What a gorgeous day it is! I can bet that meetings, presentations and all office activity across England will be slightly reduced today as people gaze out of the window, suffer malfunctioning air-conditioning and decide to take a long lunch break outside for once.
When you’re presenting and you know that there’s something else that your audience are all thinking about, you need to apply the greatest skill that a stand-up has in their arsenal:
Adaptability.
Call the situation! You don’t want their minds wandering, so acknowledge what’s happening, and change what you’re doing accordingly (see also my post ‘Be Like Water’).
Long meeting? Give them cake (I’m serious).
Sunny day? Take them outside.
Depressing day? Take them to a pub or coffee shop.
Do something different, get them moving, and show that not only do you really want to them to ‘get’ what you’re talking about, but that you respect them. You may then find that they reciprocate with the attention and respect that places them in the perfect frame of mind to receive your information and message.
Clever, eh?