Posted by Vincent Alonzo under HospitalityResponses (3)

Several years ago, I had the occasion to give an address at an evening reception. I was a little bit apprehensive because the hosts wanted me to give a fairly substanative speech rather than just a few quick informal comments. My thought was, "these people don't want to hear something that's going to challenge them. They just want to enjoy the buffet, have a few drinks and network."

Boy was I right. To make matters worse, they didn't even dim the lights (the universal signal to shut up) when I went up to the podium. It was one of the worst public speaking (actually make that shouting) experiences I've ever had.

That's why I was holding my breath when Mary Boone of Boone Associates in Essex, CT gave the luncheon address at the MPI Professional Education Conference North America today in Houston. Like my situation, the lunch was a buffet. Also like me, the lights were not dimmed. The room had a din comparable to a high school cafeteria. I thought to myself, "Uh-oh, Mary's gonna have a tough audience."

But then Barb Taylor Carpender, CMM, CHSC of Taylored Alliances in Denver, CO saved the day. She went to the podium introduce Mary and the first thing she said was: "If you can hear my voice, clap once." About a quarter of the audience clapped once--and, more importantly, shut up. Then she said: "If you can hear my voice, clap twice." About three quarters of the audience clapped and stopped talking. Finally she said: "If you can hear my voice, clap three times." Practically the entire audience clapped--followed by only the sound of knives and forks clinking against their plates. That neat little trick totally subdued the audience and got them in the proper frame of mind to listen to Mary's terrific presentation about how to create interactive learning experiences and meetings.

I wish Barb had been around to help me out of a similar jam a few years ago. But I'm grateful to her for teaching me a new trick to deal with it the next time it happens.