I watched a boat load of television in the 80’s and it taught me one very important thing.

“You never get a second chance to make a first impression.”

Whoa! That’s sage advice, right? Wherever did I learn it? Oprah? Phil Donahue? The Smurfs?

Nope.

Dandruff shampoo taught me one of the biggest lessons a public speaker could ever learn. Thanks Head & Shoulders!

Unfortunately, I think far too many speakers missed that 30-second commercial because most speakers are making a lousy first impression.

And since there’s no way in heck, you want to be “most speakers” read on for my second public speaking pet peeve.

Pet Peeve #2 – Crappy Introductions

Seriously? How is this still a thing?

How many blog post, podcasts, and trainings have talked about the importance of a powerful opening? So many that I can’t count them on all my fingers, toes, and orifices.

And still speech after speech, I see far too many speakers wasting their precious first few moments with the audience by:

• Talking about themselves
• Asking “Can you hear me?” (What? Did you not go to the sound check?)
• Witty banter about the funny thing that happened to them on the way to the gig
• Making excuses for why the speech isn’t going to great

Sally Hogshead in her book “How the World Sees You” makes the argument that you have  only 9-seconds to fascinate your audience.

You either fascinate your audience in the first 9-seconds or you spend the rest of your speech trying to get your audience’s attention back.

Why do so many speakers blow these first precious moments? Because  it feels damn weird to walk on stage and just start. Most speakers want to start a conversation instead of standing in their power and grabbing attention.

You need to grab their attention. To launch in with a well-crafted first line. Don’t bury a great opening line and for heaven’s sake make sure you have a wow-worthy opener.

Nilofer Merchant spent 1-day and $1000 crafting the opening line for her TED talk. Yes, you read that right – one line for one grand.

In my Speak for Impact program my clients and I spend an inordinate amount of time on the opening of their speech. We need to nail it so that the audience is captivated and the presentation is a success.

You’ve got to get it right because you won’t get a do-over for your intro and with a speech there really never is a second chance to make a first impression.

[Tweet “Don't waste your precious first few moments with an audience: first impressions count!”]

Be sure to start your speech with a win every time, and I then I won’t have to get all ranty when I see you speak.

Although selling from the stage and bad openings both get under my skin, there’s nothing sadder than when next week’s pet peeve happens. Next week is about blowing the most important part of your speech and you don’t want to miss it!