Virtual Presenting Workshop - March 19, 2020

Hey everybody, you're here. I'm so glad you're here, and there's more coming. We're just gonna hang for a few minutes as you're all in here getting settled. I'd love for you to hop into the chat and of course tell us where you're at right now. Where you, where are you chatting from? In which indoor Isolated, socially distant location, are you logging in with us? I'd love to know. The cool thing about virtual stuff is we get to come together from all over the world. I love it. North Carolina, Glenda, that's super cool. And John Noltner, great to see you. Oh my gosh, I'm not really seeing you, but great to see you. Linda's in Maine. Allie Sipkins, I know where you are. Great to see you. Tony and Amy K. Oh my gosh, Amy K, John Noltner, Tony, you guys have all been on my podcast. Oh, Becky, fellow Minnesota gal. So great to have you guys here. Arigato, yay! Oh my gosh. Great to see you, one of my speaking clients, New Zealand, so cool. I got your email, Araga, I will get back to you, but I've been a little busy with this, getting ready. Oh my gosh, okay, so we are about to get ready. I've got my confidence boost playlist going. This is like my go-to, I need to get jazzed, I need to get up and get moving. You guys, are looking for a good jazz playlist, it's called Confidence Booth and I love it. Okay. Kitchen Table, Huntsville, Alabama. Oh, I love it, you guys. This is so cool. Okay. So we are almost ready to begin. And what I'd love for you to do right now, you're in the chat, you're kind of looking around to see all the things that have you Let me know if this is your first Crowdcast because if you're new here, if there's a lot of newbies, I'll take a little more time for us to orient the space a little bit and you can kind of check out how this works. First Crowdcast, cool. It's really a cool platform. Every platform has its limitations. We'll talk— there's some resources about that for you guys. But I like it. I think it's kind of friendly. So that's why I'm using it and that's why we're diving in here together. I do, every few weeks I'll do a Movers Live and I'll take people's questions and you know, you can bring people on screen, it's super cool. And I might bring some of you on screen at some point later in this whole experience. So we'll get to that, okay? But I always start my Crowdcast with a this moved me moment. Because I really believe as leaders and speakers, we have to be grounded in what is moving us so we can be moved. And when we can be moved, we can move our audience. That is how it works. It starts with us. So we have to pay attention to what is moving us as speakers and leaders. So I want to hear from you. I'll share with you my "this moved me" moment, but I want you guys to put in the chat what has been moving you, because I know it is a an insane, bizarre time. Every day feels like I'm waking up to a slightly new world, but there's amazing things happening too that have moved me to tears like 20 times a day. Yes, how everyone is stepping up to help. I totally agree. It's awesome. Like, gets me verklumpt as I'm talking about it. I gotcha stepping up. Very cool. For me, the, the This Moved Me moment I wanted to share with you guys, because in this house right now are 3 children who are at home, and I'm sure many of you also have your kids at home, and that changes things a little bit, changes the experience just a tad. And all of a sudden, right, we are, along with our professional lives and our home lives and relationships. We are being parents who also have to teach. Not my, not my strong suit for sure. But somebody recently hopped into our neighborhood Facebook page, and my guess is you guys probably have one too, and put out a call for kids to come and find this little statue of a fox, and she hid it on the local golf course that's just a few blocks— everybody lives within a few blocks of this golf course— and she said— it was so cute— she said, "Kids, every day I'm gonna move this fox, and I want you to come and find the fox on the golf course." I'm gonna really try not to cry while I talk about this. "Come find the fox on the golf course, but don't touch it." because the, the fox is also practicing social distancing, which I think is good. And come take a pic. So all these people are like, all these kids are taking pictures and the parents are going to look for it. So it gets them outside, it gets them active, they're doing something fun, and every day is a little bit different. So, oh, that is just like the littlest example of what people are doing right now that is absolutely moving me. It is not anything big, but it all matters. So I want to see what are some of the things that you guys have been talking about. Seeing people care for one another and the many people have reached out. Yes. Oh my gosh, teachers who are turning on a dime. All of a sudden their whole world has changed and now they're taking everything online. And every time I get an email from one of my kids' teachers, I'm like, oh, because they miss their kids. They miss our kids. That really means a lot. It's amazing. A human spirit stronger than ever. You guys, I'm really going to try not to cry, but I've been very weepy lately. Yes, so many good news stories going around. Loving being present at home now. That is the trick, isn't it? Oh, Jen from St. Louis traveling home from Mexico. Jen, you made it home. I'm glad you're home. I hope you're healthy and safe. Yes, Tony is launching a new podcast. Tony, I might bring you up later so you can tell people about this amazing podcast, essentially doing this, telling the stories of good and contribution in a time where there's a lot of fear, but there's more people coming up and doing incredible things. Yes. Connie, 270, University of Minnesota. I know this 'cause this is my mother-in-law. She's in Minnesota. Medical students who banded together to provide childcare and housekeeping for hospital staff. I didn't know that. That is amazing. Schools working together, getting meals to families who need them. Yes, that is happening here in St. Paul too, and I think it's amazing. Oh, Glenda, I'm really glad that your son is home. Okay, I could— we could just do this the whole time. That would be awesome. Let's just talk about all the amazing things going on. But, uh, we are gonna dive in so that we can make sure you get what you need in this time. We've got 60 minutes. I really want to save about 15 of them for questions at the end. So let's do a little, um, housekeeping. I'm going to share my screen here. I do have some slides for you to look at, and then we'll be side by side, theoretically. Let's see what happens. I have done this before, but it is working a little bit differently today. I am sure that there is a ton of demand. You guys see it? Yeah. OK, so here is what we are doing for this time that we have together. We just did our This Move Me moments. Awesome. You guys shared with us what has been moving you. We are going to spend a little time setting the foundation so you know who the heck I am and why we're doing this. And I mean, the why is pretty obvious, but, but we're gonna set the foundation. We're gonna talk about 2 mindsets