The importance of being an event M.C.

"...No mistakes allowed, 'cause to me, M.C. means 'move the crowd'..."  Eric B. & Rakim "Eric B. for President" (1986)

I take my gigs as an event master of ceremonies very seriously.  It is an honor and a great opportunity for any speaker to play a vital role in the success of an event.  The most effective event M.C. is entertaining, organized, accommodating, and even humble.  The M.C. realizes that he or she must keep the audience’s attention while yielding to those who are the real stars of the show—the people on program. 

What makes a great M.C.?

• Preparation.  The M.C. has to know the situation before a show begins.  The most embarrassing moment I’ve ever had on stage was during a comedy show where I served as both the host and the opening act for a nationally known comedian.  I did one of my signature A-List bits about a fast food restaurant, which I mentioned by name because of its relevance to the bit.  Not good.  I found out after I got off stage that the restaurant was the show sponsor.  In my excitement about opening for a major national act, I completely failed to ask if there was a major sponsor connected to it.  Also, the M.C. should understand how the show is going to flow, who may show up, who may not show up, and definitely how to pronounce names. 
• Room Command.  The M.C. must immediately use energy and vocal projection to grab the audience’s attention.  Nothing makes life difficult for people on the program like walking into a situation where the audience is unprepared for them.  
• Humility.  I have seen hosts who have utilized their opportunities to steal shows.  It may work for about one minute, but anything beyond that is annoying to the audience.  The audience most likely isn't there to see the M.C.  Even if the M.C. is the best thing going, he or she needs to understand when to do the big build up and (literally) step back for the person or people the audience came to see.
• Damage Control.  Sometimes people bomb, and it's nothing short of heart-breaking to watch.  So, imagine being the one who screwed up on stage.  It’s a harsh reality of performance, and the M.C. has to stand ready to win the audience back when things don’t go well.  The M.C. should never do this at the expense of the speaker or the act, however.  The last thing the M.C. should do is appear opportunistic about grabbing the spotlight at the time of one’s untimely stage demise.  The M.C. may even have to play psychologist to the victim.

It's not left to the M.C. to control a show so much as it is left to him or her to manage the flow of an event.  Even if the program is unorganized, the M.C. should still maintain a focus on management as opposed to control.  The better the M.C. is at managing the event, the more organizers and event planners recognize his or her value. 

Why public speaking is important

We speakers can sometimes take our talent, skills, and passion for public speaking for granted.  It's nothing for us to jump on a stage in front of masses of people and deliver a message with unbridled enthusiasm and clarity.  Many of us cannot figure out why so many fear public speaking.  Statistically, most people who are surveyed rank public speaking as their number one fear.  As a great speaking colleague of mine, Chris Scheeren would say, "That means more people would rather be the subject of a eulogy than deliver one."

Public speaking, however, is also a fantastic tool for individual growth.  What can public speaking give you?

1. Effective interpersonal communication.  Great public speakers have great eye contact with their audiences, for example.  Mastering that skill automatically translates to effective eye contact, especially in situations such as job interviews or even conversations with close family and friends.
2. Structure and organization.  Speakers whose thoughts are unorganized get quickly exposed in the worst place--in front of an audience.  Public speaking teaches folks to break thoughts down by bullet points or segments.  That way, the audience finds your concept much easier to follow.
3. It helps you focus on WHO you are.  Just as I mentioned in point #2, a speaker who is not genuine gets quickly exposed.  Having been a consistent high school speaker since 2000, I learned very quickly that teens are like sharks.  One drop of blood and your butt is theirs.  In other words, as soon as they detect any weakness in a speaker, his/her speech is pretty much over.  What weakens a speaker most is coming across as a phony or, even worse, a con artist.
4. Articulation.  This is the most fundamental skill of oral communication.  If a group can understand every word you say, you will "wow" individuals with your articulation in small group or one-on-one settings.  Trust me.
5. Leadership.  A great speaking coach named Ron Arden once said, "He or she who speaks, leads."  It's as simple as people paying attention to the person who has the floor in a meeting.  Public speaking gives one the opportunity to express a vision, a directive, and influence others.
6. Stress management.  I'm totally at peace when I speak because I expend lots of energy.  Every single ounce of stress pours out of my body with my energetic delivery.  There are also other stress management tools that speakers employ such as breathing, voice, and body language exercises.
7. Confidence.  Nothing makes a person happy like delivering an effecitve speech.  You don't have to be a public speaker in order to experience the elation of well-articulated words in front of a group.  Most of us desire some form of appreciation, and what happens most of the time when people finish speaking?  Applause.  But even when applause isn't the end result, just getting from point A to point B in a speech gives the speaker that feeling of "mission accomplished."