The Importance of Your Pre-Show Ritual

 

My friend and fellow Keynote Speaker, Chris Bashinelli, recently asked me what I do prior to an event in order to get ready to perform but also in regards to meeting with the client pre-show for cocktails and so forth.

Recently I had what I would consider a moment of lost integrity, when I was not asked, but told, by a client to do something I was quite uncomfortable with as a part of my pre-speech introduction to the audience.  I went along with it to be a nice person, a team player, and it made me rethink my rituals prior to taking the stage with a speech on integrity.

Here’s what happened as I told it to Chris…

“I never attend meetings or events of the client before I take the stage unless I’m hired to be there as an Emcee or performer.  If it’s the meeting before I speak then yes, I’ll check out the speakers or award winners on stage immediately before me, but never the day before.

So I just had a client demand I attend the awards ceremony the night before my morning keynote, which I rarely would attend anything before taking the stage, but was already in town since I fly in the day prior anyway.

Following the ceremony and my taking some notes to add to next day’s keynote, as I was leaving to go to my room to go to sleep, they said, “Now you’re joining us for dinner at the President’s Table and you are incognito – no one knows who the speaker is and we don’t want anyone to Google you – so you work for us, we just hired you, you’re on the events team.  Good luck!” 

This was the most brutal dinner of my life, as only the president seated next to me was in on it, so everyone at the table was grilling me about my new position, which office and location I would be in, my previous experience, which departments I would be over, the in-house software I like using best, etc.  I was mortified and had to play along.  Luckily I have enough “event planning experience” that I could fake my way through it.

About 10 minutes into the undercover act I whispered to the client how uncomfortable I was and that it was incongruent with my message of The Promise – he said I was doing great and it would be a great reveal in the morning.

Well, I did it, and felt like a used piece of meat….

I could hardly sleep, I felt so bad about lying to these people whom I would be speaking on integrity to the following morning.

The next day I woke up and added to my powerpoint slide deck of all the secret selfies I had taken at the awards ceremony while making a comedy routine of it, and revealed how deviant their company was for making me lie, and it all turned out fine in the end as I slayed the audience with making fun of them.

They acted like I was the greatest thing they’ve ever seen, but it came at a heavy price to my personal peace.

So, to put it mildly, I do all I can to not do anything with the client prior, unless they trap me into it.  After I’ve spoken and killed it – bring it on – after the gig I LOVE chatting and meeting and whatever.  Prior – no.”

 

Chris:

“So what are your normal pre-speech rituals?  What do you prefer doing?  Will you go to cocktail parties the night before you speak to get to know people?  What is your process or ritual?”

 

JH:

“First off, I don’t like to have to put on a show before the actual show.

Second, I don’t want to spill the beans and have to do my faces and voices to convince them it’s worth coming to.  In essence, I could very well run them off just by meeting me in that setting and wondering, “How can that guy be entertaining?”  That’s a real issue I have actually.

Third, I feel like a text to the client and event planner saying I’m there on site, and the room’s great and excited for tomorrow is sufficient.  They always invite me at that point to the cocktail party and I say I’m headed to bed, even if it’s 6 PM.

Fourth, I like to fly in plenty early, even if that means sacrificing time with family – because at that point my promise is to the client, to be there on time, to be rested, etc.   I arrive early, work out, walk the property, find the room where I’m speaking, sneak in the ballroom to see the AV, walk around and envision my standing ovation and successful speech, usually bump into the AV guy and talk through my needs which he didn’t understand from my complicated rider (drawing and perfect diagram) and then I go to my room, order a meal, and prep my slides, go over notes, receive inspiration for the talk, and go to bed at like 9 or 10 PM with the help of Melatonin to get to sleep.

Wake up at 5 or 6 AM depending on sound check time and do in room work out of push-ups and squats, and am there 30 minutes prior to sound check time so I have time to control everything about the room.

I then warm up my voice with the straw method and make sure during sound check to do some very loud singing impressions to get my voice open so I’m not clearing my throat as I speak.

These rituals are important to my success.  I’ve tried it where I just showed up and spoke, as I’ve heard others do, and I’m just not ready – I feel rushed, flustered, unorganized.  I prefer to meditate for hours prior, even if that means just walking the hallways before beginning.”

 

Questions for you, Dear Reader, Speaker and Performer: 

1. What are your preferred rituals?
2. What will you NOT do pre-performance?
3. What makes you perform at your highest level?

 

Thanks Chris for the question – anyone that wants to ask me something please send it along, I love finding out what my fellow presenters are wanting to learn more about.

Much success to you!