Panels and fireside chats have become my favorite kind of public speaking — they require so little prep! — and moderating can be even more fun than being a panelist. Throughout my career, I’ve learned so much by asking amazing people to talk about what they’re passionate about.
Great tips, thank you for sharing as some of these will help my own practice in this area. One of my biggest bugbears is sitting through a panel where the moderator literally just asks the same question to each participant, and then moves to the next question. Really - I've been there too many times.
Whereas what I love about moderating panels is that the role feels part-facilitator, part-investigator - you go out to find the shades of grey, or the overlaps between participant experience. To do this you have to actively allow - and closely manage - digressions. But I find that the exciting element 'being on'. And if it all comes together your questions become fall-backs not go-tos.
Awesome tips!
abdi abrahim
cool
Great tips, thank you for sharing as some of these will help my own practice in this area. One of my biggest bugbears is sitting through a panel where the moderator literally just asks the same question to each participant, and then moves to the next question. Really - I've been there too many times.
Whereas what I love about moderating panels is that the role feels part-facilitator, part-investigator - you go out to find the shades of grey, or the overlaps between participant experience. To do this you have to actively allow - and closely manage - digressions. But I find that the exciting element 'being on'. And if it all comes together your questions become fall-backs not go-tos.
Hey Ami,
I really love your content, apologies if this is the wrong place, would love to collaborate at some point, just sent you a msg on LinkedIn.
Greetings from a fellow MS colleague in 2006