Monday, 12 January 2009

“You really need to work on your presentation skills.”

My team has been asked to deliver a presentation at a conference in London. My boss isn’t very warm towards the theoretical background that the conference is themed around; as an established expert in her field, she can afford to shrug off approaches she doesn’t agree with. I could see she wasn’t keen on going.

“I could go and do the presentation.”
“Hmmm.”
“If you’re not that into [that theory], and don’t want to spend time on it, I can go instead. If the [national authority in our field] think [that theory] is really important, we should do something.”
“I think you really need to work on your presentation skills.”

Ouch! What a sharp comment! She could tell that I was shocked, and she backtracked clumsily. But the damage was done. The severity of her words stung me. I don’t think my boss has ever seen me giving a presentation, as it happens, which means that she just thinks I’m not good enough, rather than knowing from experience.

How I feel about work: two steps forward, one step back.

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