So, we’re assuming you’re on time and you know why you’re there and you know exactly what you want from the people in the room and you’ve Googled them and found out where they went to school and that according to LinkedIn they made a couple of questionable professional moves in the early 90s and at least two of them tweet.
That’s all fine, but what you really need to do is own the room, and to do that, you need to become the centre of the room’s energy.
Here’s how to own a room from the second you walk in:
1. Be curious
Walk in, talk to people and totally engage them. Most entrepreneurs are thinking about what they want to teach or what they want to convey, and everybody would much rather talk to someone who is curious. It’s amazing what that shift in attitude does.
2. Demand attention
Don’t be aimless, casual or flippant. Let your audience know they’re important and you’re there because you have a message to give them.
3. Put on a show
Making an entrance is an act — but it’s not entirely an act. If you don’t underpin your act with real curiosity and warmth, it won’t work.
Who wouldn’t want to be in a room with you now? You’re amiable and confident and pleased with the way things are going. You’re ready to talk and to listen. You haven’t given them any reason why they couldn’t see themselves giving you a lot of money or offering you a contract or partnering with you in some way. You’re someone they could see themselves doing business with. All that, and you haven’t even sat down yet.