that we all need if we're gonna step into video with more confidence. And I'm gonna share with you 3 really basic but important tips that most people aren't doing. And then I'm gonna leave you with one challenge, one thing to walk out the doors with before I jump into your questions. And my guess is you're gonna have a lot of them, and that's Awesome, because this is a broad concept and you're all thinking about how you're gonna apply it to your own specific situation, and I know they're all really, really different. Okay, so tee up the questions. I will hang in beyond an hour if it's helpful to keep answering those questions, so don't worry about that. I'll stick with you here, but I want to make sure that we make the most use of our time that we have. Okay. So we heard a little bit about what is moving you, and that was beautiful. Thank you. Feel free to keep that going in there because it isn't just about, you know, what I'm reading out loud here, but you all are experiencing this together on chat. So this is a communal thing. It's not just me doing this with you, but you guys are also connecting with each other, and that is part of the magic. Of this right here. Okay, great. Let's set the foundation. If for those of you, a lot of people I know are new to Crowdcast, on the bottom what you can see are there are some ways for us to interact and engage together. So you can see there's already a question in the question box. Awesome. Hop in there anytime. Throw your question in there. I will get to them at the end of our time together. Okay, so just know that that's where you can put your question. There's a poll in there. It's just kind of fun to get a feel for where this group is at, and I'll take a look at that at the end. And it's, I think, really interesting for us to know that about each other. And then I am gonna— before we are done, I'm gonna take a pause. I've got to upload this awesome resource for you. It is a workbook, and I really need to do that right now, actually. I thought it was up there, but it's not in there yet. So I need to upload that for you. And so that you can access it. Andy, what I'm gonna do is maybe send it to you and then, but you'll have to do it from my account. I don't know if that'll work. Andy's over here, my husband. He's helping manage stuff in the chat. So if you have any questions or anything, he's here to help, okay? 'Cause I can't totally pay attention to the chat while I'm teaching. But here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to wait and upload that resource until later so that I can really focus on the time that we have now. And it's full of resources for you. So I really want to make sure that you get it. And I will also send it out tomorrow via email. OK, so you will get it for sure. It's supposed to be there right now, but it's not. My bad. So we're rolling with it. That's part of also the magic of these things. So they'll be to you soon. Okay, so let's start with this. A lot of you are new to me, and I'm so happy that you are here. My name is Sally Koering Zimney, and I am a speaker coach with Be Moved, which is a company that I founded. And my mission is really around helping leaders, entrepreneurs, changemakers move their audiences. I help them create talks that I believe really will move the world. And so I've been doing this for about 20+ years. I'm super passionate about it. I love it. I love speaking and I love coaching. I really have a soft spot in my heart for speakers because I believe that what we are doing is so essential. I think the platform of speaking is really powerful. And part of the thing that I've always loved about speaking is the live audience. It is like us getting together in the same room and kind of experiencing this thing together, this co-creation that happens between live audience and speaker. But here we are, here we are at a time when we are really disconnected from our live audiences, and I think that's part of the reason why there has been such strong response to this. I've talked to so many of my speakers over the last week where conferences are being cancelled, postponed, events are changing to online, and all of a sudden we've got to embrace video in a way that we haven't before. And I think it's really important because our audiences are still there, the message is still needed, your movement still matters, and It's all really essential, but we're just gonna meet our audience in a new way. And so I'm so grateful to have you all here and have you jump in with me so that we can continue to serve our audiences. Okay, so here we are at this totally unprecedented time to embrace video, and I will admit I was not always a video person. I've done video for a long, long time, but I hated it. I hated it. I remember this time at an organization I used to work for where I had done this TV interview and I thought it was fine, but I'm not one to go back and watch those because why would you ever want to do that? But I was sitting in the office with a few coworkers and we were we were watching it back because they really wanted to see it. And I was like, okay, okay, okay. We're watching back this video and I just thought it was— I was horrified. I was like, do I really look like that? Do I really sound like that? Is my face really that crazy? Am I really that expressive? The answer is yes, you really are that expressive, Sally Koering Zimney. And I just thought, I am so glad that I am a speaker first and video is second, because holy cow, I just do not love this whole video thing. Now, that was probably 10 or so years ago, and since then, as my work has grown and changed, as I'm building my audience and working with people from all over the globe and trying to bring more people into this movement around really moving our audiences, well, I have had to embrace video. And I have to tell you, I kind of love it now. I mean, I'll take a, I'll take a live audience any day, but the video, I don't hate it anymore. I got through it. I don't hate it anymore. And I still have the same crazy expressive face, and I'm still probably a little much, but I have gotten over that. I've gotten over some of those fears so I can really show up and enjoy it. Because I do think it matters that we enjoy it in some way, okay? So if right now you are like, "I hate the video, no thank you," we're gonna try and walk you to a place where you can feel a little more comfortable and confident in a format that is virtual., right? So we can still connect with our audiences. Okay, so we're gonna start with two mindsets, and they are the two mindsets that are, are pillars to what I do with my speakers who stand up in front of a live audience. This part is not at all different, okay? And the first mindset is authenticity. Now, for those of you who know me in some way or have connected with me before, This is a mantra. I'm always talking about authenticity. And the good news is many people are talking about authenticity. But what does it mean for us to be our authentic selves via video? Okay, because this is an idea that we really have to embrace. And the first thing I want you to know is that there is no one way to do this. Okay, there is no right answer. There is