At the opening night of "Varekai," a Cirque du Soleil production, I saw the juggler miss his final trick. My passive viewing was immediately transformed. I moved to the edge of my see the next move. How would the juggler resolve this? Would he pretend he hadn't messed up and quickly leave the stage?

The juggler tried again, with the audience, like me, on the edge of their seats. We wanted him to succeed, and actively cheered him on. He missed. The juggler tried again, and at this point, the entire audience was hanging on every move. When he succeeded on the third try, cheers erupted from the audience-thousands of strangers who had been transformed into the juggler's friends. The entire audience commended this performer for his courage and persistence. They felt not only as if the juggler had succeeded; they had too.

In a similar way, an audience cheered for me recently. I dropped my remote in the middle of a presentation. In my new pink suit, I dove after if. After my talk, audience members laughed and shared their own fumbling stories.

These experiences, back-to-back, made me stop and think. Here were two instances in which the speaker "messed up," and their connection with the audience seemed to grow rather than shrink. Is it possible that sometimes our drive for perfection gets in the way of our connection with the audience? Surely audience members have always wanted an honest, authentic presentation. I wonder, though, if the desire for spontaneity has grown recently.

With the upsurge of reality shows in the last five years, perhaps our audiences are less and less interested in perfect, scripted speeches. While watching the Discovery Channel, VHI, and raw talent shows, isn't the best part when the monkey starts grooming the host rather than performing the trick? Don't we delight when the talent is caught in an unseemly scratch, or when the doves fly away from the magician and don't return?

Audience members want a professional, knowledgeable expert, but they also want someone who is "real" and "accessible." The idea of a "regular" person making a difference and impacting others in a positive way is inspiring. It's an extension of the "if I can do it, you can do it" message. For this message to come through, for audience members to relate to us and take action on our suggestions, they must first identify with us.

Is it time to re-examine your presentation? Have you honed your craft too carefully? Is your perfection and polish getting in the way of your connection with your audience?

Here are some examples of speakers who build connection by showing their vulnerability (in areas unrelated to their expertise):

•  Scott Friedman frequently refers to his single status, which captures attention. Everyone has either been single, is single, or knows a single person who can relate to Scott's stories.

•  Mark Scharenbroich is a master at humbling himself by asking the audience to help him remember something simple. "What's that movie.the guy with the cape.you know, who goes into the phone booth?" Scharenbroich establishes himself as an "average Joe" whose mind can go blank like everyone else's.

•  Oprah clearly has a different lifestyle than the average person, but she talks about walking her dog, shopping at Target, and reusing Ziploc Bags. We can relate to all of these things.

A powerful example of spontaneity-gone-well occurred at the NSA Convention in Orlando in July, 2006. Martha Williamson, Executive Producer and Head Writer of the CBS series "Touched by an Angel" was one of the speakers during the NSA Rally. Williamson was slated to give us insight on the television industry, but she didn't.

Attending the convention the day prior to her scheduled speech, Willimanson caught a flavor of her unique NSA audience. Gazing out t the window that day, Williamson decided to take a risk. She scratched her prepared speech, believing it would better serve her audience to share the reflections she was currently having. She jotted down a few things from her reflections, so she pulled out a paper during her speech-or was that a napkin?

Williamson shared her decision-making process with the audience. She was incredible! Audience members felt that Williamson trusted us to honor her in whatever way she chose to reveal herself. We felt we were having a heart-to-heart talk as if we were good friends, chatting in a living room. We were enthralled by the description of Williamson's personal struggles, including being caught overweight and unclothed in front of a leading man and other actors.

Williamson was clearly an experienced speaker. Watching her, I believed she could have delivered a carefully scripted and flawlessly delivered presentation. Oddly, she was distinguished by the fact that she did not do this. It was her spontaneity that distinguished her and established a powerful connection.

Williamson had reflected and redesigned her speech based on new information about her audience. She trusted her gut, and she trusted her audience to respond to her honest musings. It worked.

Perhaps it is time for all of us to reflect on our presentations. Will we better serve our listeners if we downplay perfection to strengthen our connection?

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Contact: Jolene at 425-489-1073 Jo@FunSpecialist.com