I try to look at all the empty seats in the audience before a presentation or performance. It’s my, “If a tree falls in the forest…” philosophical motivation to be present at show time.
 
Whether you’re communicating to a large or small audience, in a banquet hall, networking venue, boardroom, or to just one person who will be sitting across from your desk, consider the empty seat(s). When it comes time for the people who will occupy them to hear what you have to say, will you make any sound?

When I’m getting ready to host an event, act as the MC, panel moderator, or deliver a keynote, an empty audience, or chair, reminds me to put thought, energy, and intent into the delivery of my ideas or comedy. Alone in front of empty chairs, I confirm that when my presentation “falls” out of my mouth, even without anyone being “in the forest” to hear it, I do, in fact, make a sound. Making it real for empty seats motivates me to be grateful for when there’s people sitting in front of me.
 
As an event Host, I’m making noise either way, whether the room is full or not, so framing the opportunity to have an attentive audience to listen as something to be respected inspires me to ensure that the sounds I create are meaningful.
 
If you’re struggling to find motivation to energize your next presentation, to one person or many, I think you can find some from getting a good look at the empty seats before you start. It might seem like a simple solution. When hosting or MCing events, speaking to your team, or presenting at a Town Hall, sometimes the easiest remedies are right in front of your yes, like seeing the forest through the trees. At the very least, you’ll reduce the risk that you’re just making noise.

When Cash Cab got rebooted in 2023/24, I had the opportunity to sit in the mini van that would eventually become the NEW Cash Cab. As I imagined, these seats were eventually filled by incredible Canadian personalities.

When I wrote this, I had just performed my Quiz Show and delivered a keynote presentation to two separate conventions of hundreds of teachers in Alberta. I didn’t get a chance to take a selfie in Medicine Hat at the venue for Southeastern Alberta Teachers Convention Association (SEATCA).

But, the pic at the top was in one of the big Halls at the Edmonton Convention Centre for Endless Skies Teachers Convention Association (EASTCA), through the The Alberta Teachers’ Association. Both audiences were spectacular, and I felt my effort to spend time with the empty seats in advance paid off.
 
Now, don’t get me started on the whole bear in the woods thing.