no, uh, here's the rule book about this. And there can feel like there are a lot of rules around video, especially video, because it can be such a self-critical medium. And it's, it's public and viral and out there in a way, um, that can feel less safe. So I get it. There's a real vulnerability in video. I totally get that. But I want you to know that whatever rules that you've heard around video, there's exceptions to all of them. There's no one way to do this. So the real key here is for you to find a way to do this that feels right for you in a way that serves your audience. Okay? It's not just about you being comfortable. It's also about what your audience needs. But when you can find those two things together, that's where the magic happens. Okay, so there is no one way to do this. The second thing is audiences want to know who you are. They do. That is true always, doesn't matter in what context. Once they feel like they know who you are, they're willing to hear what you have to say. Okay, so our job in all kinds of different ways, by the stories we tell, by the way in which we show up, by our spirit and lightheartedness with our brand and our PowerPoint and the colors, all the ways that we communicate who we are. It is essential that we are inviting people in to feel like they know who we are, and authenticity is a feeling that audiences have, okay? So keep that in mind. It is a feeling, so we have to do this last piece, which is to be really present with what is happening in the here and now. A little bit later, I'm going to talk about how the here and now in video is only part of what you have to keep in mind. But when you are in this moment, you've got to still be connected to the here and now. It requires focus. It requires staying really tuned in to what's happening, right? So we take a few deep breaths and we settle in and we really focus in on the audience that is out there because they are out there. You are out there, like you are real people. This is not just like a pretend thing and I'm just doing this for me, like there's real people on the other side of this. Hi, I see you. I even know I can't see you, but you are there. And so we've got to stay fully present with the people who are in our virtual room with us. Okay, does that all make sense? Authenticity? Okay, throw in like a yes, I'm with you, I hear you. Yes, okay, authenticity. I mean, we love authenticity. We're all about it. I'm with you. Excellent. Okay, good. The second mindset that I want to make sure that we have as our foundation is Connection. Now, this gets a little tricky when we're talking about video, but it is no less important. In fact, I think it's probably even more important because it is a little extra challenging. Okay, for, for you to feel connected to me and for me to feel connected to you, we have to use some extra strategies to do that. So I want to share with you a few ideas around it. As speakers and leaders, when we show up in these moments, our intention has to be to break down this wall that exists between us. Okay, so it's really easy to sort of get lost in thinking this is one-way communication. It's never one-way communication. It's always two-way communication. The pathway for you to communicate with me is a little different by a video. And so what we have to do is really open up those other pathways, which is the second thing I want you to know about communication, that we've got to make ways to invite in the experience, the feelings, the ideas, the input of the people you are talking to. Okay, and depending on your platform, there's lots of different strategies that you can use to to do that. It starts with the intention to break down that wall and to be really focused on that. And then the second thing is to utilize the platform in order to do that, to continue to bring people in to you and for you to be connecting with them. Okay, the third piece around connection is that my job right now is to care more about you than I do about me. And this is totally true when you're up in front of a live audience. And what I would say is I think it's hard to do that. As much as we, we love our audiences, when we get to these moments that feel high stakes or high, like our credibility is on the line, and they can feel really vulnerable, It's really, it brings up all of the feelings that get in the way of us doing our most audience-serving work. We get focused on ourselves instead of the audience. And so we have to care more about the experience that you are having than the experience that, that it looks like for me or that, um, you know, all those things that, that go through our heads that can get in the way of really connecting and being with and loving up our audiences. Okay, two mindsets. We've got authenticity and connection. Okay, these are the same mindsets that I talk about with live audiences. We're talking about them a little differently with video, but did those all make sense? Yes. If you're with me, throw something in the chat so that I know you're still there and you haven't gone off to do something else right now, because I get it. There's a lot happening. Okay, good, good. I'm seeing lots of yeses. A little bit of mindset talk is good for everybody, right, Katie? Yes, we all need a good mindset talk. Okay, now I'm going to share with you for the next chunk of time. We've got 15 minutes here to share with you. 3 really important tips that I think will uplevel your video game and help maybe redirect some of your thoughts around video and some of your approaches around it. But before we do that, I just want to take a pause and say, please note, this is a very meta experience that we are having right now. Okay, I am trying to do the things that I'm talking about. I promise you I will not do it perfectly. Okay, already it's not gone perfectly. All right, that is how this works. And I'm trying to deploy a lot of the strategies we're talking about. Some of them may not work for you. Okay, this is a great experience for you to be on the audience end and to take note. So underline for yourself what's working and what's not working. And what I'd love for you to do to help everybody understand some of the strategies that are happening, because I can only share— I only have time to talk about 3 particular ones. Um, oh, Amy K, that was sweet. Um, I only have time to really highlight 3, but I want you to pay attention to the other strategies that you see, and we can sort of pull those out in the chat. So when you see me doing something that you think works, what I want you to do is hop in the chat and actually put it out there. Okay, no need to tell me all the things that aren't working. You can like just take notes about that for yourself, but I think it's helpful for us to focus on She's doing this right now and I think it's helpful for this reason, or whatever it might be. Okay, so we're having a meta experience. I'm coaching not just by what I'm saying, but by what I'm doing. Okay, so pay attention to both of those things. Yes. Okay, great. So let's dive in to tip number 1, and that is to keep it simple. This seems so obvious, But what I hear from people again and again is as you step into video, all of a sudden this like