Impromptu

9Read Your Audience

I constantly have two tracks running in my mind. One plays what I am thinking and the other plays what I believe my audience wants or needs or expects from me. Half of my thought process is dedicated to my own agenda. The other half is in a place of empathy with my audience.

This insight, shared by Paul Vallée, CEO of global IT services company Pythian, shows the importance of reading your audience at the same time you are collecting your own thoughts. These “two tracks” must be constantly playing in our minds if we are to deliver the right messages in the right way. But reading your audience doesn't just take place when you're speaking. It needs to happen before, during, and after your conversation.

Reading Your Audience—In Advance

Take time to analyze your audience before you're face to face. Stuart Forman, CIO of CGI, a Canadian global information technology company, explained to me, “I tell my people, ‘You have to get yourself into the heads of your audience. You have to know what’s troubling them, what's working for them, what's not working for them, and what their hot buttons are.'” Knowing your audience will enable you to reach them. So ask yourself, “What is their appetite for the ideas I will introduce?” “Will I need to bring them around to my way of thinking?” And “If so, what is my best strategy?”

Assessing your audience's level of knowledge is also critical. Will you need to explain the basics to them, or do they have a sophisticated knowledge ...