Susan Kime - Luxury Travel Journalist - Blog

Monday

Mar122007

A Miracle in San Francisco

Monday, March 12, 2007 at 12:14AM

Last week, I attended the Ragatz Fractional Interest Conference in San Francisco where I was invited invited to speak on the final day, Wednesday.

When Wednesday finally came, waiting for my turn seemed, if I thought about it, like waiting in a Dentist's office for three days in order to get a triple root canal. But I didn't think about it much, because I was in one of the most beautiful cities in the world, AND, at the Fairmont, one of the most elegant hotels of the world, with many people I knew and respected.

I knew what I wanted to say to the 525 people was not specifically reflected on my Powerpoint presentation. My presentation dealt with practical applications that could be used by beginning developers before engaging PR companies. But what I really wanted to talk about dealt with the unique socio-cultural success of this industry, how it relates to the post 9/11 mood of the country, and how the vision of the developer relates to this success; about how the clarity and integrity of such a vision must be at all times balanced with the bricks and mortars of practicality. Not very Powerpoint-y!

Wednesday comes along -- too soon! -- and I'm on the podium with some august,learned speakers, all of whom are having problems with their Powerpoint presentations, none of which are their fault -- there is feedback, voice-doubling, and sound-skipping on the microphone. When my name is finally called, I thought of this odd bit of information I had heard somewhere -- that the two things people are most terrified of are death and public speaking. At this moment, in front of 500 people, death would have been a far more pleasant alternative... however, a miracle occurred!

My Powerpoint remote does not work, and I say,"Enough with Powerpoints!" A great ovation comes from the audience...then, I tell them my presentation is in the handbook, and I began to talk about those subjects that I mentioned above. I quote some poetry as well. Looking at my audience instead of at my notes, I know that my presentation means something more to them, just as it means something more to me. No facts and stats backed up by Powerpoint slides, but ideas conceived from the heart.

Joyce Carol Oates once wrote, "The single voice is the communal voice" -- by that I think she meant that how we feel sometimes is how others feel. I am very glad to have had the chance to speak to my colleagues and peers in an everyday tone, following my own internal talking points rather than clicking through slides. This gave me a sense of oneness with the audience, and I am grateful that such a miracle occurred. Hopefully, the audience learned something, while I overcame a lot of primal fear. Such days don't happen often.

Except maybe in San Francisco...

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Reader Comments (1)

October 16, 2011 |

monian

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