A friend asked me to keynote at their conference.
The time came.
They introduced me.
I walked out on stage and immediately forgot my friend was there. Almost missed shaking their hand, which would have been rude.
Why?
Because I learned a long time ago that when I walk on to the stage, that stage is mine. That room is mine. Anyone else up there is just an interloper.
This wasn't ego. (I do have an ego big enough to be seen from space, but that's a different story.)
The audience in front of me, and I've spoken to groups from 8 to 1,500+, had chosen to give me a block of their time. That's a debt. The moment I hit the stage, I owe them everything I've got.
When you step up to present, for your team, your club, your Board of Directors, you take on that same debt. Own it. Pay it off so well they leave wondering why it took them so long to learn from you.
Originally posted on LinkedIn: "You Owe Them"