What does this photo say to you. Read our stories and tell us yours.
Lucia says: “The rider in this photo was making jumps beautifully until his horse had a different idea. An inexperienced rider might have continued head first over the gate, but this experienced horseman was able to make adjustments to stay in position. As with a presentation, unexpected things happen from equipment failure to surprising audience responses that can throw you off. If you are well practiced and know your material, like this rider, you can make the necessary adjustments to stay in the saddle, so to speak.”
Susan says: “Well, let’s turn the metaphor around and say that you the presenter are the horse and the rider is your audience. As in Lucia’s photograph, let’s say you, the horse, refuse a jump. Will your audience fall off? Probably. Or they will at least be less trusting of the horse. Let’s say you’ve selected a topic for your audience and filled it with take-away benefits, illustrative stories and compelling images, but, you miss a jump – either you avoid it, refuse it, forget it… Your audience might not even notice at first, but they will ultimately understand, if they are paying attention, that you didn’t give them the whole story, you missed a step, your logic leapt over an operation, forward movement stuttered. And because you missed the hurdle, it is difficult or impossible for your audience to follow your call to action.”
So which are you: the horse or the rider. Give us a few words of your own on how you see the relationship between horses and riders and if you are feeling metaphorical, on how this relationship relates to presenting.
