Presentation Tip: The Ready Position
The “Ready Position” which is standing poised and relaxed with your hands at your sides. It may not sound that difficult or complicated, but the idea is that whenever you are not gesturing or moving around, you should move back to this position. It is particularly important when someone else is speaking (such as a question from the audience) or the attention is focused on some other media (such as a video).
I believe it is called the “Ready Position” because you are relaxed but ready to move when you are called upon to speak again. The reason it is so difficult is that most people tend to fidget and/or shift their weight from side to side when standing in front of an audience and those behaviors are very distracting. The Ready Position gives you a stance that is neutral – you are ready to listen or speak depending on the circumstances.
Like most of the presentation skills, it is difficult to master the Ready Position because we all have so many habits built up over time. But simple things like the Ready Position signal your audience that you are calm and attentive and this makes it more likely that they will listen to what you have to say. It’s the little things that matter most.