panic rises up and we feel like we've gotta have all of the right things and we've gotta do it all of the right way, okay? The good news is we don't. You can use exactly who you are and what you have and what you think right now. And what I would say is even more so, I want you to dial it down, be as simple as possible. Okay? So you're going to keep your content simple. You're going to keep your approach simple. You, my suggestion is that you keep what you wear pretty simple via video. Although people break that rule all the time now and it works fine. Um, everything that, that your approach with this, I want you to just dial it back just a touch. We tend to overload our audiences anyway, and so the simple— the more simple it is, the, the more chance you have that it will break through and be clear for them. And ultimately, that's what we want. We want it to be clear. Okay, so please keep it simple. And here's A few ways I just talked about: simple look, simple outline, simple idea. Most of the time, instead of one idea, we've actually had one idea and then like a sub-bullet of like 3 or 4 more ideas. Do your best, especially via video, to keep it to one simple idea. Okay, the next thing around keeping it simple is that technology does not have to be crazy. Does not have to break the bank. You don't need all kinds of things. Okay, and, and when I get you your resource workbook, what you'll see in it is I've got a few YouTube videos that have been really helpful to me in terms of technology setup. Now I have, I have a studio at home, so I've got a way more ramped up tech setup than is needed. The most important thing is that people can hear you and they can see you. If you are doing that, you're good to go. So all you need for people to see you is some natural light. And, and really all you need for people to hear you is to be close enough to the camera. These days cameras are so good, you don't have to use a mic. I recorded a video last week that I didn't have the mic with me and I just kind of had to jump in and do it. And the sound sounds totally fine. And our post-production tools are so good now that they can improve a lot that, that isn't ideal in the settings. Okay, so I just want to encourage you to not go overboard on feeling like you need to have the exact perfect tech setup. You don't. It needs to work so that you can give your message. Far more important than it looking like beautifully produced is that what you're saying resonates and connects with your audience. That will always trump everything else. My most beautifully produced videos aren't necessarily the ones that people have really been jazzed about. Okay, there's no correlation there. Okay, so we're gonna keep it simple on technology. And then the last thing I want you to know is that you can just start. Right, whatever you have now, you can just start, jump in and do. You can always build on as you continue to do more videos. Okay, especially right now, I think people's expectations are flexible, and we understand that we are in an unknown territory. They appreciate the effort that you're putting in to serve and connect and do your work. Yes. Okay. So we're just going to dial down a little bit and keep it simple. Okay. So that's the first tip. The second tip that I have for you is around using your imagination. Okay. Now I have an acting background. So this comes easily to me. Uh, for some people, this is going to feel a little like, I have to do what? What do you want me to do? But your imagination is the key to connecting with and communicating well with your audience and for them to feel you, right? For that confidence comes with an imaginative connection. Because we don't have the actual connection, we are creating an imaginative Connection. Okay, so here's some things to think about. I want you, when you are looking in the camera, and it doesn't matter if it's one-on-one or— because I know that some people are, are talking about taking their keynote and turning it into a virtual presentation. Well, even if it's you on stage, when you look towards the camera, what I want you to do is imagine a warm warm and friendly face that is eager to hear from you. They are so happy to see you. They're really excited because that changes your relationship with this camera. And we have to bring our warmth and our full open selves. And so imagining a warm and friendly face behind the camera does wonders. It's a really simple little trick,. But when I'm looking at the camera right now, I'm thinking about a handful of people who I know are there right now. I'm thinking about Katie and Amy K and Tony and John and Katie Howie. Hi, Katie Howie. Like, there's all these people I actually know and you are there. We're not in the same room, but you are there. And through my imagination, I'm trying to bring us a little closer together. Okay? So warm, friendly face. The second thing I want you to do around imagination is to remember that although we are present in this moment, videos live beyond the present moment. So we have to imagine beyond the audience, beyond this moment here. We have to imagine who else might hear this message. So sometimes I'll show up on my, like Facebook Live or Instagram Live or whatever,, and it's like 3, 4 people show up and I'm like, oh gosh, I cannot let that affect how I show up in this moment because that video lives beyond this. People watch it in replay now more than they watch it in real time. My TEDx talk, I wish that I had thought more about how it would live in video more than the live audience experience. But that's, that's my heart and core, and that's what I was so excited about. But most TED Talks live in video, and so keep that in mind. Videos live beyond this present moment. So use your imagination about who you're really talking to beyond right now. And then know that in our imagination, our audience is using their imagination too. And so the energy that I bring to this flows out of me and really gets at you, and vice versa. Okay, even though I cannot feel you, I can, I can, I can sense energy in the chat. Okay, that takes imagination and some EQ to be open to that, but that's what the space we have to open up in order for this to feel like a connected experience for me and for for you. So the energy we bring helps that flow of connection between our virtual audience and ourselves. This is true for live speaking too. It's a little easier and we, and we, we exchange energy in slightly different ways. Okay, cool. Okay. So the second tip I want to share with you is called the rule of 3. Now, uh, this may be familiar for some of you. But if you look around and take note, you will see content is often chunked into threes, okay? And part of that is because 3 is an incredibly brain-friendly number. We can remember things in threes more easily than we can remember things in twos, even. There's something about, I don't know what it is, I'm not a neuroscientist, but I can tell you that it works. And the rule of 3 has has trumped everything for like comedy, in content creation, in, you know, articles that people write. It's 3s, 3s, 3s. Okay, so use a rule of 3 when you are thinking about your content and establishing the simple idea that you have. I want you to think about 3s. Okay, if for some reason you cannot chunk it into 3, Your next best is 5. You're like, why not 4? I don't know what to tell you. There's something about odd numbers. 