Other than the moral side of presenting (Influencing vs Manipulating), there’s the cognitive side (Emotional vs. Analytical). The use of either analysis or emotion depends on your presentation style and the subject matter. Any presenter can try winning over the audience’s hearts or minds.
What kind of speaker are you?
Parts of any presentations can be classified as either Emotional or Analytical. The same can be said about the presentation itself. As well as the presenter. If Martin Luther King is on the emotional end of the spectrum, then surely someone like your high school Math Teacher would be on the analytical side of the spectrum.
Does A Presentations Have To Be One or The Other?
Does every presentation needs to be either really emotional or very analytical? Of course not. Having too much of any one side can actually hurt your presentation.
The Correct Balance of Emotion and Analysis
The right balance for a presentation will be different depending on the industry, the audience, and the subject matter. If the subject matter is too emotional, then it can be beneficial to use some direct analysis. e.g. taking a step back and looking at the facts. If it is too dry, then maybe some humor would be appropriate to lift the mood of the room.
One notable example of using emotion is Colin Powell’s UN presentation in favor of the Iraq war. His presentation included a lot of analytical elements, diagrams, and data. However, the most memorable part of his presentation was when he used the vial of anthrax as a prop. This use of Fear was quite effective.
It is also an example of how using too much of one thing may not be as effective in the long run.
I’ll end this blog post with Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer’s Developers chant from a developer’s conference.
Take Care, and Happy Presenting 🙂
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