Read The Room
Everybody says that, right? But very few actually do it, or can do anything about it, other than what they are authorized to do, the deck.
Reading The Room is important because it signals whether you’re listening, empathetic, and resilient – the key factors in a winning pitch.
#1 complaint of decision-makers is that people who pitch and present to them do not listen.
The audience values empathy – Do you clearly care about them, their team, their pain points, maybe someone in the room you weren’t expecting?
And can you adapt to a new reality? Are you as resilient and can-do as your audience no doubt sees themselves? Are you a good collaborator?
My favorite example of Reading The Room is when a CEO or someone else senior shows up flustered, short on time, and says something like “Can we skip the deck and have a conversation”, or “Why should be work with you?”
Can everyone on your team answer that question? It is an excellent thing to talk about and rehearse and takes very little time.
Leave your own experiences or questions below. Or get in touch for a workshop or rehearsal. Thank you.