3s, the next best is 5. Okay, so you're gonna see in my presentation there's a lot of 3s. I got a few 5s. Every once in a while you might end up doing a 4, and that's okay. It's not that you can't, because every rule can be broken. If you commit to it fully and it works for your audience. Okay, but, but just know that especially if you're like starting from scratch and trying to figure out how to pull together your content, 3s and 5s. Okay, and the last thing to think about with the rule of 3 is that we are not just, especially in video, we are not just communicating like this. We are also communicating through all these other materials. Okay, I'm communicating through my PowerPoint deck, which is right here. Okay, and it's, it's not that different than if I was standing on stage and I had my screen behind me. It works a little bit differently, but we're also communicating not just me to you, but you guys are communicating with each other. I'm gonna send you an email after this with the materials and the replay. Okay, there's other ways that we can share our content and and utilize this rule of 3. Okay, so think broader than just here's what I'm saying and here's what they're receiving. Video opens up this kind of ecosystem of communication that is, has a ton of potential and helps support our messages in a way so that as we're trying to edit down to 3, maybe you've got to depend on seeing some of these other ways as well. Okay, so lean on these other formats to keep your content really simple and a rule of 3. Okay, so we've done our 3 tips. Oh my gosh, we've got— oh good, good, good. We've got a little time. I love it. Um, what I want to get to now is your one challenge that I'm going to send you off with, okay? And that is this. This is— oh, I'm teasing you, I'm teasing you. You're not ready to see it yet. Here's the deal. What I'm about to challenge you with is, I think, the most important thing you can do to feel confident and and ready whether you're in front of a live audience or video. I think with video we tend to feel like it's a little more private and there isn't an audience there, but your audience is still there. Okay? You're, you're not getting immediate feedback from them right then, but your audience is still there. And so this strategy is not used enough and it's really, really important. And that is this. I want you to practice. I want you to actually say your words out loud. Practice what you are going to say, because we learn as we say things out loud. Okay, it is not just a verbal medium, as we've been talking about. There's lots of other ways that we're communicating, but are verbal words. You, as the leader, you are kind of the main source and the driver of the communication. And so your clarity, your intention around it, the, the, um, the approach that you use— you want to— it's not about being perfect. It's not even about really polishing it up. It's about being clear, okay? And working the, you know, the roughness out just enough. Okay. And I don't even want to— a lot of people are like, I don't practice because I want to be real and I want to be authentic. I'm like, whoo, we're getting at two different things here. Practicing, in my experience over the last 2 decades. Practicing allows us to show up and be connected with you. If I hadn't practiced, and I honestly wish I would have practiced a little bit more, but if I hadn't practiced and if I hadn't spent as much time prepping this content as I did, I couldn't be focused on you. We cannot connect with our audience if we are in our heads about this. And so showing up and really releasing ourselves to the experience and the ride that we are being given requires practice. Okay, so here is how I want this to work. Okay, each of you, if you want, you don't have to. Okay, your challenge is the next time you do a video, you're going to practice. Okay, but here's a chance for you to put this in action. If you want to send me a 1-minute video, okay, not more than a minute, it's gonna be a 1-minute video. Send me a 1-minute video of you where you're utilizing some of these things, okay? It gives you a chance to try out some super simple technology, to think about how you're gonna use the rule of 3, to practice using your imagination, right? You're talking to me, so you can imagine a connection. I want you to utilize all of these ideas. Send me a 1-minute video, okay, of you sharing 3 things. Can be whatever 3 things you want. And I would suggest it be 3 things about you, okay? 'Cause that's a great way to sort of step into our authenticity, okay? And then I will send you a video back, okay? So I would love for you to do that. It's a great way for us to be connected. And it's a great way for you to immediately put these things into action. Okay, don't think too hard about it. Not looking for perfection. I'm not gonna be like judging you. That's not what this is about. This is about you stepping into the space and actually doing it. Because what I can tell you, the reason why I like video now and I didn't 5 years ago is because I did it. A lot, and I kept doing it, and I started realizing actually all those things I was worried about, it doesn't really matter. Kinda gotta get over myself on this, and it's fine, and there is connection in video. I was pretty sure that there wasn't, so we've got to keep practicing, and we got to— the only way is through. All right, so I'm inviting you to walk with me on this. All right, my email's on there, sally@bemoved.com. I'm really looking forward to seeing this. Okay, so before we jump into questions, we're almost at questions. Before we— oh yes, Kalpana said, that is exciting and really scary at the same time. Let me just say this. That is how you know that what you're doing is important. Exciting and scary are like two edges of the same knife, coin, and we know that we are doing something that has the potential to change ourselves and change our audience when it feels that way. So use risk as your compass on this. And go for it. Okay, that's how we grow. And that is like my favorite thing ever, is to push people to that space and just love them up while you're there. Okay, so I'm gonna love you up in this, don't worry. Okay, I, I really— don't worry. Okay, I love that. Thank you for sharing that. Okay, so here we are. Before we jump into questions, I want to share with you this idea of being Supported. Okay, um, I think I mentioned this earlier, but so many people have reached out to me, especially those who are speaking regularly and feeling a little scared about what this world is right now and what it means for us as speakers. So, um, I just wanted to do something to help you all feel supported. It's part of the reason why I'm doing this webinar. I'm gonna do it again in a few weeks because there, there was such a good response to it, and I think it's helpful. If you felt like it was helpful for you, awesome, I'd love for you to share it. So just know that that's part of what I'm doing. The second thing I'm doing is I would love to share you all out as speakers and leaders and entrepreneurs and changemakers, people who are trying to get your message and your mission and your movement out into the world more, I want to share you with the world, okay? So as part of this Be Supported campaign, I want you to send me some, uh, a picture about you and a really quick, um, bio about you and what you speak about. It's got to be short, it's got to be really short, people, okay? Because 'cause I'm gonna be sharing it on social. And then I'm gonna collect, I'm gonna make a collection of all of you amazing people. I'm calling my movers, okay? 