Webinar Best Practices

How many of you have attended a bad webinar? I certainly have. As a webinar producer, I believe the key to an effective webinar is well-designed content. While many best practices for webinars are already documented (see HubSpot), I would like to add these focused on content design:
1. Format matters: Consider the content, presenter(s), and objectives when designing the webinar format.  A single presenter may be fine, but two presenters provide variety and counterpoint.  Is the subject matter expert a poor presenter?  Consider a panel discussion or interview format.  If it’s a Q&A forum, consider soliciting the questions prior to the webinar and structuring the webinar around responses to the questions.  If the webinar is required (as in compliance training), add an online quiz to increase accountability.

2.  Less is more:  I prefer 10 or fewer slides for a 1-hour webinar.  I find that subject matter experts have more than enough to say.  By keeping slides to a minimum, there’s more time to engage the audience.  And if the webinar ends early, that’s certainly preferable to running long.  Put key points and visuals on slides;  move sub-bullets to speaker notes.

3.  Engage the audience:  Q&A and polling are great tools for getting your audience involved.  My preference is to have the audience type in their questions.  At a pause, the moderator lets the presenter know that there’s a question and then reads it outloud (without revealing the “asker”).  Questions are responded to in a timely manner and the presenter can elaborate or clarify as needed.  I recommend sprinkling polls throughout the webinar in a way that enhances rather than detracts from the content.  Polls must be relevant to the topic — their purpose is either to provide feedback to the presenter (and audience) or reinforce learning.  I like to conduct a poll in the first 10 minutes because it engages the audience quickly and can provide valuable input to the presenter.

4.  Define and practice roles:  It is critical to clearly define roles and understand who is presenting which part of the material.  I always recommend a moderator.  This person monitors the controls, records the webinar, previews and interjects the questions, conducts polls, tracks the time, and often introduces the speakers and reviews logistics with the audience.  An effective moderator ensures the presenter can focus on presenting.  If there is more than one presenter, be sure each knows exactly who will present which slide.  With a panel, designate someone who will either speak first or direct the question to another panelist.  Practice transitions and polling.  Make sure presenters know how to use and respond to the information collected in the poll.

A webinar can be effective, engaging, and impactful!  Good design makes a big difference.

Thoughts on Change

Today I’m thinking about change. I notice that Senator Evan Bayh has decided not to run for re-election due to his frustration with a “dysfunctional” Congress. As I re-read John Kotter’s book Leading Change it occurs to me that we (government, businesses, Americans, individuals, humans, you name it) are inherently resistant to change. Change makes us uncomfortable. But when we resist change, we can’t move forward. Not only are we unable to solve problems, but our problems keep growing. This leaves us frustrated and ready to give-up.

Our ability to change is critical. It is how we grow and remain competitive. It is how we solve problems and generate new ideas.  An ability to change at an organizational level requires an ability to change at an individual level.  This individual commitment is key to any successful change initiative.

Each individual must consider whether he/she is embracing change or resisting change.  We all have experience with both positions.  Think about how it feels to be a roadblock. This is a defensive stance which may make us feel strong and powerful and “right”, at least in the short term. I resist change frequently.  Why?  Because it takes me out of my comfort zone.  Is this bad?  Not necessarily, but if I’m not open to change, what else am I “not open” to?  How might my closed-mindedness be limiting my options or experiences?  Now consider how it feels to be a change agent.  Exciting, energizing, and exhilirating. This is an attitude of openness, of exploring the possibilities.  To me, this generates positive energy and makes me feel good.  This is where life has meaning. 

We must assess our willingness to change.  Am I a roadblock? Is being a roadblock conducive to solving the problem at hand? How can I become a facilitator of the change process? Is there a solution I can commit to? If I commit to change, what will my actions look like? 

It seems that an individual commitment to change will translate into individual actions taken towards change. And as more individuals commit, the change process becomes a collective effort. And that’s when we begin to move forward — into solving problems, creating new products, and staying one step ahead of the competition. It all starts with the individual.  Am I open to change?

