Winging It

Last week during Leadership Forum (our monthly leadership meeting where we detail events, criticisms, and success stories to all supervisory staff in the hospital), I got put on the spot. Big time. Elvis leads the meetings and during the "Quality" section of the meeting, he walked over to me and gave me the microphone, asking me to talk about a few of our quality initiatives and how those particular initiatives were accepted at the IHI conference in December.

Not used to being put on the spot in front of 200 people, I grabbed the microphone and, well, talked. I shocked myself with how confident my voice sounded (I was standing under a speaker). The first few thoughts were difficult and I had to work to be coherent. Then it just came to me and I knew what to say next. I spoke for a few minutes. The group applauded and I sat back down.

That was it? Unprepared, unrehearsed public speaking isn't too bad, I guess.

I liken it to running. Anyone who runs knows that the first mile or two is usually the hardest. Once you plod through that first mile, it gets much easier and your body knows what it's supposed to do. For me, speaking (well, unprepared speaking!) is like that. The first few thoughts string along until I find my groove.

Usually, when I present to any size group, I come prepared with a powerpoint, a laser pointer, and my best suit. I have just enough coffee where I'm alert and "on," but not shaky or fast-talking. There's definitely a science to being prepared! This speaking experience made me realize that maybe, just maybe, I can wing it a bit.