A short excerpt from a TJ Walker presentation advising presenters to avoid excessive apologizing. Walker argues that apologies draw emotional attention and can make the apology the most memorable part of a talk, overshadowing content and calls for support or funding.
If you apologize, especially if you apologize excessively during a presentation, it can overwhelm the substance of your message. Because when you apologize, quite often that's when. Ahahaha. Emotion is coming across your face. It can become the most emotional moment of an entire presentation. And the problem with that? It's not that emotions are bad. The problem is emotions are memorable. So if the most memorable moment of your entire presentation is you apologizing for something, then that's what people will remember. Not the actual content. Not why they should invest in you, not why they should support your organization with all the budget funding you're requesting for next year.
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