Thoughts on Accountability

Acceptance and accountability go hand-in-hand.  If I accept you for who you are, then, when something goes wrong, the fault must be mine.  This is a scary position to be in!  We are accustomed to blaming others.  Laying blame feels easier and is definitely a form of self-protection.  But a world where everyone else is at fault translates to a world we have no control over.  I can’t control how you behave.  If I blame you for our problems, then I also attribute their resolution to a change in your behavior.  How frustrating it is when nothing changes!  If only you would fix the problem!!!

But wait…if I can step back and accept you for who you are, then I can examine my role in the problem.  (Note that I didn’t say “blame”.)  Through examination of my behavior, I can choose whether to change my behavior.  It may be that a slight modification in my response will improve the situation significantly!

Frustration is a red-flag, a signal that I feel out-of-control and an opportunity to examine my role in the situation.  By taking accountability for my behaviors and actions, I can make an impact.

Thoughts on Acceptance

My husband overheard a conversation I was having with a girlfriend the other day.  He said, “She just needs to accept him as he is.”  Now there’s a nugget of wisdom!  Isn’t the #1 thing we desire from others to be accepted for who we are?  I may expect you to accept me — but then why is it so hard for me to accept you?

We carry around expectations.  In fact, we’re burdened with them.  ”She’s so disorganized, she never gets her work completed in time.”  “Why does he have to be so rude?  If he could just be nicer then our customer issue would have been resolved by now.”   If expectations aren’t lived up to, one person is disappointed and the other person ends up being labeled with some unflattering adjective.  The relationship now carries a black cloud into future interactions.

Can we live without expectations?  Certainly we have expectations for ourselves.  But is it fair to extend expectations to others?  Isn’t this projecting into the future?  If I can truly live “in the moment”, I eliminate expectations.  I must trust and have faith that each moment will unfold as is.  And that is the ultimate acceptance.  Accepting that what happens happens.

But that doesn’t mean that I live my life at the whim of the moment or at the mercy of other people’s actions, or that I’m always happy and carefree.  Bringing my best to every moment means being honest with myself and others, being transparent and not having hidden agendas, and being clear as to what I expect from myself and others.  It means operating with the highest of intentions, understanding that everything is interrelated, and accepting of outcomes.

A mentor of mine states that “Struggle is unnecessary”.  So when I find myself in a state of struggle, it’s a sign that I’m not accepting something.  The first step towards action is acceptance.  Once I accept the situation, it allows me to move on.

The same is true for people.  By accepting you for who you are, I invite you to accept me.

Thoughts on Embodiment

Embodiment is an interesting concept.  Completeness, fullness, thoroughness.  I am a cautious person by nature believing in the value of thinking, planning, and “informed” risk-taking.  I like to have one foot on solid ground while the other ventures into new territory.  This is a safe approach and certainly keeps me inside my comfort zone, ready to retreat when the challenges get too great.

I believe effective leadership requires both feet in.  The people I most admire embody leadership — they don’t have one foot back just in case things don’t work out.  Embodying leadership requires confidence that you can deal with anything that arises. 

Embodiment is a means to living “in the moment” or being fully present.  If I am listening to someone while thinking about something else, it’s equivalent to having one foot back.  To be an effective listener (or arguably effective at anything), I must be fully present.

This doesn’t mean I have to throw away my well-thought-out plans, just that I shouldn’t be too attached to them.  Embodying leadership means having the confidence that whatever the moment brings I will know what to do.

Thoughts on Listening

I had a recent experience where I was focused on observing body language.  I found that I couldn’t “hear” what people were saying when I shifted my eyes to focus on their visual cues.  It was like I needed my eyes to listen.  Wouldn’t it be great if my ears could listen while my eyes focused on body language?  Then I would really be getting the full picture.  So why do I rely on my eyes to hear?

Here’s my theory.  I am a classically trained pianist.  If you put the music in front of me, I can play the piano.   Therefore, my musical training developed the connection between my eyes and my hands, using my ears only for feedback.  Wouldn’t it be great if I could play music by ear?  If I develop this ability – to play music by ear – might it translate to a greater ability to listen to people?

My first experiment with playing the piano by ear went well.  I composed a short tune in the key of G.  It actually sounded pretty good!  I played it about 10 times before switching to Beethoven.  Later that day, I sat back down at the piano to play my song.  I couldn’t remember it!  Maybe this isn’t a listening problem — maybe it’s a “remembering” problem.  If only my ears could remember the tune.  Guess I’ll have to work on that!