'Cause you're a mover, if you're here, you're a mover. So, and then we'll have this really wonderful community of people and I'd love for us to really support each other, okay? It can't just be me sharing it out. But when I share it out, then I want you to share it out. Okay, because that's how this happens, okay? And I really want at this time when we can feel so disconnected from the people who we're trying to serve, I want us to help broaden our scope, okay? Broaden our audience and keep getting out there. Yes? Okay, all right, so I'm really, I'll be excited. You can reach out to me, email or DM me or send it on all of the places, doesn't really matter. All right, just reach out to me. Okay. So that's the second thing. The third thing, and this is, I'm really excited about this, you guys. I had created an online community for my students, like people who have taken one of my courses. I call it Movers U, and I just moved it into Mighty Networks. And if you guys have not discovered Mighty Networks or don't have a community on there already, It's such a cool platform. And when I got into Mighty Networks, what I realized was there's a way for me to open this community up to people beyond just my students. There's special stuff in there that's just for my students, but there's a whole community and resources. Like if you're, I'm seeing all these really amazing comments about the community in this chat. Well, let's bring that into Movers U. Okay, so in my resource guide that I will be sending you, there's a link to Movers U. And oh, my kids are home working from home. My coworkers, did you guys— have you been paying attention at all to— I did this thing on Facebook that was like, talk about what your kids are doing, but call them your coworkers. Very funny. Anyway, my coworkers are home. And what I want you to do is join us in Movers U. Okay, there's a link in that. It's free, and it's a way for me to support you and for us to connect with each other and for you to connect with each other, not just me connecting with you and you connecting with me, but you connecting with each other, which I think is where the real magic comes in. Okay, so be on the lookout for that. All right, trying times with the coworkers. It's so true. Okay, let us get to questions. Here's— I'm gonna do— there's 6 in the question box. I'm gonna stop sharing for a moment so that I can access the questions. Here we go. You guys see my dog? Mm-hmm. That's Bailey, also a coworker. Okay, good. Stand or sit? I notice you're standing. Okay, so that's a totally personal preference thing. That's one of those like whatever feels right for you. I like to stand because I'm talking about presenting and I really feel strongly, We present with our whole bodies. Okay, it's not just the words coming out of my mouth, but the whole body is engaged in communicating. And with video, you know, it can— we can crop ourselves really up close, and it doesn't really matter if you're sitting or standing. But I, as much as I can, I want people to see more of me because that is how we communicate.. So my preference is stand when I'm doing something like this. OK, great. I answered. Done answering. OK, I see this works. Sound, you have a microphone or something? What's the best when you have rudimentary gear? OK, Ali, great question. So I am wearing a lavalier mic. It's very simple, um, and it's just plugged into my computer. It's not even wireless. You can get these for really, um, uh, it's— they're pretty inexpensive. You don't have to spend a lot of money on this. You don't need this by any means depending on how far away you are. Crowdcast does a really cool thing where you can test your, your equipment and it'll tell you if it's not loud enough. It was, it said it was fine without the mic. I just, I think the quality is better with the mic. So depending on what you're doing, getting one of these is, is really simple. The, you, it, to plug it in your phone, you need one of those dongle things that connects it into an iPhone. But you probably have one of those if you have an iPhone, so, or a smartphone. Okay, there are so many resources on YouTube around audio equipment, and like, if you looked up YouTube video audio equipment, there's tons out there, and they make really specific recommendations. Most of them are using much better equipment than you even necessarily need, okay? So Ali, if I'm thinking about if you're doing more yoga teaching online, you're gonna need something that's wireless probably. You can get a wireless one of these. Do you know, Andy, how much a wireless lav costs? 20 bucks. 20 bucks, okay. That might be a worthwhile expense. And they're easy to set up. So I think that might be worthwhile. If I'm doing my, like, I have a really high-quality microphone for my podcast. Okay, so you can use that. I mean, there's, there's tons out there that span the gamut of cost. So you can really decide how much you want to spend. This is not super high quality. It doesn't have to be, right? I think most people do not expect sound booth-type quality on a video, especially if your expertise isn't making beautiful videos. Okay, so whatever you can do works. Okay, camera placement, intimacy, distance, differences between a virtual webinar and a virtual keynote. Trying to figure this one out. This is really great. Okay, so If you are doing a virtual keynote, I want to see your whole body. Okay, I know that sounds weird, but I do. I want to see your whole body. So the camera setup, I think, should be farther away. And then you might need some help with, like, you know, doing a Bluetooth mic or something like that. Because, like, just like this, there's so much communication that happens in the body. I don't want to downplay that. And most people are used to seeing a keynote as a full-body experience, right? If you think about you being on stage and everybody else in the audience. So to maintain that sense of that, that is what you're doing, you're delivering a keynote. I love the idea of, of trying to replicate that in some way. What would be cool is if there's a time during your keynote, right, where you want to get closer or something, just in the same way that you would if you're like moving out into the audience. Can you do that? Like, can you move closer in order to communicate a little bit differently? Okay, we're just gonna have to get creative on and thinking about it from the audience perspective. Like, what, how will this feel to them? And how can I make it the kind of experience I want them to have, and how can I set it up that way in order