Keeping It Real: Why Engagement Beats Polish Every Time

"My work is about encouraging every kind of speaker — so that people who don't fit the mold never feel pressured to squeeze into one." — Gina Razón, GROW Voice LLC

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Have you ever wondered why so many "polished" speakers giving "fun" presentations fail to hit the mark?

They are great in the moment, but those "aha" action items quickly fade into faint memories of an entertaining presentation — doomed to die in your notes.

Why is it that sometimes a passionate ramble can charm you and teach you things you will never forget?

Because engagement, confidence, and passionate belief carry more weight than "polish" when it comes to presenting. But what if you could have both? That is our point today.

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I am often inspired by Richard Feynman — not just his work, but how he explained it. How he taught his students, and how he could appear on a television program and make physics completely understandable to anyone watching.

Two things were at play in equal measure.

First, Feynman was fascinated by the world and driven to explain it scientifically. That fascination could carry him from watching plates spin at a restaurant table all the way to playing with physics in ways that eventually contributed to his Nobel Prize-winning work in Quantum Electrodynamics. Second, he could explain anything with remarkable directness.

He put it plainly in the 1981 BBC documentary The Pleasure of Finding Things Out:

"You can know the name of a bird in all the languages of the world, but when you're finished, you'll know absolutely nothing whatever about the bird… I learned very early the difference between knowing the name of something and knowing something."

Passionate curiosity and clarity — these two things are at the heart of what converts cool ideas into concrete action.

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In our day-to-day lives, we often present because we must: numbers and results need reporting, problems need solving, education and sales require it. But what if we could approach those moments with genuine engagement? To become deeply interested in what is happening in the room, who the players are, and how clearly the information is being received. To lead with connection first.

The content matters, but it is not king. The connections between the people in the room and the genuine desire to engage are far more important. This is precisely what we risk losing as we become more "polished" speakers. We can evade the real in order to project an image. That often works in the room — but does it leave a lasting impact? Often not.

The invitation today is to become deeply interested in what you say and how you express your ideas — in meetings, presentations, and every verbal interaction. Learn to be passionate about the work you are doing, even if it isn't what you want to be doing. It is what you are doing, so you might as well do it well. Then pair that with a commitment to saying it as clearly as possible.

Dedication to your content does not need to be cleverly worded or designed to prove how smart you are. Engagement doesn't need to be complex. And "polish" alone cannot replace being the master of your neurophysical self as you communicate with other people.

As you look ahead to your speaking commitments this week — how can you be more grounded, more passionate about your content, and as clear as if you were explaining it to a curious child?

In other words: keep it real.

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There is much more to be said, of course. A few places to continue:

For more on mastering your communication, read this post.

For more on managing your neurophysical self for stronger presence, read this one.

And if you'd like help with your specific speaking challenges, click here to schedule a conversation.

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Gina Razón is a recovering opera singer, functional voice coach, keynote speaker, and founder of GROW Voice, a Boston-based voice and communication practice. She is recognized for being the calm voice of clarity as she helps others connect the intention behind their ideas with their desired goals. She speaks on the power of speaking and leading from a center of neurophysiological embodiment. Gina holds a BM from the University of Colorado, Boulder and an MM from the University of Denver both in Voice Performance.  She is an Appreciative Inquiry facilitator, an associate teacher of Fitzmaurice Voicework and trained in Somatic Voicework. She has served as the voice coach for TEDxNewEngland, and speaks at national and local events on the power of embodied voice. Gina is a member of the The Voice Foundation, the Voice and Speech Trainers Association, the National Speakers Association, and the Center for Appreciative Inquiry.

To see how Gina might help you design your communication infrastructure contact us.

For Gina’s TEDxCambridge talk click here.

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