YOUR PLACE AT THE TABLE
More and more presentations are happening as informal events, with the presenter and all the participants seated around a table. If you have the opportunity to present this way, here are some tips to help guarantee success.

First, know that being able to get in early and snag the best seat isn't really possible. There are no power positions at conference tables anymore. The head of the table might allow everyone to see you but it often creates physical and psychic distance from the folks at the other end. These days, the preferred place at the table is mid-way down one side. Collaborative leaders have discovered this latter-day Arthurian approach, however since it's never at a round table, obstructed eye contact is a certainty.

So choosing the perfect spot at an empty table may be a tough call. See if you can wait until people start showing up, then sit across from the person whose ear you need the most.
Once you're seated, don't let yourself sink into your chair. You're in the room to work. Projecting an energized presence, even when sitting down, helps you be perceived as a valuable member of the team.

Sit up in your chair, leaning towards the table. Scoot forward, getting as much of your legs off the chair as possible. Put your forearms on the table with your material within comfortable reach. The object is to take up an appropriate amount of space. Don't collapse down with your elbows by your hips and your hands in your lap, but don't usurp your neighbors' workspace, either.

When it's time to present, make eye contact with as many people as possible. Gesture freely. Sit erect without stiffness. Relax the lower portion of your body.

Don't forget to look to your immediate right and left. The people on either side of you are the hardest to engage but the easiest for your watchers to see. Don't let these people get away.

 

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