TJ Walker explains how to handle audience members who try to derail your presentation. Keep your delivery engaging, allow one interruption, then offer to address detailed questions after. Use a microphone to speak over side comments and maintain calm body language.
Chapters
What do you do if people in your audience try to hijack your presentation? So here's a question coming to us from Tom over at Mentoray. He says, TJ question. How do you keep, maintain or regain control when a couple of audience participants try to hijack your presentation? I have a presentation coming up. It has to go well. The group has a couple of attendees that can be counted on to try to hijack the meeting. These guys will answer immediately, maybe even fight with each other for airtime, completely dismissing the speaker. Well, Tom, that is an interesting predicament. I am a big believer that in general, you don't need to control or worry about controlling other people, reporters, people in the audience. You need to control your mouth first and foremost. Make sure what you have to say is completely interesting and engaging at all times. If two other people in the audience are going to be rude, then everyone else is going to notice it. I don't think it will cut against you, but let's go through several different examples. Sometimes someone has a question and it's really thinly disguised is them wanting to make a point. I would let them do it once in a presentation. If they keep it brief, if it's a second time, what I like to do is say, jim, the point you raised is so critically important that I want to give it its full justice. If you could meet with me after the presentation, right over there in the corner, I'll address it in greater detail. And that way you're not telling them shut up, you're not being rude. You're telling them you're going to give them extra attention, but you're not letting it hijack the meeting. Now, if two people literally start arguing, there's several different ways of going about it. The best way, of course, is if you have a microphone and they don't, then you can, without shouting, talk over them. And what I would do is if it's a lav mic or a handheld, put the mic right next to your mouth so it doesn't sound like you're yelling. And you could say you both have strong, forceful opinions on this. I'm going to ask you to continue your debate right after I conclude my presentation because I know a lot of people are going to want to watch. So if we could pause right now, that's what I would do. I'm not telling them to shut up. I'm asking them to pause. Now, another technique is to just say how many of you would rather hear the presentation that was prepared in advance or listen to these guys and then if you get the whole crowd on your side shouting them down, then you've won the day, too. The main thing is, don't look panicked, don't look scared, don't get upset. You need to look like you're in control at all times. You need to look like you're happy that there is group participation. Don't be too quick to snuff it down. If you're talking for 30 minutes, and this is 30 seconds, that's a small percentage. But if it goes beyond that, well, yes, you do need to maintain some discipline. And I hope those techniques I mentioned will work for you. Good luck, Tom.
