“All the world’s a stage,” said William Shakespeare, so no matter what you do – whether you’re a student, an employee, an artist or a Pirate changemaker – you will have to stand on stage at some point. You simply can’t avoid it, and if you can’t avoid it, you might as well learn how to master it. That is how Juan Guerra, pitch trainer, entrepreneur, and coach, sees it, and if even Shakespeare agrees, he must be on to something.
Juan didn’t always think like this though. Actually, he used to hate public speaking and even once experienced passing out during a presentation. However, knowing that he couldn’t avoid the stage forever and refusing to submit to his fear, he decided to change his mindset and develop certain tools that could help him face his fear and rock the stage, which he has done ever since. Juan’s advice is the following:
- Be the audience! Remember back to the last time you were in the audience – how did that feel? Did you look for mistakes, did you hope the speaker would fail miserably, did you bring lots of tomatoes to throw on stage? Probably not. Remember that.
- Shift your attention! Consider what helps you stay calm and focused – concentrating on your fear or your excitement? On the worst-case or the best-case scenarios? Everything you don’t know or everything you actually do know? It is all there, it only depends on where do you put your attention.
- Just dare it! So many people are more scared of public speaking than dying, so as long as you just dare to step on stage and give it a shot, you are already doing better than most.
- Enjoy that power! Only on stage will you have the opportunity to make an impact and shift the lives of many people at once. Moonshot Pirates are passionate about changing the world – this is way more easily done when you have the attention of an entire audience.
Presenting on stage is such a useful tool. Most of us know how we would like the world to change, but only when you use your voice and have the authority of the stage, will you actually be able to have a real impact. Only then can you 10X your ideas, inspire people and turn your ideas into action. And that should always be your goal with your presentations, says Juan: Getting people to take action!
How do you do that? The key to this, explains Juan, is to make your audience feel like heroes, like changemakers, like Pirates themselves. Everyone in your audience will be coming from different backgrounds, with different stories, and with different mentalities, but by the end of your presentation, they should all share a feeling of empowerment, encouragement, and excitement about doing something. You can imagine your presentation as a journey where you are uniting your audience and guiding them to become their own heroes, much like Ali Mahlodji was saying in his webinar. For this reason, avoid making your presentation only about yourself, but always shift the perspective to your audience. Use the power of the stage to empower them.
Much more can be said about the techniques, structure, and performance of a good presentation, and Juan offers advice on every little detail in his webinar below to turn you into the most epic of speakers, so you can kill it at your next Moonshot Pirate Pitch Night, school presentation or job interview. We all have a voice we can be proud of and ideas that can change the world. We shouldn’t be afraid to unite them and give voice to our visions.
About Juan
Juan is the host of the Vienna Pitch Training, entrepreneur and coach, he works with startup founders, freelancers, and accelerator programs. Helping them grow their business by simplifying their message and redefining their communication strategies. Connect with Juan on LinkedIn or check out his blog for more tips & tricks.
