You WILL Respect My Authority!
If you ever say these words or even feel like saying them then you are in a lot of trouble. This is the result of stress, lack of respect, total loss of rapport and a disgruntled audience.
There are a few scenarios where this may happen. If you have a presentation thrust upon you at the last minute because a colleague went sick or if you don’t yet have rapport building skills and have a disinterested mob instead of a rapt audience you might well find yourself trying to impose authority that you simply don’t have.
How might you manifest this? Well there are a few likely routes you will take.
Authority Technobable
This is a classic defence mechanism. You need to appear like an expert in your field so you start throwing in every multi-syllabic piece of jargon that has ever been linked with the subject.
It is a way of mirroring the people we commonly perceive as experts, doctors, scientists, financial advisors, solicitors and the like. What do they all have in common? They all effectively speak a different language. We know what they are saying is in English but quite frankly we have no idea what they are talking about and can often feel inferior because of that.
This is the effect you suddenly try to create under this stressful situation. If you ever find yourself doing this there is only one thing to do. Stop. Immediately. You are alienating your audience and making yourself look bad.
Take a breath and then talk it through in clear, plain English. If you don’t know something then say so! Remember that this was thrust upon you so you will have a little latitude to play with. The most important thing is to keep building rapport by using your voice in a calm way and using positive body language.
The other possibility is perhaps worse than this. You begin with the worst opening in the history of bad openings:
“This is complicated…”
With three words you just switched off 99% of your audience. You will occasionally have somebody listening who will love what you just said but they are definitely in the minority. By setting yourself up as a figure who understands the “mystically complicated” subject you may achieve some status as an authority of the subject and hold no authority at all with the people who really count - the ones you are trying to communicate with!
If it is genuinely a complicated subject then it is your job to make it seem easy. Break it down into simple stages. Explain that the subject isn’t as complicated as it may seem. Set them up with a positive view and you will soon command the respect and authority you need when addressing people.
Authority comes from rapport and giving. Build rapport and give people what they need to know. Then you will be respected AS an authority.
For more information on the role of authority in your communication sign up for our Well Presented Teams course or contact us to arrange a tailored in-house session.
Authority and how it should be established in a positive way is also covered in our Well Presented! course.