When people hire me to work with them and coach them they're surprised when I tell them that. Here are a few of the comments.
Great! I already own one.
That's cheaper than you!
I can't stand looking at myself on video.
How's that going to coach me?
I'm not sure if I can give you all the benefits of the camcorder in one article but I'll give you as much as I can. Let's start with the comments above.
(Great! I already own one) Nowadays, almost everybody owns a camcorder, if you don't own one I'm sure you know someone who does. If you are doing or want to do any type of speaking you need to buy yourself a camcorder. You can get one for well under $500.
If you are thinking you can't afford $500 (most likely less) for a camcorder, my suggestion; give up speaking until you can!
I know that sounds tough but the camcorder is that powerful. I'm thinking to myself, if you can't afford a camcorder, what are you doing giving presentations? No, I'm not being arrogant. I know that are a lot of places where people do better than outstanding presentations who can't afford a camcorder. AA meetings for one. But most of those places aren't trying to benefit financially, they are just truly trying to help. Every one of them should have camcorders donated to them.
(That's cheaper than you!) Yep!
Yes, it's cheaper than me coaching you, but you still need a great coach to watch the videos with you. Even as you get more experienced, a great coach can spot things that you may not. "It's hard to see the picture, when you're in the frame"
Video taping your presentations will give you a great start to an outstanding demo tape. I have heard it from a number of people who hire speakers that they would rather hire someone with a bad "live" demo tape than a really good "staged" demo tape.
I still use "7 minutes with Brian Adams" as my demo tape. It's the presentation I did when I won the Toastmaster's District contest. My wife video taped it and I took out the beginning and the end so you can't tell where or how long I'm speaking, I get a lot of work from that tape. It shows me and the audience and the interaction. I have enough tapes now that I'm putting together a much more professional demo but that 7 minutes will be in it.
(I can't stand looking at myself on video.) Get over it! When I'm working with speakers and they're nervous or afraid of embarrassing themselves by stepping out of their comfort zone, I tell them the same thing I tell people who say they can't stand looking at themselves on video. It's NOT about you!
When you get nervous or afraid of embarrassing yourself on stage, that's because you are thinking about you. It's not about you. You are there to share and enhance the lives of others. It shouldn't matter how you look as long as you convey your message to the audience.
If you can't stand looking at yourself on video, again, you are making it about you: it's not. It's about the lives you can touch. It's about the people you can help grow their own business because you have been there and done that. The list goes on and on. There are so many subjects that we all need help in. But none of it has anything to do with you making sure you don't embarrass yourself. To become a better speaker, you need to watch yourself on video -- no matter how you feel.
(How's that going to coach me?) Here's where I could go on for pages. I should write a book just on this. Send me $19.97 and I'll get started.
There really are too many benefits to list them all in one article, and I don't just want to list them; I want to go into detail as much as I can.
If you tape your presentation you could end up selling it later on. Tape it once -- sell it forever. That in itself will pay for your camcorder.
When I'm giving a presentation I interact with the audience a lot. I use their energy to motivate me and I use improvisation a lot more than most speaking coaches say you should (a lot more). I say and come up with some stuff that I don't believe I would ever come up with on my own -- the audience brings it out of me or gives it to me. If I didn't tape my presentations I wouldn't be able to go back and capture all of it. True, you may remember some of it, but when you are in the zone, and that's where you get your best stuff, you won't remember any of that. If you aren't taping, you'd better being paying somebody to take great notes.
When you start a presentation, the first 1 to 3 minutes are the most important. We all have our planned start. Not many of us really use that planned start. Tape your presentations and while watching it, ask yourself what was different about your opening compared to how you planned on opening.
Listen to your video with no picture, so you can't see anything but you can hear yourself doing the presentation. Listen to how clear everything comes across. Imagine what type of body language you should be using.
Now watch your video the opposite way; no sound just picture. Does it look like you are saying what you are saying? Is your body language congruent with your message?
Let me finish with a few tips to ask yourself and to watch for while watching your taped presentation.
What did you think was going to be funny but they didn't laugh at?
What did they laugh at that you didn't think was going to be funny?
Why did they laugh? Was it a pause or a facial expression?
What became an AHA! moment that you didn't think would be?
What did you think would be an AHA! moment but wasn't? Why?
To learn more or have me help you be all you can be visit my website, www.EndlessPossibilities.net
Have a better than outstanding day!
Brian Adams