It was a monumental day, all staff were invited to a in person meeting. Most of them showed up and we got together since the start of the pandemic. It felt exciting that we are getting back to normal. Colleagues were happy to see each other, and some of them for the first time as they joined us during the pandemic.
The purpose of the meeting which lasted 3 hours was to get together, report back what me and my boss have been doing for the last couple of weeks. I had to share our takeaways to the team. I remember how nervous I was when I had to speak in front of my colleagues, my first press conference with over dozen of journalists. One thing that I learned during communication training is to remember I know more than the audience in the subject that I’ll talk about. Knowing that really helped to boost the confidence.
I used to practice a lot before such an event, but lately I spend less time preparing it mainly because I was busy and didn’t want to work after working hours. It went just fine yesterday. I wasn’t nervous, I was paced (I tend to speak fast), and I used language that I hope non-technical audience can understand.
My boss spoke the most and I know he didn’t even practice. I used to think how can he do it? Now, I know the trick. If you really know the subject and spend 5-10 min to craft your main messages and stick to them (do not deviate too much), then you really don’t need too much preparation because you already know the subject/message inside out. That was an important realization for me, and a confidence booster.
I told Sofia how important is public speaking and that preparation is they key, now I have another trick to pass her. 🙂
On another note, Sofia is becoming self-conscious. She told me that when I went to her class for child-led conference, her classmates were surprised how white/pale her mom is. Because of swimming and being outdoor year round, Sofia is very tan. I asked her if anyone told her that, she said no, just the way they looked at me. Woo…. that’s the because of self-awareness?
Our New Journey 
Public speaking is one of the hardest skills to master (if it doesn’t come naturally; I know some people that love being in front of a group and are naturally gifted)…but I also think it’s one of the most important.
I’m so glad you’re continuing to develop such a valuable skill and the girls will benefit from your encouragement as they start to have opportunity to use those same skills as they grow older.
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