In the current issue of WIRED magazine (December 2011), there’s a piece by Penn Jillette (of the famed Penn & Teller team) about the power of Steve Jobs on stage. The piece is titled MASTER OF THE STAGE and in it, Penn talks about a few of the elements that made Jobs such a fabulous presenter….among those qualities, Jobs’s “use of secrets and surprise”.

Another element that Penn points out re: presentation skills is Jobs’s natural movement on stage.

This is a point I love.

Every so often, when a professional speaker or executive comes to me for coaching, I notice in their work (either live or on video) these utterly bizarre gestures that have somehow gotten implanted in their presentation style.

As we start to review their material, I ask them about a particular section.

“So, tell me about that section. How did ___ come to be? What was the thought there?”

“Well, XYZ coach told me to do this kind of movement/gesture when I said that line.”

“Huh….How did it feel?” I ask.

The client looks at me, pauses, stumbles, and inevitably (and sheepishly) admits, “It feels kind of weird.”

“Well, it looks kind of weird,” I respond.

You may be chuckling.

The good news is the client is always chuckling, too.

And the tension is gone.

The truth is obvious.

If you’re a mover, cool. You can move. If you’re expressive, express. If you’re not, there’s no need to add phony gestures and false physical components to your work unless there’s a way for them to be birthed organically. Gestures and movements can’t be put upon you. Your presentation style has to be organic to YOU.

The number of ridiculous gestures and weird intonations I’ve had to undo because of bad coaching is beyond count.  

There’s nothing the audience wants more than an authentic speaker. After that, they want relevant information delivered in an engaging fashion.

But authenticity always come first.

The power of honesty is beyond measure–not only in what you say but also, in how you move.

You are more enough…just as you are.