for it to do that? I hope that makes sense. Great, good. Okay, a webinar. So, so when we think about a virtual webinar, this is one way to do it, right? So this is not how Zoom is set up. This is a little bit different. This is more me presenting to all of you, right? And, and Zoom has a lot of different possibilities in terms of you can move people into groups and you can have, you know, 10 people up on a screen at a time. So depending on what you want to do, I think that's going to indicate the sort of camera setup that you want and how closely you want to bring people in. With Zoom, people are really used to just being face. Okay, that's not my favorite way of doing things. So I use Zoom for some things and I use this for a lot of other stuff. So is that— I hope that helps. Okay. I started and then I answer that quickly. Okay. Virtual conference circuit. Yay. Okay. Can't wait to attend all these overseas conferences without leaving my family. Behind. Woo! What are the big ones going virtual? This is a great question that I don't know the answer to right now, but maybe other people do. Okay, so Araga answered or asked that question. Let's put in the chat if you know of any virtual conferences that are happening that— I saw Yellow Company. I don't know if you guys are Yellow people. It's like for female entrepreneurs. They're taking their conference virtual. That's in June. My friend's getting married that day, hopefully. I mean, she wants to get married that day. It's just, can we all, can we, can we all be together then? I hope so. But she— so that conference looks awesome, and they're taking that online. I'm sure there's a ton. There is a really cool resource I saw on Facebook that it's like a Facebook group called like Virtual events and conferences, and it's people posting things to that web page that are going virtual. So check that out, there might be some really good stuff on there. So yeah, I mean, Arga, now you don't have to travel all over the world. There's some really cool stuff going online— musicals, music concerts. We'll never have to leave our houses ever again. Okay, okay. Does it hurt or help to have a person sitting off camera that you can be be speaking to? Hmm, like Andy? But I think, I think what you're saying is, would it help to actually have a person like behind the camera, a real actual person, so that I'm talking to them? I would find, for me, I would find that distracting. But if that helps you, awesome. I think this is the time where we've got to just figure out what works for you. Okay, I have just, I think, had enough experience where when I look in the camera, I'm seeing and thinking about all of you. Okay, if it helps to have a person back there for you, awesome, do it, do what works. I think, I think it's a really interesting idea. Very cool. Done answering. Okay. Do you always have to get dressed up, do your hair? From working with tech teams for many years, I secretly enjoy being totally relaxed and casual at home, but maybe quite a deterrent when leading a speaking topic. Okay, this is a great question. I, what I would say is it depends on your audience and what their expectations are. Okay, if you're talking to tech people, okay, let me just say this. Whoops, Andy. So let me just say this, what you wear does communicate to people a little bit about who you are. Okay, so if part of your brand, whatever, like Steve Jobs wore jeans and a black turtleneck. Forever. If he showed up in a suit, people would be like, who's that guy? What is that about? Okay, so the rules on this have changed a lot. Some people used to say you want to be slightly more dressed up than your audience. Okay, my feeling is I want you to feel confident and strong and ready and focused and present. For me, I need to put on, put on some makeup and, um, and wear something that makes me feel like I've got my crap together. I almost swore, but I didn't. I'm like, I've got my life together, I got this, okay? Um, and I, I, so I think it's a really personal question for you, and I want you to be really aware of who you're talking to and what their expectations are, because if you are super outside their expectations, like way outside their expectations, there's gonna be some walking back that you've got to do to pull them back in. Okay, so when anytime that we come at something from way outside, and we can, we can go a little bit outside people's expectations, there's some surprise and delight in that perhaps, But if you go way outside people's expectations, they shut down and they go like, who is this person? Do they know what they're talking about? And what is happening here? Like, uh-uh, right? They become defensive and protective of themselves rather than open and interested and curious. Okay, so I think it matters a little bit, probably not as much as we fear. But I would play with that for yourself a little bit. I do think as we step into leadership and you want to become more of a thought leader, like I wouldn't show up in sweatpants unless that was your thing and it was like, oh, Arga's the sweatpants gal. You know what I mean? Like your brand, this becomes part of your brand and who you are. So you also, it also needs to feel really right for you. Like, I wouldn't— people would be like, who is this lady? If I was wearing something super fancy right now, I don't do fancy. I've got my jeans on with holes in them. Like, that's— that makes me feel a little balanced. I've got a nice top on, but really casual jeans. So anyway, I think we've talked about what we wear enough. Hopefully that helped. I hope that helped. Okay. Modeling authenticity. Okay, great. What other platforms do you use besides Crowdcast? What's the best for newbies? Great question, Rockel. Raquel. Raquel, I'm sorry if I mispronounced your name. So I use Crowdcast and Zoom for different things. I mentioned this a little bit. So, oh good. Crowdcast is great for like these broadcast type experience. There is some community, there is some engagement. I like the question tool. I like the polls. I like the chat. You can screen share. I like that it's me and the screen next to each other. There's a way sometimes I'm still, I'm playing a little bit with the preferences on it, but I've done screen shares before where I'm like a little box in the corner, which is kind of cool because sometimes when you share screens you don't see the presenter at all and then it becomes just a verbal experience. So I think Crowdcast is awesome because it's friendly, the registration is easy, it looks looks nice, it looks professional, but it's, it's not intimidating. Zoom can feel a little overwhelming, I think, but Zoom has— Zoom is way more robust in the different ways that you can manage the experience for your audience. So if you're thinking of doing more like a facilitation experience and it's online and it's virtual, like that requires some different tools that you can't do in Crowdcast. Like Zoom, I guess you can, you know, you can send people off into groups and have them discuss something, and there's like a timer timing down so that they know they've got 3 minutes. And so you can— I, the way I would think about it is Zoom is great for smaller groups and Crowdcast