Note cards or tablet?
What's the best practice as I host this fireside chat?
What a way to start our session.
I knew this client was excited about her upcoming event, but I didn't realize how excited until she jumped right into the call, leaning into the webcam, pen at the ready, eager to do well.
Just a few months into a promotion and she was taking the bull by the horns, volunteering for this very visible task of hosting a fireside chat. The entire company would be there. Big clients in the audience too.
She had to nail it. She had to prove she belonged at that level.
Note cards or tablet indeed.
So I asked her what she'd seen at other fireside chats in her industry. She described some she'd observed.
“So let’s see, that one used a teleprompter. This one had a confidence monitor. But this host, THIS host was really good at carrying the conversation so it felt like we were eavesdropping on a planning session. A behind the scenes meeting. I loved that.”
"Great! What tool did they use?"
"Gosh. I don't remember. I was so focused on the conversation."
Even better.
"What would it look like to have that kind of conversation with YOUR guest?"
"Oh that's easy, I've got a million questions for them. How they did X, why they chose Y, what happened when..."
She was off. Leaning forward. Lighting up. Writing down questions she couldn't wait to ask. Her initial question to me about notecards or tablet completely forgotten.
Reader, she nailed it!
She came into our next session giddy with the energy she and her guest had created on stage. She was so into the conversation she made callbacks to earlier points. She was loose enough to earn laughs from the audience.
After she told me all of this I had to know:
"What did you use — note cards or a tablet?"
"Hm. That's funny. I don't even remember."
I have a couple of nephews heading off to college this fall. Their group chats are full of questions about what to bring, what it's like, how to be ready. Note cards or tablet, essentially.
And I keep wanting to tell them the thing you're most worried about having ready is the thing you'll forget you even brought once you're genuinely curious about the person sitting next to you.
The tool was never the thing.
The curiosity was.
If you're navigating a presentation, a conversation, or a moment where you want to show up as yourself instead of performing — this is exactly the work I do. Reply and let's talk.
Truly,
Jackie
Quiet Signals
What to notice this week:
- What tools might be distracting you from truly connecting with others?
- When you're preparing for an important presentation or conversation, how much time do you spend thinking about THEM versus thinking about yourself?
- Think of someone you find genuinely compelling to listen to, not the most polished, but the most magnetic. What are they doing that has nothing to do with technique?
Signal Boost
Curious about the power of curiosity? Check out these resources:
May's No Reading Required Book Club
Tuesday, May 12, Noon Central we'll chat about Think Again by Adam Grant. Subtitled The power of knowing what you don't know this'll be a fascinating discussion for those of us who lead with our expertise. When does being 'the expert' actually get in the way? No reading required. Reply to this email and I'll send you the link.
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Hi there! I'm Jackie.
I help thoughtful people influence outcomes without having to become someone they’re not.
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