when delivering presentations and they talk like this for the entire time that you are listening to them. That's what speechy voice is. And you know what, it's just annoying and I don't really want to make you feel bad about it if you do it, what I want you to do is to stop doing it. So, in today's podcast we're going to talk, about why you do it and how you can stop doing it.