HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 27: (L-R) Oscar winners Sian Heder and Troy Kotsur backstage during ... [+]
How memorable can you be in a three-minute presentation? If you want to stand out from the competition and connect more deeply when presenting, tap into the principles behind the moving moments from the 2022 Oscars.
First let’s address the elephant in the room. The 94th Academy Awards ceremony will be remembered for a slap and an awkward speech by Will Smith. Before giving his acceptance speech for his first Oscar win, Smith had taken the stage to slap award presenter Chris Rock for a joke about the shaved head of his wife Jada Pinkett Smith, who has talked in the past of having a hair-loss condition. The offended Smith took his seat and yelled at Rock, “Keep my wife’s name out of your f****** mouth.”
Not the Oscar speech you want to be remembered for in front of hundreds of millions of viewers.
But who got it right? I went to a former Toastmasters World Champion of Public Speaking, Darren LaCroix, for his take. LaCroix has coached corporate presenters and executives around the world. He has delivered keynotes and coached in 44 international cities and every state in America (see his championship winning speech here).
“When you are in front of an audience, you have an opportunity to influence,” said LaCroix. “Unfortunately, presenters in the business world bore their audience.”
What memorable moments would a speaking coach see in the acceptance speeches? Here are the principles behind them that you can use in your presentations.
Two-time Oscar winner Kevin Costner gave an amazing presenter speech that deserves mention.
“Costner was introducing and presenting the Best Director award and told a personal story of his first time watching a movie when he was seven,” said LaCroix. “He was mesmerized and said: ‘A director did that.’ Through his magical storytelling, Costner took us to a time and place and made us clearly see the significance of what the work of directing is really all about.”
Is there a story you can tell your audience so they see the true significance of your topic?
“Ariana DeBose, who won the Best Supporting Actress, delivered an exuberant, inspiring yet concise speech,” said LaCroix. “It was powerful. She said, ‘Imagine this little girl in the back seat of a white Ford Focus, a queer in a back seat who found her strength in art.’ She created a picture for the audience.”
When you tell your stories do you get your audience to picture the setting first?
“Best Supporting Actor, Troy Kotsur, nailed it,” said LaCroix. “He is the first deaf actor [and second deaf performer] to win an Oscar and had to hand his Oscar back to the presenter so he could communicate in sign language. It was moving. The raw emotion was powerful and you could hear it in the interpreter’s voice. Troy was overcome with emotion when thanking his parents, and then relieved the tension with a joke about teaching dirty words in sign language at the White House. Funny.”
There was another. “Sian Heder, the writer and director of CODA, knew her audience,” said LaCroix. “She won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. When she went up on stage wearing a brilliantly sparkling dress covered in tiny mirrors, her first words were, ‘So glad I dressed like a disco ball.’ It got a huge laugh. The comment acknowledged what the audience was thinking. It was real and authentic. It worked.”
LaCroix noted that when Heder’s name was called, she grabbed her interpreter and brought her to the stage. Though she is not hearing impaired and can speak, she knew her audience and her following. She knew they’d be watching and what they needed. “I teach my students that the most important part of a presentation is the thought process in the listener’s mind,” says LaCroix. “Know what your audience is thinking and wanting.”
Back to Smith. “His opening about fiercely defending his family tied into what had happened earlier in the evening,” said LaCroix. “It was a perfect tie-in to the theme of King Richard. When you are presenting, make sure you are present. When you are present you can connect more deeply with your audience. I don’t think that was how he was planning to start his speech. We need to be so prepared that we can adapt to the situation at hand. I teach people, ‘Don’t memorize, internalize.’ Your audience wants you present, not perfect.”
LaCroix advises speakers to move their audience with magic moments. “They will come best from your intent and connection with your audience.”
