PTT: Presenting like a Professional [Woman]

Professional Tip Tuesday
My roommate told me this morning a radio host referred to today as: "National Don't Want to Go Back to Work Day". Man, oh, man I couldn't agree more. My first 'paid' holiday and I still felt like I could have used an extra day!

Friday after work, I made a split second decision to go back to Iowa City for the home opener football game. As much as I love Kansas City, it was fantastic to recognize some faces and be in a familiar place for a bit.

A holiday weekend spent with good friends and cheering on the Hawkeyes.

And now, I am in my last week of training at work - hallelujah! But before I get there.. I have a big presentation coming up on Thursday. So today's Professional Tip Tuesday is: 

Presenting like a professional [woman]!

This post specifically goes out to the ladies. We tend to have a different speaking style than men. The following 4 tips are things to be aware of when presenting. 

1.Watch out for that upspeak? (The question mark is ironic...)

• Occasionally girls aren't quite as confident in the words we're speaking and we phrase our sentences as questions. But what does that do? It totally discredits everything we have said. That's no good.

• You are presenting on the topic for a reason. You know your stuff. So show it with a strong, confident ending to your sentences!

2. Use punctuation. Don't interrupt yourself.

• I didn't even know it, but this describes exactly what I do ALL the time. Do you ever find yourself adding on ands and buts and howevers like they are going out of style? Compound sentences are another big thing we do when we're feeling unsure. 
• Tara Sophia Mohr explains it perfectly in her article (linked here): "When we don't feel we have the right to take up space in a meeting or conversation, or when we are nervous, we tend to rush, and never leave a moment without words". 

3. Be an expert. Know it and practice it. 

• The key to successfully do 1 and 2 is to actually be sure of what you are talking about. If you are comfortable with the content, the rest will come way more naturally. 
• And here's the secret - it's ok if you don't know everything! The audience will be oblivious as long as you can say most of it with confidence. 
• **Bonus tip: If someone in the audience asks you something you are unsure of, deflect the question with something like: "I want to make sure I give you the right answer so let me check up on that and get back to you." You will still sound like you know it all. And as long as you follow up with that person, your credibility is saved.

My friends and I didn't know everything about the university when we worked for orientation.
But we definitely had to be comfortable with the material when presenting to students!

4. Embrace your personality! Our warm tones can set us apart.

• The more I read about women in the workplace - the more excited I get. We have a special niche skill that makes us an incredible value to any team. 
• Especially in the context of tips 1, 2, and 3 - an empathetic but confident tone can make for one killer presentation!

There you go. That's my 4 big tips on a successful presentation. These are all things I am learning to embrace slow but sure. All of these tips will do wonders if you can get them down. 

Men tend to naturally speak more matter-of-factly than women. So for this week's questions: Whether you are a man or a woman - what's your trick to sounding like you know your stuff? What are your top presentation tips? Comment below! I would love to hear your advice since my big speech is coming up on Thursday :)