Professionals – not just the presenter

Bit of a rant about some bad presenters I’ve seen recently…..!  :)    Brace yourself, gentle reader.

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I drive a car, and (like most people, impossibly) I think I’m a better than average driver.  Setting aside the simple fact that most people think they’re above average as a driver, which can’t be true, by definition, I’d not tell my mechanic how to mend my car or how to tune it.

We’ve used the same mechanic for a lot of years now – and we know he does a good job – so let him do it.

I can use a computer, pretty well, but I don’t tell the coders at Google’s coders how to do their jobs.

So why is it that some presenters think they know better than the technical support  provided in venues to operate equipment?  Sure, a professional and experienced presenter will know what he or she wants and there are certainly venues where the technical support is rubbish… but the typical presenter knows his material and the typical house technician know his (or her) job.

If you do a sound check and they tell you you need to hold the mic closer, then hold your mic closer.  By all means ask them to clarify why they’re saying that, ‘cos you might be as sixes-and-sevens… but if you, or the conference organiser, has paid good money for good technical support, why tell that good technical support how to do their jobs?

How would you feel if they started telling you that you should change your slides with a different transition?