is great for bigger groups. That'd be my thought. Okay, starting and done. Sorry. Okay, do you test your equipment surroundings before a virtual session? Yes. Um, just today there was a lot of testing happening because things were not working. Who knows why? Worked differently than the last time I did it. Uh, it's really important that you test, okay? Crowdcast is cool because it walks you through a test before you start. I would test how it looks and how it sounds. Most importantly, those are the things. And then if you are doing any kind of screen sharing or showing a video, any technology you need to test to make sure that it looks okay and it works okay. The, uh, something that might have helped me today is I didn't shut down my computer before I started, and that can sometimes just reset things. Everything works a little bit better. Okay, but absolutely do test It's a really great question and important. Good. What kind of camera do you use? I'm using a webcam. It's a Logitech webcam. And oh, Andy already answered that, it looks like. Awesome. It's, it's super simple. It wasn't, I think it was $100, $120. It was a step up from my old webcam, and I think it does a good enough job. I use it for, I've recorded some courses with it and I think it works good enough. Oh, Andy put an Amazon link in the chat. Thank you, Andy. Okay. Um, yeah, Tony says sometimes there's a software update since you last used a service, especially right now. I'm sure they're doing a lot of that. So, uh, always good to test. Good. What kind of camera do I use? I finished that. Okay, what about the set behind you? Should the screen be fairly empty for a keynoter, or can I keep my bookshelves? I, I like there being something of interest, but you don't want to be too distracting that people are not listening to you, but they're like instead trying to read what Sally has written on that purple Post-it note or something like that. Like, I, so what I've, the, some of the advice that I've been given on this, which I think is good, is you don't want to be right up back against your backdrop. Okay, so if you're recording like yourself in a chair or something like that, you want to, you want to set yourself off of your backdrop enough that it gives a sense of distance and a little more dynamic in that way. Part of the way we do that is I actually have a light that is behind me right now, and it's, it comes down and lights up my shoulders, which helps give a sense of distance. Okay, so there's some ways that you can trick that a little bit. But part of what I wanna communicate, and you're communicating something with your backdrop, right? So I'm communicating I'm at home, but I've got some cozy stuff and there's little greenery and I want it to feel interesting and, you know, approachable. But not fussy, you know, like, whoops, wrong way. This stuff here, this is, it's very me. Okay, so you're communicating a little bit about who you are. So if you love your bookshelves, Amy, I say include the bookshelves. There's no one way, and all the rules can be broken. So, which is both awesome and liberating and can feel a little overwhelming. So find what works for you and what feels the best for you. Okay, do I use any special lighting? Jane, great question. Right now I am using special lighting. I'm using a ring light around the camera. I can link all this stuff up for you guys if you want. And oh, Katie Howie is a photographer, so she knows this stuff. And then I'm using two, I don't even know what you call these things. So it's three-point lighting in the sense that I've got two boxes with soft lighting on them coming out from the side and then a ring light around the camera. And then I added this recently because I think it just upped the look of my videos in an extra way. So on the resources that I'm sending you, I included 2 YouTube videos that I found particularly helpful that are not overboard. They're really grounded. They're not like, go out and buy all this stuff, but about the technology, lighting and sound equipment. And they're, they're both really great. And one of them is especially around essentially like cheap equipment. And what I mean by that is inexpensive, not cheap. So I think that's a great place to start if you don't have anything. You don't need anything. Natural light can— it works the best, actually. Um, and, uh, but, but if natural light is not working for you or not available or for whatever reason, then you do want to get a few lights. And you know, if you're doing video on your iPhone, which you can, there are some really easy, cool attachments. And that's one of the YouTube videos I sent you with some great links to equipment that'll work great. Okay, and it's not outrageous at all, like $20 for this or that. I mean, as you've heard me say, there's a lot of things that's about $20. So that adds up, but you just want, you want to be seen and heard well. That is the bar that we're going for. From there, then it's an artistic decision. Okay, what, what you like, what looks the best for you. Okay, I hope that was helpful. All right, you guys, we've answered all of our questions. There's 30 people still with me. That's awesome. Thank you, Jane. 11 questions, that's fabulous. Thank you so much for all of your interaction and your connection and your time here with me. I'm really honored that you would be here and take time out of your lives to do this. And most importantly, I just wanna encourage you to continue to serve your audience They are there, they are still there. We are just going to meet them in a new way for the next few months, and they still need to hear you. They still need your voice. They still want to be led and need to be led. So, so your movement and your message is no less important than it was a week ago or a month ago. But I just want you to know that I'm here for you. I support you. And please be in touch. Okay, a few things. You're gonna send me your 1-minute videos, 'cause you're gonna practice. That is my challenge for you. You're gonna let me know who you are and what you speak about so I can share you with the world. I'm doing this webinar again in 2 weeks. If you think other people might appreciate it, I'll include the link to that one in the email I sent you with the replay and the resource book, and I'll get that out as soon as I can yet later today. And lastly, I want to see you in MoversU. Please come join us in there so that we can continue this community and connection and support because our work and your words, your movement, your message really matters. So thank you. Thank you for being here. All right, we are gonna wrap up here. Oh, Katie Howie, it's exactly what you need to say. I'm really glad to hear that. Thanks for being here, Katie. Katie lives 6 doors, 10 doors down from me, the other end of the block. This is how we're connected. It's a virtual world. Brad, thank you for this today. Yes, oh my gosh, office hour with 11th grade IB history students. Good. Ken, you got this. Go work on your video. I can't wait to see them. This is gonna be really fun. Yes, best of luck everybody. Thank you for everything. Mwah! All right, signing off. Good, really good. Wait, hold on, I don't— it's like