The Career Ramifications of Self-Presentation Skills

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Posted November 23rd, 2009 by Zack

On today's Inside Higher Ed "Views" blog, Swarthmore College history professor Timothy Burke laments the problem of prepping students with Self-Presentation skills. Going beyond just public speaking, Burke thinks today's students (beyond just Swarthmore) are not properly prepared for speaking and presenting themselves in the professional world:

To be honest, I think some of our students become worse at self-presentation and speaking skills in their time here. Some adapt too strongly to the narrow particularity of academic conversation. Other students get too used to political or social engagement with a community that politely indulges most of their demands or arguments or has a fairly strong consensus culture, never really experiencing serious disagreement or plurality of opinion. I've occasionally suggested, semi-seriously, that I feel like we train some students as the speaking and presentation equivalents of baby seals on the ice, waiting to get clubbed
I think this is a generic problem at a lot of colleges and universities, mind you. The only distinctive aspect of it I see at Swarthmore is the intense value that students and faculty put on being mutually supportive and not seeming to want to show up other students with showy or critical comments. (This is not to say that we completely lack students who are flamboyantly talkative, but I feel as if there's a bit more reluctance here to stand apart.) In a lot of ways, this is a good part of the culture of the college, but it hobbles students a bit when the time comes closer to graduation, when they have to present themselves as confident, capable individuals whom someone should fund, admit or hire.

[...]

Presenting knowledge or arguments effectively involves putting together a lot of different sub-skills on the fly. You have to understand the context in which you're presenting, you have to be able to very quickly read the organizational sociology of that context. You need to be able to quickly pick up cues about the psychology and habitus of your audience and adjust when it's not what you planned for. You have to know when what you're arguing for is impossible or implausible, and whether there's something else to ask for, when you're setting the stage for a long-term objective or just making a temporary response to a situation that won't repeat itself, when to yield and when to hold firm.

I can attest to the importance of self-presentation in the real-world. While I'm a particularly unique case (I mean, you've obviously seen what I do for a living), presentation still extends beyond the on-camera work that I do. I host live Q & A's or town halls, or even at just networking events, I've found that it's important to be able to deliver a concise and direct message, and to be able to adapt that message depending on the reactions you are receiving.

While Burke does a great job of explaining both why these skills are important and the challenges of teaching these in an academic setting, he doesn't necessarily address how to move forward with this. Is this something students should be pushing for with their professors, faculty and administration? Should faculty take it upon themselves to work self-presentation skills into class-time?

I'm afraid I don't have much of an answer either. But my simple advice would be one of two things. First, challenge your professors and administration to take note of this issue, as it is as fundamental to a successful career as the theory and practice of what you study. Second, if that isn't an option or doesn't lead to changes, pursue it on your own. Public speaking classes can usually be found in most cities, and probably near your University as well, even if it is in a smaller/rural area. A fellow grad student recently began taking a course on his own time to brush up on his presentation skills, and he has been more than happy with the results.

How you present yourself, converse and debate has too many practical uses in your career to avoid. Be it in a pre-job interview, negotiating salary or a raise, presenting new ideas or strategies to co-workers or clients, or whatever your career may include, the ability to present both yourself and your thoughts is an important skill. If you don't think you're learning that skill in the self-contained atmosphere of the classroom, you owe it to your future self to take a step to change that.

"Visual Tools for Public Speaking" courtesy jonny goldstein via Flickr Creative Commons

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It is unfortunate that you

Submitted by Public Speaking Course (not verified) on Thu, 12/03/2009 - 8:07pm.

It is unfortunate that you feel that some students become worse at presenting while at your institution. However, at least you have public Speaking as a focus. In Australia, the ability to present and speak in public is given only cursory attention at University (college). It is a real shame as many smart people are unable to get their point across when they graduate. Cheers Darren Fleming Australia's Corporate Speech Coach

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